Most of us know what a time suck Facebook can be, but it’s such a hard habit to break. I’ve read many blog posts out there with tips that suggest just checking it once a day or even using a timer app. Unfortunately, I wasn’t quite able to “just check it once a day.” The ironic thing is that I stumbled on this blog post after reading a friend’s Facebook link to another blog – ha!
Written by Kelli Winarski, “7 Amazing Things That I Learned When I Got Off Facebook” really hit home. First off, her son’s name was Oliver and her description of him popping his little smiling face in front of her screen sounded just like my Oliver with his big eyes, saying “come with me mommy.”
In my particular case, it has been difficult for me to cut out Facebook because I work part-time from home on my computer. It got me thinking – why did I start using Facebook in the first place? What has it morphed into? I initially joined, after much resistance, to share photos with friends and family and it seemed that was the best way to reach them and have some interaction with people we did’t see often. However, over the years, every person I’ve ever met has become my “friend” and my newsfeed slowly got overtaken by things I don’t care about. To top it off, I began seeing my real friends less and less.
But it all boiled down to photos and I remembered that before Facebook, I was greatly committed to my Flickr account. For those like me who love photography, this is a much better and more inspiring avenue that showcases your photos beautifully; more like a family album without all the ads and spam.
So, last weekend I made it a point to upload all of the past year’s photos that went up on Facebook on Flickr instead. I emailed our closest friends and family with the updated link to my albums and notified my Facebook friends that I was attempting to cut down on my usage. Many of them specifically told us how much they enjoyed seeing our children grow up via the photos we post on Facebook so, needless to say, I felt a little attached.
But now – I already feel lighter! It’s been a few days of less-frequent Facebook checking and I’m able to focus more when I’m working from home, on my kids and on my projects. I’ve also tried to prioritize my time with my sons, doing less work while they’re awake and saving it for later. My cycle, which consisted of checking email, my Zazzle stores and then automatically clicking on Facebook, is slowly deteriorating and I love it! It reminds me of when my husband finally convinced me to stop watching the news because the broadcasts were either too depressing or full of just pointless information about celebrities.
I feel like I’m starting fresh; I’ve got a new outlook on life and so much more time to enjoy with my family!
