Switch Off

Social Media overwhelm?

"I’m curled up on the couch, watching television and trying to browse through the days' newspaper, but my right hand keeps twitching for my cell phone. If anything on the TV or newspaper seems interesting and I want more information, I’ll go online to find out more about the topic." Does that sound familiar & can you relate to this behaviour?

A few interesting stats:
Most people basically spend every second of their day with their phone at arm’s reach. The average person checks their phone every 6 and a half minutes – that is almost 200 times a day!  One in 4 admits to spending more time online each day than what they do on sleep, while 73% say that they find it hard to go the entire day without using their phone or computer. Source: CapeTownMagazine.com

Let's take a step back & think about this craziness for a moment.

Social media and simply being connected online has become a big part of our lives. Within a matter of seconds a story can reach a global audience, you can easily locate a friend via a social media platform of your choice, or even Google them. If you want to listen to a song, YouTube is a free online jukebox, if you would like to check the weather, there is no need to watch the 7 o'clock news because there are apps that provide the most updated weather reports! 

There's literally an App for everything; from sleep cycle alarm clocks, to running apps, grocery list reminders, drunk dial apps(yes, you actually get an app for that too - it prevents you from calling certain #'s when under the influence...). Apps to improve your "performance" in bed (YES, you get those too - Passion), another silly one, Amazing girlfriend manager - this app actually allows you to keep track of important dates, information and reminds you timeously - it can even keep track of multiple girlfriends! I guess i need to do a post on unusual & funny Apps so that I can elaborate more..

Back to switch off, see with all these Apps to our disposal, it makes it very difficult to stay focussed on one thing.

Besides the Apps, you get websites that target different audiences. Most of you are familiar with Facebook & Twitter, but there are many other well known ones. For example; professional networking like  LinkedIn, online dating-focussed sites like DatingBuzz, Ashley Madison and Badoo, but to name a few. There are also various news sources, like news24, iol, cnn, ewn etc. Everything looks & feels so much easier to do with all the resources made available to us.

The big question that arises is: "How does a person switch off from all of this?"

With fast internet, more capable smartphones & increasingly versatile tablets/laptops, it is becoming so much harder to unplug. Majority of us can admit to always having an urge to somehow be connected online. Whether it is via social media, reading the news, checking the weather, whatever the form - it all comes down to our attention being drawn to an electronic device giving us access to endless possibilities.

In short, WE'RE ADDICTED!!
 

Like any bad habit, if you really want to abstain or cut back, you need to make a concerted effort. To help you switch off & reclaim a slice of a life outside of the internet try some of the following.

• Go without your phone for 1 day OR try at least for half a day. 
• Spend an evening without browsing the Internet.
• Instead of sending a WhatsApp, FB msg or Tweet call the person OR meet with them in person.

For now, these 3 should suffice. Believe me it's not going to be easy but give it a try! Test yourself and see if you can indeed Switch off.

With the festive season on hand, make a conscious effort to Switch Off. Put down that device and reclaim your life. Engage with others in person, you'll be amazed at the impact social media has on our day-to-day lives and relationships. The media we call social, is anything but...

 

Check out this video "Look Up". So beautiful, true and very appropriate!