Minimalism Monday - Social Detox

 

  

3 quick tips to turn social media from fiend to friend.

If you caught last Monday's post then you would have gotten the first taste of 'Minimalism' from this blog so far. It's a new concept I'm working on and bringing into my everyday life and the launch article was all about culling my makeup collection since it so closely ties into the main beauty theme that runs through this blog.

In this second minimalism post we are going to be talking about something very different and not so tangible - detoxing and being minimal on social media.

I have 3 quick tips on how to turn social media from an obsession and enemy into something friendly that makes you happy. Read on for these easily applicable methods to bringing minimalism into your social media habits..

1. Unfriending / Unfollowing
How much stuff do you stare at everyday that wastes your time and makes you unhappy? If you follow a negative person on Facebook where all they do is update their status complaining about every slight inconvenience that happens throughout the day, their negative energy might be affecting you. You don't have to unfriend them if they are still someone you care about but you should remove the negativity from your life by unfollowing their statuses so that it doesn't pop up when you are scrolling through Facebook.

Same goes for if you follow an Instagram model and their seemingly perfect life makes you feel down on your life in comparison. I personally love following Instagram models and celebrities that have a great attitude because it adds positive energy to my life and gives me something to aspire to. I don't feel insecure but rather strive to improve my life in the ways that I admire theirs. It's all about what works for you.

When going through your profile ask yourself the following questions to decide whether to unfriend or unfollow the person.
Does this person / account and their content make me happy?
Do they add value to my life in some way?
How do I feel when I see their content?


2. Turn Off Notifications
This one is a life changer - seriously try it! How much time are you wasting staring down at your phone to check every time it beeps? If you were anything like me then my guess is - a lot. Many times throughout the day I would hear a beep, look down, only to see someone had retweeted something or left a comment on my Instagram. I have no idea why it was so important for me to keep up with and track every little thing that went on within my social media platforms!

Honestly, it was such a huge waste of time constantly worrying about that stuff. So I simply turned off my notifications for everything other than Facebook messenger. Now I allocate certain time slots to checking social media and being active on there or I only go on when I have a spare moment rather than checking consistently throughout the day every time I got a notification.

You find you are a lot less distracted throughout the day and actually remember to reply to people because the time you do spend on social media is better quality. If you are in the middle of a thought process or driving you are likely not going to be able to reply to the person and will forget about it so just leave it for when you do have a moment to sit down and reply.

3. Platform Selectiveness
This one is pretty freaking simple and it is to only use platforms you enjoy! Seems obvious right - social media is for entertainment and contentedness purposes so why would you waste time on a platform that doesn't serve you at all? Especially if you run an online business or are a social media personality there can be a huge pressure to be present on all social media platforms due to FOMO.

I was the kind of rebel in high school who didn't get Facebook until 3 years after it came out because I refused to conform. Somewhere along the line that mentality disappeared with me (but also Facebook is pretty awesome).

So for me personally I love using Instagram and Facebook. I've ditched Snapchat, Twitter and Pinterest because I just don't enjoy them as much. I've also never gotten into Vine, Periscope or whatever the latest trends in social media are because often they aren't long lasting and when they flop you have wasted so much time and energy into building up your profile.

Just do what you want, no one is forcing you to be on every social media. Choose the platforms that speak to you most and make you happy when you are spending time on them.


Bonus Tip!
Actually have a social media detox where you log out from all of your social media accounts for a set period of time. It could be a full working day or a whole weekend, it's up to you. But it is so important to disconnect from social every once in a while and the scary part is when you realize how addicted you really are when you keep habitually attempting to check your messages and profiles. Switch off social and tell you close friends and family that if they need to contact you then to shoot you a text instead.

For a seemingly connected generation, social media often divides people. Never before have we been able to contact anyone we want at the touch of our fingertips yet have not caught up with that person IRL for weeks and months at a time. I'm trying to bring back real and genuine connection to my life instead of the false illusion that social media offers.

Side note: Don't get my wrong. Social media definitely has a place and is awesome for connecting with people all over the world or friends you don't have time to catch up with. I'm just saying I want to create situations where I can have a more authentic human experience with someone that isn't just over social media.