When you feel the need to post everything you do on social media for validation, you’re simply showing the world your insecurities and emptiness. Make the most of your private life simply that: Private. ― Tavinran
Today’s topic is an interesting one, one where I wasn’t sure if y’all were interested in or if one I wanted to share.
We’re into the second week of May and my accidental social media experiment is now over.
I’m not sure what happened on February 4th, but I published my last Facebook post for the next 12 weeks on that day. Little did I know, it would be the last one I would put up for the next three months.
After a week of not logging on to Facebook, I had a handful of friends text me and ask if I was okay. I told them I was fine because truthfully, I was fine.
I was just tired of the negativity on my newsfeed that came with the results of the election.
The need to “protect” my positive energy grew very strong.
And that’s when I made my decision to disappear.
I took time off from my consulting business and Facebook to draw close to God, take care of myself, do things for me and overall, take a mental break.
And you know what? I’m SO glad I took a Facebook hiatus.
Here’s what I learned from my Facebook hiatus:
-
Not logging on isn’t as hard as you think. To be honest, after a few days, I wasn’t sure if I could take the break. As someone who sees Facebook as a positive thing, I stayed strong. By day five, it was fairly easy to not even think about Facebook.
-
You’re not missing out. At first, I felt bad. I posted something of value every single weekday for the last four years. From recipes to fun facts, cheesy jokes/puns to health-related posts, motivational quotes and interesting articles, I shared what I thought would help others grow. On top of that, everything I shared was a reminder to myself.
Around week two, I was thinking, “By not posting, you’re not adding value to people’s lives.” I pushed past it and kept going.
YOU FEEL LESS PRESSURED.
Since my business utilizes Facebook a whole ton, I felt guilty at first. Then I realized that sometimes, business owners need to step away, unplug from technology, and take breaks. It’s called vacation. As each day went by, I felt less pressured to work on my business. I was also very aware that stepping away was going to hinder the growth of my business and I was okay with that.
THE THOUGHT OF LOGGING BACK ON MAY REPEL YOU.
I thought I was okay to log on again on the one month mark. “Nah, keep going. Being off Facebook feels great!” I thought. Yep, that’s what I told myself. The best part is, you can go longer without Facebook than you think.
YOU GET A LOT MORE DONE WHILE ON A FACEBOOK HIATUS.
Until you do this experiment, you don’t realize how much you can get done. Facebook was taking up a lot of my time and I didn’t realize it until I logged off. I’ve been consistently publishing blog posts Monday through Friday for the last three months. I also read more books in a short amount of time than I expected.
My goal this year is to be consistent in everything I do and getting off Facebook helped a lot!
YOU’RE MORE AWARE AND PRESENT IN REAL-LIFE.
After logging off Facebook, I wasn’t looking at my phone as much when I was with loved ones or when I was by myself. I was more present with those I care about and aware of my emotions.
My Facebook hiatus also bled into Instagram and Snapchat. For someone who posted at most twice a day, I posted way less on my personal Instagram and hardly anything on Snapchat. I will say I posted more frequently on my Instagram, but only because it’s tied to this blog.
TAKING A FACEBOOK HIATUS FEELS LIKE A VACATION IN A WAY.
It’s true. It feels like you’re vacationing away from everyone’s lives. I’m not sorry for saying it felt good to disconnect from other people’s lives too. Less drama the better, right?
It’s okay to take a break not just from Facebook, but from life in general.
As I started to feel less and less guilty about not being on Facebook, I felt the same about life too. That’s when I stepped away from my consulting business, two more social media channels and even the gym.
You learn how to say no.
If you know me, you know that saying no is hard. However, I feel like if I could say no to one of my favorite social media platforms, I could learn to say no to other things that don’t align with my goals.
You end up more focused and stay in beast mode towards your goals.
I couldn’t believe how hyper-focused I’ve been for the last 90 days. It’s been insane! Over 70 blog posts have been written along with two upcoming brand collaborations in the works (yay!), I made new friends and from those, relationships are growing stronger. One of the best parts? I got a lot more sleep. I wasn’t sleeping consistently so something had to change.
Overall, taking a break from Facebook has done me a world of good. If there were a challenge to stay off Facebook for a year, I think I could totally win, haha! I’m happy to be back today refreshed and ready to add even more value to people’s lives!
What about you? Do you think you could take a Facebook hiatus?
Since summer is coming up, I challenge you to take at least a 7-day Facebook hiatus. It’ll be easier than you think and if you go all summer without logging on Facebook, good for you! It might just be your best (and most productive) summer yet!
Richard Plotzker
May 5, 2021I’m about a week into my FB and TW interruption with a planned brief return to wish a real friend that I’ve made from FB a happy 70th birthday, then praise my wife for Mothers Day. For the most part my briefer experience runs parallel to yours. The perspective is a little different, though, largely because of our ages. As HS Class of ’69 there had been a forty year separation when FB became widely available in 2009. It was gratifying to catch up and see where our lives have taken us professionally, geographically, reproductively, and ideologically. To this day, my Friends List remains dominated by those people. I have not accepted friendship requests from anyone from my town except one who I rarely see but admire her intellect, and have only accepted one cousin, two weeks younger than me who we visited a lot as kids and for whom I would from time to time visit in person as adults. She unfortunately developed a malignancy and passed away a few years ago. Nudniks, those posting incessantly got Unfollowed. I’ve never Unfriended a fellow HS alum. What will I do after Mothers Day? I think I will stay off through Memorial Day, perhaps posting on my own behalf for unique events like Shavuot. I don’t miss not being there. It can be a useful tool, but one easily misused and needing reassessment or vacation periodically.
Ginger Marie
May 18, 2017I once gave up Facebook for lent and it was the most refreshing thing! The only things I used were pages and messenger since they had their own apps and I needed them for blogging! I definitely need to do that again!
Brittany
May 18, 2017This is an amazing experiment. I try to remove the app from my phone for instagram because you are so right about all of the lessons you have learned. The world will go on without us and sometimes it is just needed!
Stacy Gordon
May 15, 2017I’ve done this before but not for as long as you did. I feel like I am missing out on things but it does really feel good!
Mai Lyn Ngo
May 15, 2017This is totally making me think about taking a hiatus as well. Our lives are over stimulated. I know Ive made it more of thing to not look at phone during dinner time, but it’s like this nagging baby needing attention. All the lessons you learned sound amazing and I cant wait to see what you’ll do now that you’re back!
Jessica Bradshaw
May 12, 2017I am not much a facebook user, but Instagram would be hard for me. I love what you learned from it. I could use more learn how to say no advice. 😉
Karen L
May 12, 2017I did this for 3 days once, and it already felt so good. I can’t imagine not getting curious after month 1 though! Props to you!
Dixya Bhattarai RD
May 8, 2017so with you on #8. sometimes its needed!
Huong Vo
May 10, 2017I’m glad you agree, Dixya! Yeah, sometimes we need to get in our bubble and take a break!