10 Easy Ways To Use Social Media Less
Social media can be a great way to stay connected and informed about the world around you, but sometimes it can be exhausting and draining to constantly be on social media. Below are 10 ways to use social media less!
1. Set App Time Limits
If you go through settings on your iPhone, you can set app time limits, so after you reach the time limit the app and all notifications will be blocked for the rest of the day. You can always ignore the limits if you want, but this is a great way to be more aware of how much time you spend on social media. You can choose whatever time limit you like, and choose specific apps to limit. This is a great way to still use social media, but be aware of how much and try to use your time on social media sparingly.
2. Mute Notifications
Muting notifications is a great way to not be tempted by notifications from social media apps. Sometimes it can be tempting to look at one notification and you end up using snapchat or instagram for 30 minutes. If you mute all notifications you can be intentional with the time you spend on social media, and not be constantly drawn back in with notifications.
3. Take Time Away From Your Phone
Leaving your phone in another room for several hours, or not taking on a walk or a run can be a great way to get away from social media. With a forced break from screens, you will stop being as tempted to constantly check social media. This is a great way to get used to not constantly being on social media, and get comfortable with taking breaks.
4. Temporarily Deactivate Your Accounts
For most social media sites you can temporarily deactivate your account. This is great if you are uncomfortable with how much time you spend on social media, but don’t have the self control to just stop checking your social media sites. This is a great way to do a social media cleanse, and you can reactivate your accounts whenever you want.
5. Set Breaks
Sometimes a great way to stop constantly checking social media is to have set times in your day when you don’t use any social media. This could be an hour before you go to bed, or sometime in the middle of the day when you just never go on social media. This will create a habit of not constantly checking social media, and will ensure that for part of your day you can stay unplugged. This will also help make you comfortable going long periods without feeling the need to check you social media.
6. Subscribe To News Outlets
Social media can be a great way to stay informed and get up to date news, but if you want to stay away from social media and still be updated on events, subscribing to a news outlet is a great idea. This way you can stay informed without having to go on social media for all of your news. Many news outlets will also report and show tweets or important videos from social media, so you can still be completely up to date on what is important to you.
7. Find A Hobby Off The Screen
We often constantly are on a screen, and this can make it so easy to swipe over to social media. If you have a hobby you enjoy that requires no screens, like painting, reading, or going for a walk, you can make sure you unplug everyday and get away from your phone and social media. Sometimes when your are bored it can be tempting to just scroll on social media all day, but when you have a hobby or activity you enjoy doing without a screen.
8. Put Apps In A Separate Folder
Sometimes if apps are too easy to access, it can become a habit to constantly open them whenever you look at your phone. If you put all your social media apps in a separate folder, your apps won’t be the first thing you see when you open your phone. This can help to make when you use social media apps intentional, as you will have to go into a folder to find them. This is great if you do not want to turn off notifications or set app time limits, but want some distance from your social media apps.
9. Delete AppsÂ
Social media platforms can be accessed without an app, so if you want to take the apps off your phone, and only check social media on your computer or through an internet browser, this is a great way to check social media less. Without the apps on your phone, it will be less tempting to constantly check, and you can be intentional with when you check social media. Since we constantly have our phones, and will use them for a variety of things, it can be tempting to check social media when you open your phone to respond to a text, look for directions, or google something. With no social media apps on your phone, you will lose that habit of constantly checking social media.
10. Turn On Grey Scale
On your iPhone you can change the colors to greyscale, by going through your settings and finding the color filter section. Social media can be so addicting because of the bright colors and atheistically pleasing photos, but the grey scale will help make the content less addicting, and you wont find yourself losing time scrolling through social media when you don’t intend to. Grey scale is also really easy to turn on and off, so if you want to try it occasionally, but not all the time, it can be an easy quick fix.
