For the last several weeks, I went socially dark. Social media that is. Not halfway, no grey areas, but dark. Deleting all the apps with the exception of email and one that I use to speak with my family. This was not an experiment. This was not because of a trend or due to reading some of those books out there that are all about the statistics of how much time we spend glued to our devices. Nope. None of that. What got me there was frustration.
Frustration with social media, what’s new?
You may be thinking, “You were frustrated so you deleted practically every form of communication with people?!” Maybe you are on the other end of the spectrum and you are cheering me on, “Good for you, I wish I could do that.” Whatever your reaction may be, that is fine. My hope is not to sway you to think about your social media or screen time. I also don’t want to cause an argument of why this was either a good thing or a bad thing. That is your own personal opinion and conviction. It has nothing to do with me. What I do hope to accomplish in this post is sharing a story; my story.
The Why behind it
As I stated previously, the real reason, the “why” behind taking this time to do a social media fast was frustration. This boiled down to frustration of “constant”. Constant chimes of messages, constant interruptions throughout the day, and the constant procrastination that would inevitably follow. I was frustrated that I felt like if I didn’t check the messages, I would miss out on something. However, when I did check the messages and it was nothing important or even relevant to me, I was also frustrated with the fact that I had just wasted time. I was frustrated at myself for not realizing that five minute brain breaks would turn into 30 minute scrolling and procrastination moments. Finally, I was frustrated that I didn’t think to do this sooner.
The Feeling of Leaving it Behind
The first few hours after deleting all the apps and telling everyone in person, there was this indescribable weight lifted from me. The whole next week, when I found out that I was missing drama, there was dancing and lots of smiles on my face because I had escaped it! Though there were things that I felt I was missing out and were a little sad about, I knew the pros of this were going to outweigh the cons.
What I found instead
I found somethings to be interesting. I noticed how productive I was without a constant interruption. I had additional time in the day to do things that I wanted. I did not feel as drained and tense after each day, especially with teaching on a screen all day. I was able to finish 2 books and start two more in just two weeks. I didn’t feel like I needed my phone around me at all times. I actually felt like I was able to have good conversations with people because they were in person. I think I got out of my house more often because I had to communicate with others the old-fashioned way, face-to-face. I enjoyed sending my first letter overseas and having the opportunity to catch up on some writing (like this post).
In the midst of all the positive results, I also found that I looked to fill some extra time by watching TV, not the best alternative. I realized that I did miss being in the know, but only a little bit. I would have rather been able to talk to a few people overseas, using social media, but found other ways to communicate, as well as an opportunity to miss people.
Lessons learned
I believe that I personally learned a few lessons that I want to spend more time making a priority in life. Ready?
- Time. I learned that time is so valuable and I enjoyed having more time to accomplish things. I learned that slowing down actually makes things on your to-do list go faster.
- Space. I learned that I need to regularly make space in my life where my phone becomes nothing more than an expensive paperweight. Separate myself from the screen.
- Communication. I learned how communication does not always use a screen and keyboard. I learned that I missed the simpler times where communication was face-to-face or hand-written.
- Hobbies. I learned that actually did not have a hobby, so I was able to try some new things and experience some new places.
- People. I learned which relationships mattered the most to me. Who I valued was who I sought to spend time with and reach out to. A lot of that additional time was spent with the Father, with not a moment wasted.
So that, in short, is what the time away from devices did for me. I cannot wait to do this again soon and figure out how not to make it to that point of frustration before I go there again. If you have done a socially dark experiment before and want to share what you learned or what helped you, be sure to comment below.
