Maybe I’m just getting old, or perhaps my mental health has now been pinned more firmly to the top of my to do list!
Boundaries and completion are my words of the year and they came to me after Christmas whilst I was reflecting on 2019 and thinking about my year ahead.
By taking time away from social media over the holidays, I started my boundaries pact ahead of time without even realising!
You see, I believe that whether we’re on social media for personal or business reasons there are so many parts of our day that can easily become filled with it as it can leak through into your day, a bit like sand leaks out from between your fingers when you hold a handful.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not putting it down, far from it; social media has helped me support and indeed be supported by so many people. I’ve made long-lasting connections, spread word of my business and built a safe online space for business-owning women.
I’m the first person to express gratitude to social media and all its allowed me to do, but I do believe that thought it’s amazing and beneficial it can be very easy to get lost and overwhelmed in.
I noticed that I didn’t have time to miss it when I took my detox recently, as by stepping away you give your mind the chance to clear (a little like a de-cluttering expert might recommend you clear the floor and surface space so you can enjoy your bedroom more). By clearing your mental headspace that would usually be cluttered by other people’s experiences, nights out, special offers, rants, holidays, petitions or baby photos (yes it really can be that random) you are no less of a person for not knowing or having seen all that, instead you have more room in your head to experience and fully enjoy your day, your memories, or indeed ideas, aspirations and dreams.
They say children don’t know how to be bored these days …. well have you taken time to recognise this trait in yourself maybe?
When you’re standing in a queue, waiting at school pick up, sat on the train or on the sofa in the evening after a busy day. How long does it take for that reflex to kick in and your hand reaches for the smartphone?
I would love you to try a detox – see how it feels.
I’d recommend you set up some scheduled posts over a weekend or if you dare, stretch to a week … all the better!
Remove apps from your phone during this time (FB, Insta, LinkedIn, Twitter etc.) and trust that the world won’t stop turning! (I promise you it won’t) Interestingly, everyone else’s world, social media feed and brain will remain busy so they possibly won’t notice you even took the break!
I’d love to learn if it feels hard to do, takes a while to adjust to or maybe you find it easy and rather lovely!
I am fairly sure you’ll be surprised at how good it feels to break the habit and buy back some time and headspace. You’ll probably have time to be more social in real life too, as social media expert Rebecca Ward recommends with her business message #thinkSOCIALbeSOCIAL.
Personally, I have now kept the FB & LinkedIn apps off my phone and I only use these applications when I’m in the office. It has made a huge difference to the amount of time I’m frittering away on them and it leaves my mind active and clear the rest of the time.
Do let me know if you try a detox as I’d love to hear how you find it …
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