stress

Being organized is the first step to successfully achieving goals. There’s no way around it. In fact, the act of organizing encompasses almost every single job on the planet. We all organize data, things, ideas, words, pictures, structures, and numbers in some way or another. Think about what you do for a living. Are you organizing information or matter in a way that other people can’t, or don’t have time to do themselves?

Even social media is a way we organize our feelings, moments, and friends. However, in my very humble opinion, I believe social media—and media in general—is seriously disorganizing our brains and our lives. I most certainly do not mean there’s a media conspiracy or a media political agenda; I simply mean that the inundation of information from global, local, and even social sources is doing more harm than good. It’s zapping our time, our emotional energy, and pulling us into a virtual world that doesn’t exist, while keeping us from the joys and responsibilities of our Real World.

Decluttering our kitchen cabinets, closets, and garage, organizing existing items, and keeping our home clean is not enough to hold our stress at bay. We need to go further by organizing our thoughts and feelings. Social media, however, is not the most productive means to accomplish that goal.

In fact, studies show that social media increases anxiety and depression in adolescents and adults. I’m sure each of us can attest to the fact that we often feel worse, rather than better, after scrolling through our feeds. Not only because of envy, but also because of the never-ending news cycle loaded with bad news, or news coverage of trivial things, or time-sucking videos and click bait that steals our precious moments. In my opinion, it’s a waste! Social media is an online hurricane of gossip, judgment, and trivial conversations.

IT’S CLUTTER!

Clutter that attracts other clutter—tweets and posts and shares that are like magnets, spitting and spewing itself all over our “pages” and monstrously stomping into our real lives. Whether you realize it our not, the virtual world you access with your thumbs has created a negative physiological effect, physically attacking your real life. That clutter can be seen in the energy you carry throughout the day.

Social media should only be used to connect infrequently with people whom we might not see on a regular basis: to share a photo or send a quick message. Everything else is an unnecessary distraction from our real lives.

I love being productive. I feel good about myself when I’m productive. And I understand that sometimes a productive use of my time is to simply sit and relax. But never have I felt satisfied, fulfilled, or joyful after using my relaxation time to scour my social media accounts. Rather, I feel my brain has been jumbled—a sweeping tornado of chaotic visual stimulation draws my energy and emotions. The overwhelming feeling that appears after I’m drawn to the mess of Internet clutter is worse than the feeling of opening my linen closet to see a mountain of junk.

Luckily, there is a way to solve our social media problem:

1) List the reasons you use social media.

2) Decide which reason makes you feel good after using social media.

3) Figure out which social media outlets you use specifically for that reason.

4) Delete everything besides that one social media platform.

5) Check into that one social media platform infrequently. For some, that might mean once a day; for others that might mean once a week.

I understand that social media, technology, and consumerism isn’t going away, and it’s what fuels our economy.  But we can ensure they’re forces used for good. We have the power to demand that these products geared for our enjoyment and connection truly empower and enrich our society.