Social Media Break Update

This Lenten season, I stepped away from social media. I came upon this decision a few days after Lent started, but decided that it was better late than never. To say I have been completely social-media-free would be false. The only three apps that I cut out were Instagram, Facebook and TikTok (which I don’t really frequent much anyway). I kept other apps like Pinterest, Liketoknowit, Etsy, etc. for inspiration and work.

So let me tell you how it went…

It was AMAZING! I truly loved taking a step back from social media and reevaluating my relationship with the apps. To say that social media is a time-suck would be an understatement. I cut my cellphone screen time by more than half just by eliminating social media use. I will confess, though, that there were a few times I had to access either Instagram or Facebook to get contact information, etc. for someone/something, but there was never any mindless browsing - just direct and quick searching.

I did have some trouble in the beginning and truly thought I’d made a giant mistake when I hit “Sign Out” on the apps. But after a few days of picking up my phone with “no place to go,” I got over it quick and have immensely enjoyed the detox.

What will social media use look like moving forward?

That’s a great question, and truthfully, I hope it doesn’t end up back to the way that it was. I hope to use the platforms in a much more calculated way. While I do have limits set on social media use on my phone, I do plan to tighten those limits and crack down even more. I also hope to have more pre-planned content so that I don’t need to spend lots of time scrolling - I can just post what I need to, interact some to make the algorithm happy and move on.

Would I recommend a social media break?

Absolutely! If you feel like Instagram and Facebook and sucking time from you - take a break. If you find yourself picking up your phone and immediately clicking the Instagram app - even when you didn’t plan to - take a break. If you’re stuck in a comparison trap to others - take a break. Trust me, you won’t miss anything important.

But what if I run a business?

Admittedly, this is where it got tricky. Revenues were definitely down through the month of March, simply because I wasn’t talking about products everyday. Email marketing was a great way to continue to reach others, but it definitely doesn’t have the same effect that social media marketing can have. One great perk for business though, is that it has given me time to focus on other areas of my business that might need addressed, time to work on new product offerings, assess some marketing events in the coming months, and more. Social media isn’t a business strategy, so stepping away shouldn’t be the “end” for you!

Have you taken a social media break? How did you feel like it went? Would you do it again? Comment below and let me know!