Look around a public place, and I bet you’ll find at least a handful of people using their cell phone. And out of that handful of people, I also bet that at least one of them is surfing a social media site. I’ve come home and said I was going to write or read a book, and instead, I got sucked into the rabbit hole of Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and the like. I’m not sure about you, but I want to be in the know. I’m interested in learning about the lives of other people, regardless of if I’ve ever met them before.

It’s not like these things are bad for us or that social media is the gateway to our demise. The honest truth is that while social media was created to connect with the world, many times, we use it as a way to disconnect with the world. So this past week, I gave up my crutch of social media to see how it would affect my overall productivity, creativity, and mood.

My ProductivityGoing into this, I had a feeling that giving up social media would free up a lot of time to be productive, and I was right. However, there are many distractions that come with living in this great big world. Simply put, if we want to be distracted, we’ll be distracted. And I’m learning that that’s okay. This break from social media has taught me something that I never knew it would: It’s okay to be unproductive. I always want to be engaging my mind, but by quitting social media, I ended up clearing my mind and allowing restoration within myself. I was equally able to get things done and still have time to do absolutely nothing.

My CreativityJust like my productivity, I was surprised at what quitting social media did to my creativity. I expected to be more creative because there would no longer be anything to cloud my mind, but instead, I had to learn how to search for the creativity from within. It was frustrating at first when I was unable to draw inspiration from others to spark my creative juices, but after going to the gym and having a good night’s rest, I woke up with a boost of creativity that can’t be fabricated.

My MoodEvery day there are new stories to tell, and whether we realize it or not, seeing statuses from other people about various topics can be just as overwhelming as reading the newest headline or watching local news. In general, my overall mood was typical, but I did feel more clear-minded throughout the week.

My Takeaways

My whole take on quitting social media is this: I think everyone should try it. I plan on doing this once or twice a year to refresh my mind and allow myself to think more clearly about the world around me. Being in the digital age opens up so many opportunities for advancement and exploration, but sometimes we have to silence the noise around us and take a second to disconnect.

-Jas