So I was watching the Social Dilemma on Netflix and doing some introspection. My insta/fb usage has been nil for a while as I don’t have accounts. But my Reddit/youtube usage is high. And I am one of the first to reply on tele/whats app.
Of course just removing everything is not a solve. So I was wondering where to start. I came up with these points to work with and have them written on my PC case. Along with this, I’ve just logged out of Reddit and blocked recommendations on Youtube (why will make more sense in a bit)
Are you engaging the content actively? This is in response to just passively browsing content while avoiding work and anxiety.
Is this the best use of your time? Even a break can be nourishing but often lands up just being another browsing session. Breaks are good but I want them to be refreshing.
Books > Reddit
Shows > YouTube
Calls > Messages These three are obvious substitutes.
You are not missing out. Anything you need, can always be found later. In a way the biggest fear of being off the grid is being out of the loop. The horror of not knowing what’s up seems to have become ingrained (at least in me). But its not real. Anything that is useful to my work, my hobbies, or me in general, are things I can look up whenever. Its not like not knowing about the next GPU launch is gonna mean I can’t get the GPU if my current one breaks? Ah but if I do watch the video then I will feel like I need the upgrade more. Hope this makes sense?
Search for what you want instead of waiting for something to show up. A general reminder to be an active consumer instead of a passive one.
Of course this is just phase one of getting rid of this dependency. Will amend as it goes along. Hope it helps others too