Yup, you read that right. As a Millennial, I did what seems to be a nightmare to everyone else, I stayed off social media. No Twitter, no Snapchat, Facebook, Tumblr, I didn’t even go on Pinterest. And throughout this week, I had a lot of realizations that I wouldn’t have had if I had spent it how I normally do: on social media.
At first, I was just like most of you reading this article. “I don’t have a problem with social media, it’s not an addiction like everyone talks about. I don’t spend THAT much time on it, there are people out there worse than me.” I said all of these things to my mother quite frequently when she’d get on my case about being on my phone 24/7. And I really, genuinely, didn’t think that I spent as much time as she said I had on my phone.
But, boy was I wrong.
I started my week off thinking it’d be no big deal and that it wouldn’t really alter the way I spent my time. But as I, out of habit, without even meaning to, kept reaching to click my Twitter app, all of what my mother had been complaining about had been revealed as true to me. Whether it be walking to class, a mid-study break, or eating lunch, I kept going to click on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, all of them.
And because I didn’t have the apps to click on, I’d set my phone down and just watch everyone around me. Which lead to seeing how much everyone else revolved around their phones. Everywhere I went, people’s heads were buried into their screens without any recognition of the world around them. The worst part about witnessing all of this was understanding that I used to be one of them, too.
This past week I have been more productive in my college courses than I was the entire first semester. When I sat down to do my homework or to study, that’s all I focused my attention on. Normally, I would be distracted by my phone sitting next to me and wondering what was going on in the online world.
In addition to doing better with my schoolwork, I finished two books in a matter of four days that I had been reading for over a year. Prior to, I had been complaining about not having enough time in the day between school, work, and play (you have to go out every once in a while, come on) to finish any of my books. But instead of laying in my bed scrolling on my phone, I sat down and got lost in my books.
Although these aspects are great, the most important one was not anything physical or productive. It was how awesome it felt not having to worry about what was going on with anyone but myself and the people I surround myself with. I didn’t care who tweeted what or how many likes my recent Instagram post had gotten. I was living in the real world and wasn’t hidden behind my phone.
Although it’s terribly cliché and probably exactly what my mom wants to hear, I don’t plan on wasting my time on social media anymore. Yes, I will still have it, and use it on occasions solely to stay connected with friends and family. My plan is to keep the notifications turned off so that I am not tempted to constantly check it, but have it when I feel like checking in on everyone. And I hope that if it gets to the point that I was out, I will be able to see myself falling into my old ways.
After only a week without social media, I can now see from a first-hand experience how relied this generation is on social media and their phones.
Which is the scariest realization I’ve had in a while.
