Have you been thinking about doing a social media detox?
If you’ve been considering taking a break from social media, you probably should. Easier said than done, they say! Social media are part of our daily life and while, we consume it on a daily basis, we don’t realize how much time is wasted on different social media channels.
After reading the book Everything is Figureoutable, I realized I spent a few hours a day browsing Facebook and Instagram, and while I do need to use social media as part of marketing strategies for my websites, I don’t need so much of it.
In this post, we’ll discuss your options when it comes to social media detoxification, the benefits of deleting social media, and how to detox from social media.
If you’re like me, you may just need to save time and cut back on your social media consumption. That’s okay too and that’s a great step forward if you wish to improve your productivity. That said, there will be some tips to cut back your time wasted on social media too.
Reducing or Deleting Social Media?
The first thing to do is to know how much time you spend on social media on a daily basis. In your settings on your mobile phone, there’s a way to see how much screen time you use.Â
The first time I did it – I was shocked! I was consuming social media for hours every single day. And the worst part here was that this was only on my mobile. If I had to add the time spent via my laptop, it could get even worst.
Once you know more about your social media consumption, you can decide if you need a break or if you wish to reduce your time spent browsing and scrolling down social media.
Benefits of Deleting Social Media
If you’ve been playing with the idea of deleting your social media channels, you may be wondering what are the benefits and advantages.
Our little screens follow us everywhere.
Instead of connecting with each other, we stare at our screens and we ask for the wifi password. While it can be ideal for introverts, we are losing the chance of connecting with one another.
Social media can be positive, or negative. If you’re like me, you probably have some “weird friends” on your Facebook or Instagram, and you may have hidden their posts. After all, who wants to be surrounded by negative thoughts?
Not only social media consumption requires time, but if it’s going to suck your energy too, it’s surely not ideal, is it?
How would it feel if one morning, you would wake up without rushing to get your phone? Or if you would fall asleep away from your screen? While it may feel weird to imagine it, it shows us how addicted we are to our phones. Without social media, we may be doing other things, like listening to a podcast, read a book, or simply talk with your partner before heading to bed.
It forces you to sit with your thoughts and being more active.
Whether it’s about having a conversation at dinner, or an extra workout session at the gym, your free time will give you more time to think and create. I personally have more ideas when I’m at the gym, at the Spa, or walking around a new city than when I’m scrolling on Instagram.
When I found out I was spending 3-4 hours per day on social media, it felt like I was wasting precious time. I could be doing something more productive than scrolling down on Facebook. Let’s be honest – there’s not much value found there.
How to Detox from Social Media Completely
If you want to completely detox from social media, the first thing you should do is to delete all your social media apps on your phone.
If you need accountability, you can also detox with a friend and give a call to each other once a day. The goal here is to not have to use social media to contact each other. If you live with someone, you can ask them to take your phone away completely or just check-in with you once a day to know how your day went.
A great way to stop your social media consumption is to change your background on your mobile and opt for something like these. (You can sign up here to download these images for free!)Â
We have the tendency to take our phone when we are bored, and this habit can take over our time. The goal here is to be conscious of your phone usage.
You could also redesign your routine. For example, you could put your phone on charge in another room. You could also make a rule for yourself like what you can’t use your phone past 10 PM or before breakfast. This way, you will reprogram your routine and you will even get extra free time.
There are other tips like buying a real alarm clock instead of using the alarm on your phone (remember those?!). You could create a file on your home screen which includes all your apps. Give it a silly name such as Goodbye Social Media or The Jail to remind yourself not to click on these apps.
If you’re using a laptop to consume social media too, you can install this Chrome extensions:
These extensions allow you to block websites and force you to work. You can set up break times, and pick the websites to block.
How to Reduce Your Social Media Consumption
Before going completely off social media, many of us will consider reduction first. This is what I did and I’m going to break down the tips to help you reduce your social media consumption.
- Remove notifications on your social media and while you’re at it, why not remove notifications for your emails too. This could help the workaholics amongst us.
- Set up a daily limit on your social media. I set it up to a maximum of 15-30 minutes depending on the app. Once the time limit is reached, I can’t access the app for the rest of the day.
- Don’t get a SIM card or leave your phone at home if you don’t need it. I developed the habit of not bringing my phone everywhere with me and sometimes, in some countries, I don’t get a SIM card so I can truly enjoy my time outside the house.Â
Again here, if you need extra help, changing your phone background, or installing Chrome extensions could help you be more productive and avoid wasting time on social media.
Final Thoughts on a Social Media Detox
Yes – social media takes too much time in our daily life and it is absolutely counter-productive. Unless you find real value in social media, you surely don’t need to spend a couple of hours (if not more) browsing your feeds every day.
Whether you prefer to stop social media altogether or reduce your social media consumption, I’m confident the tips mentioned above are going to help you.
