A month without social media
It was both easier and harder than I thought it would be.
For half the month I found myself subconsciously pulling my phone out, because: habit.
While annoying, it only affirmed my absence. I hope it wasn’t too hard on all my friends and followers.
I sort of wish Instagram had sent Jehovah Witness style messengers to knock on my door and ask to speak with me about their lord and savior Social Media.
My #SeptemberToRemember was full of a lot of things.
I went to a concert and didn’t post a picture on Instagram.
I waited in a checkout line and didn’t surf my Twitter feed.
I took absolutely zero selfies (okay that wasn’t much of a change).
I had conversations with people at a table while looking at them.
My phone didn’t need to be charged twice a day.
I didn’t know what your baby was doing or what your plate of food looked like.
I thought of jokes and observations and I didn’t tell anyone.
I actually didn’t know the answer when I asked friends “What have you been up to?”.
I went from wondering what I might be missing to not caring what I was actually missing.
To be completely honest, the month of September was a great lesson that less can definitely be more. It benefited me to connect with people in real life. It felt good to not have to keep up with everything that was being posted.
I know social media is a great tool, a phenomenal way to stay connected, and a whole basket of fun.
But like most things, sometimes we take it too far and sometimes we abuse it too much.
I’m back on all platforms now and really the overwhelming feeling is that: I didn’t really miss it.
While I plan on continuing to use Instagram, and Twitter, my goal is to use them in moderation and without dependency. Use them with purpose and not as a subconscious time filler that wastes my life.
I didn’t really miss it.
I didn’t really need it.
And that is just fine with me.