This isn't technical documentation of my two months without Netflix. In fact, it was completely on accident for the most part. Yet, I haven't binge watched any Netflix for two months. Two months. For someone who was constantly in the middle of a series, as I'm sure a lot of you can relate to, it was sort of mind-blowing when I realized about a month and half ago that I had gone two weeks without watching eight episodes of Lost in one day, or even two episodes at that. In fact, at that time, I realized I hadn't watched any Netflix at all. I wasn't more busy than usual and I hadn't taken on any more responsibilities, but I subconsciously was finding more productive things to do.
Flash forward about a month into this anti-Netflix period. I had full consciousness of what was going on, but I simply had lost interest. There were a few moments when I thought about logging on, but every time I opened my laptop I never quite made it there. I have really yet to pinpoint where this sudden change came from. But after realizing what was going on, I started to pay attention to things that I was doing instead.
A lot of my time was being spent with friends that I hadn't been making time for before. I started saying "yes" to a lot more things that I may have denied before because I was too "busy." Busy was the lousiest excuse, because really there is no such thing as too busy if you have your priorities straight. And ultimately, making Netflix a priority doesn't say much about your character. It's OK to say no to friends once in a while, because everyone needs a healthy dose of down time, but choosing a fictional life over your real once can be costly.
At the same time, my sudden avoidance of the Netflix blackhole got me motivated to do adult things. Yes, adulting. It can be scary and exhilarating all at once, but after realizing all of the opportunities that are waiting for me, my computer time became more productive than ever.
In the past two months I have filled out more scholarships than I had since high school, submitted multiple job applications in the "real world" and learned all about earning credit to take out a loan. It really is incredible how much is available at our fingertips and how little effort it takes to be successful in today's digital age. I feel more prepared for my future than I ever have before, because I simply upgraded my purpose for being on the web.
Lastly, and most importantly to myself, was my spiritual and self-growth that took place in the last couple of months. I spent more hours than I ever have working on my relationship with God and my relationship with myself. This took some practice, but there are more times now than ever before that I choose to open my Bible over opening my laptop and I've never felt more whole. All around, I feel more inspired to reach my full potential because of God's purpose for me. And if I've learned anything at all, His purpose is not for me to watch 20 hours of Netflix a week.
For all relaxation purposes, Netflix is great. It's fun to watch a movie with friends, eat junk food and wind down once in a while. But in all reality, our generation's Netflix addiction is pretty excessive and I didn't even realize the time that it took out of my life until I took it out of mine.
As I said before, it was kind of an accident when I stopped watching, so if you consciously decide to quit, it might not feel as relieving as it did for me. But still, I challenge you. If you love binge watching as much as I did — lower it a few notches on your priority list and see all of the time that opens up for you to fulfill a greater purpose and give you greater satisfaction than Netflix binge watching ever could give you.
