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Sunday, June 29, 2014

Getting Social Media Use Under Control...

Social media.  Oh how I have a love hate relationship with thee.  
I see the good things, the connections, the advise, the friends I have made, the things I have learned.
BUT…
I also see the giant waste of time it sometimes becomes, the black hole that sucks hours of our precious time away!

Personally I go through stages.  Sometimes I feel like I am using it well, while others... not so much.  Recently God has called me to reevaluate how and when I use social media.  Basically He has said "Get it under control!  Are you spending the first moments of your day with me… or scrolling through Instagram?"

All that being said here are suggestions (some I am implementing and some I am not) for Getting Social Media Under Control!
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one

Set time to either be on social media or to be off social media.  Simple enough right?  Say, "I will only check my FB from 8:00-8:15," or "I will say off of social media from 5pm-10pm," or even "I will stay off of Instagram while my kiddos are awake."

two

Make certain places social media free.  Where is social media sucking the most time out of you?  Is it in the bed at night? In the car (we should probably all stop using it here!)? Is it at the dinner table?  Make social media off limits in those places and/or make a place where social media usage is done!  Side note, don't put your phone on the dinner table :)  

three

Make a call before you get on.  Call your mom, your hubby, an old friend.  Make a real life connection first.  Sometimes we miss out on real connections when we are only making them digitally. On that note… do you have a question for a friend or acquaintance?  Call instead of emailing or messaging.  I think you will be surprised how much time it saves.  I help friends with cloth diapering all the time and I can say it takes less time hands down to actually talk about it, than message back and forth!  Also there is something to be said for making that connection and getting support! 

four

Get an alarm clock.  Old fashioned… yes, genius… maybe :)!  I find that one of the times that I most vulnerable to the social media black hole is when I go to bed at night.  I miss out on valuable sleep time or time with the hubs when I do this.  I make an excuse for keeping the phone by the bed because it is my alarm clock.  If I were to have an actual alarm clock, my phone would not be by my bed and the temptation would be gone!

five

Dump the time wasting app or your smart phone all together.  Do you really needed the Facebook app? Twitter?  Pinterest?  It is hard to set boundaries when everything is at your fingertips.  Erase the app and only use those things on the computer during set aside times.  Ready to get more drastic (we are not quite here yet) dump the smart phone altogether.  Not only will you save a bunch of time but you will also save a bunch of money.  Getting rid of the "smart" phone., might just be the smartest decision!

six

Take long breaks.  Take a day off, weekend off, a week off.  As a blogger, I struggle with this one.  If I take a few days off I will loose followers, my numbers will go down.  But guess what I have realized… that is okay and it is worth it.  I have some scheduled time off coming up.  Also, word to the wise, one sign you are addicted?  You feel like you can't take time off.

seven

Use an app like Stay Focused or actually record how much time you are on SM during one day. Have you heard of Stay Focused?  It is something you can set up that limits your social media time.  Great tool!  Also,  just taking one day and the stop watch on your phone could be pretty powerful when you actually see in real numbers the amount of time you are wasting!

And the most important advise.  The advise that is changing me and led me to all of this...

Spend time in the Word. Spend time with God.  Spend time memorizing scripture.  Do this more.  Do social media less.  Spend the time before during and after in prayer.  Ask God what is my motivation in writing/posting/pinning/tweeting/sharing this?  

Any other suggestions?  We are in an age that we need to get our media addictions under control, while still using them for the good we can get out of them! :)
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8 comments:

  1. Great great tips!!

    I deleted all of the really tempting apps off of my phone so that I can't mindlessly scroll. I can only access them when I take the time to get on the computer, which I don't do unless Abigail is asleep{napping or bedtime} Other no phone zones are the kitchen table!

    I'm with you, I see the blessing AND the curse of it and try to be aware of how much I'm using it and for what purpose.

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    1. Glad other people are with me! I really like your "rules!":)

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  2. This is a great post! It's really sad how much time we on social media. I used to wake up and immediately grab my phone to check facebook, but then I made myself stop doing that and start grabbing my Bible instead. I'm also pretty bad about being on my phone in the car while my husband drives, so I've been trying to be aware of that and leave it in my purse. Thanks for the tips!

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    1. I am right there with you! It is amazing how much more I am energized by my time with God, yet I am tempted to scroll. I am learning to be disciplined!

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  3. Yes and yes! Social media has become mindless for me. I'll be at the computer and check Facebook even though I was just there less than an hour ago. What could have possibly happened in an hour?! I recently listened to a spiritual talk that advised "No Bible, No Breakfast. No Bible, No Bed." I should change that first one to No Bible, No Screentime. I came over from List It {Tuesday}.

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    1. I really like that saying… I might have to share it! And thanks for stopping by! I cohost a link up on Wednesday- What You Wish Wednesday- You should come by again! :)

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  4. Great tips! This is very timely for me because I'm pregnant with our first child and working on a post on my thoughts on social media's role in my life as I'm becoming a mother. I don't want it to continue to consume as much time as it does and I need to start getting it under control now!

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    1. Glad you enjoyed the tips! So excited for your journey into motherhood:)

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