I need to go on a social media diet. Much has been written about how toxic and depressing social media is but that’s not my problem. My issue is that I have a voracious appetite for information. Social media provides a nonstop stream of it and I’ve realized I have wasted incredible amounts of time living on Reddit and Twitter. I also pop onto Facebook in between my sessions on the other platforms.
Reddit and Twitter can be really useful. Reddit is great for finding communities that share your interests. Twitter can give you real time breaking stories and reactions. You can spend all day in either one of them, I was doing it in both. I am quitting reddit cold turkey, it is the most engaging, informative, diabolical time sink you can imagine. I follow a fairly serious group of people on Twitter that specialize in Apple, the Middle East, meta cultural issues, the first amendment, and a smattering of others. I have been exposed to some amazing people and links to amazing works on Twitter so I am loath to give it up completely. It is also often the best way to get a hold of companies for help or addressing issues. My approach to using Twitter and not getting sucked back in is TBD but I am going to work on that.
What about Facebook? Like Twitter, I have maintained a good list of people to follow, I appreciate all of you! Because of that I’ve mostly been able to avoid the nuttiness and stress that so many people hate Facebook for. I do think Facebook is at its best when it is used to keep tabs on friends and family. I still want to use Facebook for that and I think I have a strategy for trimming my use but not abandoning it.
What am I going to do with all this extra time I have freed up? Well, the first thing I want to do is get back to this blog. I’ve threatened this in the past so we’ll see how it goes but right now I’m feeling confident. My plan is to put something up here at least once a week. I’ll post it to Facebook and that’s when I will allow myself to spend a little time there. I won’t read any reactions on Facebook though, I am going to do that through my blog.
I also hope to get back to things I’ve loved doing but have gotten away from, listening to music and reading in particular. My attention span has been whittled down to nothing due to my endless scrolling of info. I want to get back to thinking about… Actually, I just want to get back to thinking. Social media encourages reaction. My new plan is to ingest more complete information and then rest and share more slowly.
I’ll still be available on Facebook Messenger if you want/need to get a hold of me. I’ll still drop in from time to time but I will no longer check Facebook multiple times a day. I’m looking forward to getting my thoughts and time back.