The number one destructive thing that I've seen social media do to people is push a significant truth farther into the backs of our minds. That truth is that no one is exempt from suffering.
You have probably heard people say a million times that social media represents everyone's "highlight reels", "sunday's best", or "their commercial" as opposed to their reality. Personally, I don't often find most people promoting the struggles they went through on their feeds to attain the new, luxury cars they post or extravagant job opportunities.
I appreciate the few people that post the authenticity of their grueling workouts that almost make them reconsider their fitness journeys or the "no's" and rerouting that they had to endure to get to their "yes". Everyone may not be willing to humble themselves and tell the truth in this way but, nevertheless, it is encouraging.
So I have to use a gym comparison because it fits perfectly in the practicality of these tips. In the gym, we often think we have to do the most complex routines for change (I promise it's just 90% nutrition) but that's not always true. If you practice "trial and error" long enough with different exercises then you'll find an exercise that your body LOVES and it will change the whole game for you.
That's exactly what these tips did for my life.
1. Don't Dwell In It
Put the phone down.This means to not live in social media. The practicality of this is almost annoying enough that it shouldn't be a tip but we still struggle to abide by this simple solution. Don't spend majority of the hours of your day on social media. When you're bored, replace it with activities that are fulfilling to you like reading with meaning (experts) rather than the opinions of others (non-experts).
2. Use It For What You Need And Then Go Live Your Life
In consideration of business owners, entrepreneurs and youtubers, social media can be essential to your growth. This advice came from Kevin Hart, who tweeted that he uses social media for what he needs and then goes and lives his life.
3. Make It Mirror Your Vision Board
What do you want in life? What is a part of your purpose? What will remind you of your purpose when you log on? Fitness and Nutrition? Hospitality? Studying Tips? Relationship Advice? Politics? Foreign Affairs? Social Justice Reform? Health Care Reform?
Follow people that provoke you to be the version of yourself that you aspire to be or people that wake up your passions. In simple terms, follow people that do what you want to do and will remind you to go do it.
Now, when you log on your feed should be a reminder for you to log off and go live your life... like you did before social media existed.
These tips are extremely practical but we still spend hours on social media. I believe that using social media is a matter of embracing a lot of practical truth.
Those practical truths are that thinking is still not doing. Big planning is still not doing. Making an elaborate vision board or paying for conferences for someone to motivate you is still not doing. Saying it more than spending time alone using discipline to DO is not doing it either.
None of these activities are bad but they're counterproductive if we're not actually investing time and work. These activities actually represent how starting is the most challenging part of the things we want to do. Instead, we prioritize small things instead of the big things.
The big thing is your "why" and "what" for whatever you're doing. Everything else represents small things.
