Like many people these days, I have recently found myself scrolling through social media on my phone. I was wasting way too much time, and it was taking over my life. Whenever I had idle moments, I would pull out my phone. And then one day (about a month ago), I deleted all of the social media apps.
There are still reasons to use social media. I like sharing a “song of the day” on my Instagram stories. There are several groups on Facebook about various subjects (ataxia, writing, Taylor Swift) where I often learn great tips or interesting news. I enjoy posting graphics about all the books I've read during the month. I also enjoy staying in touch with friends and family, especially those I don't get to see regularly. Also, ever since I was promoting my music on MySpace, I've always had some artistic project to promote so there was always this idea in the back of my head that I had to have a presence on social media.
But none of those things require being on social media more than once or twice a week. (Or five minutes a day in the case of posting my “song of the day.") And most of the time, I wasn't using it in a productive way. I was spending way too much time reading posts from random people I don't know--getting upset about all the divisive things (that these companies constantly show you because anger keeps people on these platforms).
I decided I needed a break. Sure, there are positive uses of social media, but I hadn't been prioritizing any of them, so I decided they could all wait. I didn't just need a break from social media; I needed to shift my perspective on it.
The first few days or so, it felt almost like trying to quit smoking or any other addictive behavior. I found myself constantly wanting to open those apps. Initially, I started opening my Kindle app and reading one of the hundreds of ebooks on my TBR. And then eventually, I realized I wasn't looking at my phone as much.
I found myself looking around more and paying more attention to the things in front of me. I started looking out the window more when riding in the passenger seat, I paid more attention to beauty in my environment, I was more present with the people I was with in person, and I was more productive. After about a week of this, I felt like I had a lot more space--in my life, in my mind, in my world.
Social media in and of itself is not bad. Smartphones in and of themselves are not bad. They are tools. But these tools work better for me if I pick them up to use them for a specific task and then put them down, like an actual tool. (Can you imagine if everyone walked around constantly staring at and being distracted by a hammer?)
And I think I needed that time away from social media to change the role of the phone in my life. Now I pick up my phone to turn the lights on or send a text message or look at my email if I have a notification. But I don't just idly scroll through Instagram Reels or constantly open my email even when I don't have any notifications.
And now that I have made this shift, I do feel like I can resume my “song of the day” posts or my monthly book graphics or even checking in on friends and family without wasting time endlessly scrolling.
I know not everyone has this problem with social media or the phone, but so many people do. Next time you are out anywhere, pay attention to how many people are doing nothing except staring at their phones.
The smartphone can be a wonderful tool. Some apps will help you do practically anything, you can learn anything you want, and it makes it easy to stay in touch with anyone--no matter where you are in the world. But the next time you use your phone to do any of those things, after you are finished, put your phone down and look up at the world around you.