A lot of us spend more time than we care to admit on social media. Research from 2020 shows that the Average American spent more than 3.5-hours a day on social media. Think about that - if you work for eight hours, sleep for eight more, that’s more than 40% of your daily free time spent scrolling through your feed.
And the thing about social media is that it’s where everyone shares their wins and successes, but their failures and setbacks? Not so much. So we see their carefully curated lives and compare our messy lives to what we see on Facebook or Instagram and we end up feeling inadequate. But we keep coming back for more and for some folks, that use becomes more of an addiction.
Fortunately, there are some things we can do to cut back on the less-than-healthy habit. These three steps can help curb social media addiction:
- Intentionally invest in your friendships - Having hundreds or even thousands of “friends” on social media may trick you into thinking that you have that many friends in real life. But according to Oxford University professor Dr. Robin Dunbar, who coined the term “The Dunbar Number,” people can’t have more than 150 meaningful relationships and five close friendships. So focus on those real friends and put some effort into connecting and spending time with those people, because they’re the ones who increase our happiness and well-being.
- Turn off notifications - Knowing that 10 people liked a photo you posted can give you a dopamine hit that people can become addicted to, but not getting those notifications may keep social media from pulling you in as often.
- Cultivate your feed - Most of us follow some accounts that just grabbed our attention at a moment in time, but it might not make you feel good over time. So stop and ask, “How does consuming the content of this page with regularity make me feel?” Getting rid of anything that doesn’t positively influence you can help make the time you spend on social media a better experience.
Source: Fast Company