I’m on a social media break: here’s what I’ve learned
Let’s all agree to stop rushing and enjoy time out.
As a Xennial (Millennial/ Gen Xer) I remember a time when social media wasn’t ingrained in everyday life.
When I was a kid we had an Amstrad computer with a few games on it. I remember being disappointed it couldn’t answer questions I typed out (did I predict the internet??). It wasn’t until 15 years ago when Facebook gained popularity my online life evolved.
During the 6 months I spent in bed during chemo, the internet became my lifeline to the outside world. YouTube provided an escape through travel videos. Instagram and Facebook helped me show people the reality of cancer treatment. It was also a way to disconnect because I didn't have the energy for in-person relationships.
too much scrolling
I've joked a few times I finished the internet. My scrolling has taken me to bizarre places. Even though I've wanted to spend less time on the internet, it's a hard habit to break when so much of my life is online.
I can't pinpoint exactly when I hit a creative wall. My hunch is when my covid anxiety peaked. But hit a wall I did and I knew I needed to take a step back. I felt a deep desire to find a way to create meaningful connections with my content.
The pandemic has kept many of us in a small bubble. Before 2020, my life had become a lot smaller. First as a cancer patient, then as a person recovering from cancer treatment. I have felt like my life has been in a holding pattern and I'm ready for it to change.
how to do nothing
My first step in disconnecting from social media was to take Facebook and Instagram off my phone. It was too easy to scroll when I was waiting, sitting in front of the TV in the evening, or anytime I had the urge. Next, I disabled my Twitter account. For me, Twitter is the biggest anxiety-inducing platform. Then I went to the library and checked out some books. Radical I know. I was gathering alternatives to spending time online in my downtime.
The book I was most interested in was How to do Nothing by Jenny Odell. I admit I was expecting a how-to guide, but what I got was much more profound. If you haven't already I recommend reading it, especially if you want to spend less time online. At the core of her book is an argument for noticing more. Take time to be curious about your environment and to stop rushing.
As an artist and academic her style is rich in theory and depth. It forced me to think about how little I know about my neighbourhood, my neighbours, and my habit of rushing. Rushing is a by-product of capitalism, we define our worth through our productivity. Lockdown hit pause on rushing, our job was to stay at home and be nice to each other. Remember how many people talked about the need to change our priorities?
“I no longer wish to rush and have my worth in society defined by my productivity..”
With the world opening up again there is amnesia about what we learned during lockdown. We are back to rushing and productivity. My aim in starting my own business is to create a life where my well-being is my priority. On one level it has, I can start my days how I like, take my dogs out when I need a nature break, and I am doing something I love.
On another level hustle culture is entrepreneurship's version of rushing and productivity. And I am sick of the hustle. When I was having chemo I had a sense life needed to be different. I anchored my self-worth in my achievements which had led to burn-out(s). It took me a cancer diagnosis, pandemic, and adult diagnosis with ADHD to surrender.
Saying no to the hustle
I no longer wish to rush and have my worth in society defined by my productivity. Disengaging from social media is my first step. It's become a lot easier to resist the urge to check Facebook and Instagram. The handful of times I have posted I notice the surge of dopamine from checking how many people like the post. But liking a post doesn't mean people connect with the content.
The second step is taking a break from producing episodes of my podcast The C Word Radio. I want to take time to think about what I want to say. Creating an episode and promoting it on social media was starting to feel mechanical. It became more about how successful a post did rather than the strength of the interview.
When I launched my podcast I had a desire to create a community for younger cancer survivors. I'm proud of what I have achieved. Taking a break means I can decide if there's more to say or if it's time to close this chapter of life. My podcast has helped me process the grief, loss, and anger a cancer diagnosis can create. What I've discovered spending less time on social media is I'm becoming less defined by cancer. I'm developing a deeper sense of myself, cancer is part of my story but it's not the whole story.
Let go of the need to create content for the sake of it.
It's hard for a small business to not have a social media presence. I'm still undecided on how I will approach social media for HK Productions. For me, the joy of podcasts is the sense of intimacy our listeners have. I want to create meaningful content without relying on social media algorithms! For the time being, I will use social media on a much smaller scale.
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