It is indisputable that we are currently living in an age in which there is a heavy focus on having constant interaction with and accessibility to other people. The first example of this focus in action is the glorious creation that we call the internet and the social media outlets that come along with it. You can quickly log into Facebook or Twitter and automatically connect with people and discover the current happenings in their lives. We are almost always only a click away from communicating with other people-- even if we are not consciously aware of the fact. However, interacting with other humans is important for our own sense of growth and is what makes us functional as human beings. There comes a time where we need to disconnect from always being accessible to others so that we can learn how to breathe, discover our own sense of self and realize what we may or may not need. Even though it is proven to be difficult with the focus society places on technology, with a little effort, we can appreciate being unconnected for just a brief moment. Listed below are five different reasons why disconnecting can be a positive experience.
1. You are less likely to compare yourself to others.
Like many other people, I have a bad habit of logging onto various social media sites to see what other people are posting statuses. This leads me to become jealous of what is going on in their own lives and then I wonder why I am not as successful, happy, or impressive as they are. Disconnecting helped me to focus more on and appreciate my own life instead of comparing it to the everyone else's. What is the point in competing?
2. You can focus more on the people who are physically in front of you.
This experience is a simple one to explain. By disconnecting from social media and the ongoing conversations that you are having on your selected platform, you can pay more attention to those who are physically with you and it is likely that you will begin to connect with them more efficiently. How often are you out with friends, they pull out their cell phones to connect with others who are not physically in front of them, and you are left feeling both disconnected and annoyed?
3. You gain time to reflect on yourself.
Repeat after me: Breathe in, breathe out. Feel the weight being lifted off of your shoulders. Disconnecting will give you more time to reflect on yourself and your needs and wants. From personal experience, my reflection space is dead silent with no distractions from the outside world. As a busy college student who lives on campus, this can be difficult, but it can be doable. Take time to breathe and pay attention to your own needs, instead of the needs that the world is continuously pushing on you.
4. You will also gain more time to be productive!
I'll admit that I am guilty of promising myself that I will get started on my workload and then finding myself suddenly distracted by social media after I log in for what I claimed to be five minutes. You know the story, it ended up being closer to forty five minutes. I found that by turning off my cellphone when I need to do my work and by logging out of all of my social media accounts at the same time, that I end up getting a lot more done. However, breaks are important for both your overall mental health and stress levels. So, if you cannot completely go without checking your accounts, give yourself time increments when you allow yourself to take a ten minute break from your work and then take a quick look.
5. You will finally have time to pick up your beloved favorite book again!
Fellow bookworms, unite! Reading is one of my favorite ways to escape from the hectic world that we live in. I can pick up my favorite book and almost instantly be transported into a new world filled with exciting characters and plot lines. Admittedly, social media is a factor along with school and work that stole my time away from being able to read for my own pleasure. Disconnecting for even an hour a day gives me the time to be able to read again and led to an overall decrease in my stress levels. There are no more comparisons or intruding worries!
I encourage you all to give disconnecting a shot, even if it is just for an hour a week. You will be amazed with the difference that it makes within your life and how much free time you will now have to spend in other areas that include working on yourself, bonding with people face to face and being able to find time to enjoy what you do for leisure.
