I’ve had an interesting relationship with social media over the last month. In December, I made a resolution to take the month of January off of all social media (which, for me, is basically just Facebook and Twitter). There was one caveat: I’d still post links to new blog posts or articles I’d written, as well as announcements for podcasts I post.
I haven’t really followed the resolution to the letter, but it’s been awful close. I’ve stayed well away from Twitter, but some of my real-world interactions with groups of friends have relied on Facebook invites for so long that I’ve spent some time looking there. In turn, I end up reading a few posts and, today, I responded to one. The perception of my resolution was an all-out ban, which has resulted in some gentle ribbing from some of my friends about the few posts I have put up. And while some would see my minimal access to social media as a failure of my resolution, I’ve found it wildly successful.
Before the resolution, I was allowing Facebook and Twitter to dominate my free time. Every time I was watching a movie, or reading a book, or even playing a video game, I was still periodically checking social media. I was letting it distract from my writing, including my novel and my blog, to the point where I’d go a full week or more without writing a damned thing. I was letting it eat me up.
In the time off I’ve accomplished loads more than I had previously. I’m about to finish a full revision of my novel in less than 3 weeks, a task that took me 10 and 16 weeks, respectively, for my last revisions. I’ve written more, and more substantive, blog posts in that time, and have now put my podcast onto a solid production schedule with definitive publication dates. On top of all that, I’ve learned how to find things I want to watch and read on the internet on my own, rather than relying on links to click-bait sites in my social media feeds.
In February, I’m going to go back to posting and reading social media, but not in as much volume, and hopefully with a more discerning eye for what links I will follow and discussions I’ll take part in. It’s given me perspective on what to share and how to share it, as well, which will (hopefully) be beneficial when I start promoting my book.
This is an experiment I’d implore everyone to try, at least for a little while. The rules don’t need to be hard and fast, and ignore the peer pressure of people telling you how you should be doing it. The break from social media reminded me of how to break out of my echo chamber and find information on my own, which will hopefully lead to me being one of the people who is posting more links for others to read rather than clicking on them. It’s helped my productivity and my overall mental state.
But, in truth, I can’t wait for February to come. There are a lot of social interactions I’m really missing right now, and it’ll be good to remind myself how much fun I have on social media. See you guys in a few days.
