I recently have done an assignment for one of my communication classes online: for one week, we had to completely eliminate as much media consumption as possible. It's safe to say that this was a difficult challenge for me.

Consuming media and being on our smartphones has really become almost like a routine for society. With our society being so technology driven and social media becoming an important part of our daily routine, more and more people are missing out on the important things happening in their real lives. Basically, what I want to really talk about in this article is what the assignment taught me, and how it showed me what I can be doing rather than sitting on my phone all day. I hope to encourage anyone in the world to try to cut some media out of your life. You'll be amazed at how much more in touch with the world you feel, even though you aren't obsessively reading what everyone is doing every second of the day.

For starters, I knew the project was not going to be easy. I knew trying to cut media out of my life was going to be like cutting coffee out of my life completely, and let's be honest, cutting coffee out of my life would be like cutting off a limb. I will tell you, that for one to completely cut media out of their life for good, just would not be possible. Media is like an addiction. It is something people use all the time and sometimes people don't use it for the right reasons and that's when it turns into something negative for them. With society being so technologically driven, it's almost impossible to cut all ties with all media. From LinkedIn to online news outlets, online media has leaked into other parts of our lives than just our social lives. While I was completing this project for my class, I found myself doing more productive things and even being more engaging and interactive. I found myself getting cleaning done, cooking and trying new recipes. I even found myself heading outside and enjoying the fresh air. I rode my bike and took it upon myself to add in some more workouts as well. Overall, at the end of each day, I felt like I had actually achieved something more than just my usual daily routine.

With this assignment, I can tell you I did not fully complete it for one week. I did it for about three to four days, and honestly, even I did not even think I would be able to do it for that long. But, I will tell you that in those three to four days I got so many much-needed things done. Suddenly, my room was clean, my mind felt refreshed from all of the reading and working out, and I wasn't nearly as stressed because instead of being on my phone, I was able to get homework done well ahead of time. I was more productive, less stressed and, overall, felt tons better. I think when people consume media, they do not realize how much they really consume until they try to cut it out and realize what a crutch it has been. Consuming media has made it incredibly hard for society to have face-to-face conversations anymore because everything is online. Instead of calling your friend to see if they are busy, you check their Twitter to see what they are up to. If you find yourself sitting around people and you are on your phone, just put it down and maybe strike up a conversation.

If this article has, in any way, encouraged you to try to cut media out of your life, then I challenge you to do it for one week. Even if it is only for three or four days, you can still do it. If I can consume as little media as possible, then you can consume as little media as possible. Although, I don't plan on trying to cut coffee out of my life anytime soon. Baby steps.