How is that social media diet going?
In December last year, I wrote an article about my social media diet. Here are some reflections a year on. Changes I made and what I reverted back to:
- I never ended up taking a complete break
I think that once I’m getting booked solid, I’d be more comfortable relying on my word-of-mouth network. Right now, however, I still want to be able to reply to opportunities that come floating by, so I haven’t taken a complete break from social media.
- I take “weekends off”
I do check social media on weekends, and sometimes reply to threads when I find I have something to say. However, I spend much less time on there than during the workweek. I also feel less of a sense of obligation and can spend a whole day not even thinking about “let me check my socials”. This lets me take a real break from the work week and focus on other things.
- I feel invested in a smaller number of websites
I’m happier to just let some websites be, and I’m more heavily invested in two or three platforms instead of 6 or 7 at once. This makes sure I don’t drop the ball on a lot of them and gives me peace of mind.
- No checking of social media when I wake up
Okay, when I know a post is doing pretty well I still crave that dopamine rush and check my phone in the morning. But as long as nothing special is happening, I just start my day without social media and get caught up later
- I do check social media along the day
I noticed that I enjoy jumping on bandwagons on Twitter. There’s a sense of real-time community there that I find fun and feels worthwhile to me. So during breaks, I do scroll along Twitter and check one or two servers on Discord instead of confining it to one hour a day.
- I feel less obliged to be on social media
This relates basically to all points above. Even though I don’t limit my social media intake per-se, I feel less of a sense of obligation to stay on the platforms and feel like I’m there more on my own terms. I’m better able to focus for longer blocks of time and I’m able to ignore platforms if I just don’t feel like being confronted with other people’s opinions, woes and achievements. I’m giving myself permission to stay in my own little real-life bubble, and that’s really nice sometimes.