Do you know those evenings where you are scrolling mindlessly through Facebook heedless to what you are actually reading? Then, suddenly, a particular post that radiates relativity stops you dead in your tracks? Propelled back into the present, you think: "this is just what I needed to hear today."
When this happened to me, a smile etched upon my face, the first thing I did was share it (obviously), but then, several hours after that, I found it had imprinted itself on my brain:
"Don't use social media less. Use it more intentionally. Follow people who inspire and motivate you. Engage with experts who you can learn from. Create genuine, positive friendships."
https://www.facebook.com/Iamaspiritualman/photos/a...
Isn't that the epitome of a 'good post?' One that grabs a hold of you when you least expect it and gives you a good shake, demanding that you take heed and create change?
I thought to myself: I spend a remarkable amount of my time, precious and fleeting, on social media, which, let's be honest, I could enjoy more. Why shouldn't I transform it into a virtual sanctuary? A happy place, if you will.
Upon a little research, I discovered some shocking statistics. The average time spent engaging in social media during a typical day ranges from two hours and 37 minutes for the 25 – 34 year old category, right up to three whole hours for the 16 – 24 year olds.
Woah. If you don't believe me, I've included the chart below.
With that in mind, I investigated into my own daily activity and discovered that, staggeringly, I spend a whopping one hour and 47 minutes per day on Instagram alone.
Really, upon introspection, it shouldn't have taken me aback as it had. My morning routine, before all else, begins with my morning cup of coffee and a brief scroll through Instagram, then the same in the evening once I've completed my daily tasks. But still, that is a crazy amount of time to spend inside the frivolous world of virtual reality.
Since I've transformed my Instagram into a personal blog, I've grown incredibly fond of it. I've fallen in love with my niche, with how there's still so much I have to learn and the accounts that I have followed with interests similar to my own. I love the networking opportunities, the storytelling through photography, the sense of community, the profiles that are so darned aesthetically pleasing – poetic, almost – and the narratives of another person's thoughts: an insight into another's daily routine.
So the following evening, adopting Marie Condo's renowned decluttering method for my own – but with a slightly different objective – I found myself on a kind of unfollowing frenzy. I scrolled through my feed and met every encountered post with, "Does this bring me joy?" and then the same to the list of accounts that I follow. Within half an hour, I had unfollowed more than 200 accounts, and I felt all the lighter for it.
What remained were pictures that sparked wonderment within me, that inspired me in terms of my own journalistic and creative ambitions, along with pages that reflect my own beliefs and deflect from my own insecurities, like promotions for body positivity.
Begone celebrity accounts that I realized I had minimal interest in. In their place, hashtags such as #mymagicalmorning and #the_gentle_manifesto abides, offering ethereal lighting, strategically placed cups of coffee and Valencia-filtered flower arrangements to brighten up my morning scroll.
In the pursuit of happiness, I have come to a lambent, lucid understanding that every little thing and person I choose to engage with matters. In an age dominated by advertising through social media, it seems clear to me now that the leverage of using our platforms wisely impels us from being negatively influenced into a quiet and comfortable place of enjoyment.
"Open a small door and enter deeply." My partner would often muse, which I find incredibly relevant to this piece. If all of us were to "stop mindlessly scrolling, complaining, hating and engaging in negativity" we would create an infinitely more wholesome and empowering community for all.
#Happyscrolling!
Keep only the things that speak to your heart. Then take the plunge and discard all the rest. By doing this, you can reset your life and embark on a new lifestyle.
Marie Kondo
