Anti-Social Media? or Social Media?

Does social media foster connection? Or does it encourage separation?

Sometimes it's hard to tell. Through Facebook, you can keep connections with people from your hometown, mission, or classes. It can also be a way for you to connect with someone in class. Instagram can be a natural way for you to send memes or reels to a friend. Twitter (or X) can allow you to spread news. 

But, these apps can also suck you into hours of scrolling. 

Clearly, the separating factor in this is how we use it.

Here is some unsolicited advice for what I have tried to help me keep social media social.

  1. Set a time limit for how long you can use apps. If you want to use it longer you can, but it is a reminder that can stop the doom scrolling. (15 minutes is a good starting point.)
  2. Open an app with one of three purposes: see how a specific friend is doing or check up generally on everyone or to look for something entertaining. Acknowledge what the purpose is.
  3. Before scrolling reels, decide before hand how long you will scroll. 10 minutes? 15 minutes? 30 minutes? Set a mental or physical timer. This will allow you to choose how long you do this.
  4. Put all your social media apps into one folder. This can add one more step to access them, allowing you a little more time to think. I have been helped by this because I noticed that I developed a reflex to turn on my phone and click an app without choosing to since it was reflexive.
  5. Pick up or renew a hobby. Find a hobby that you can do with little snatches of time. Maybe it's drawing, knitting, reading, singing, listening to music, or something else. This will let you do something enjoyable. 
  6. Give yourself at least one opportunity to feel boredom a day. This one sounds weird, but try it out for a week! Boredom may not be as boring as it sounds.
What about y'all? Do y'all have any tips for keeping social media social?

Comments

  1. Karen GageApril 10, 2024 at 10:44 AM

    I don't have more tips but i think defintely only getting on when you have a purpose is super helpful!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Haley HaunApril 12, 2024 at 3:20 PM

    Thanks for your post, Connor! I really appreciated the idea about setting an actual timer when you choose to doom scroll or reel out. I think I am definitely going to try that next time!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Jayde ThomasApril 12, 2024 at 7:06 PM

    This is great! A week ago, I realized how much time I was spending scrolling Instagram, so I decided to set a 20 minute timer. It's been hard, but I've been sticking to it and have noticed I feel a lot less stressed during the day!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Natalie PorterApril 12, 2024 at 8:33 PM

    These are great suggestions! My favorite is the idea to put all social media apps in one folder. I do that and then I hide it within my apps so that I become more mindful of when I actually choose to open the app.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Domanique KempApril 16, 2024 at 1:37 PM

    Thank you for thinking this out and for your advice on social media use. I love the idea of putting all media apps in the same folder. I do this as well, and it not only keeps me organized, but I also turn my notifications off for some of my social media apps because it is just too much. So that also helps me

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hannah DayApril 16, 2024 at 6:31 PM

    I enjoyed the suggetions for useage that you give in this article. I find it very applicable and useful.

    ReplyDelete

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