Home→Forums→Emotional Mastery→Good Bye, Social Media!
- This topic has 13 replies, 12 voices, and was last updated 3 years, 4 months ago by
Anyone.
-
AuthorPosts
-
July 14, 2017 at 6:18 am #158026
Ty
ParticipantHi everyone! I just joined Tiny Buddha today and am excited to get and give advice on this forum.
I’m excited to announce that I am taking a long, much needed break from social media. Several months ago I deleted my Twitter, several weeks ago I removed Instagram from my phone, and last night I blocked Facebook from opening on my phone and laptop. I have decided to do this because I feel like social media can have a very negative impact on our mindsets, goals, and emotions. You see people post their “good sides”, it’s like a facade to show the world how amazing their lives are. I cannot lie, I have also done this.
In my attempt to live a healthier, happier life, I am trying to remove all anything negative so that I can focus my time on other things, like creating real friendships with others around me, focusing on work and school, and living a genuine life. In just the 8 hours I’ve removed Facebook, I feel lightened.
Have you consider taking the leap and getting off of social media? Have you been off social media for a long time? Let me know! I’m curious of everyone’s view on this.
-Ty
July 14, 2017 at 6:34 am #158030Anonymous
GuestDear Ty:
Congratulations for taking the steps to living a genuine life and removing yourself from social media. My only participation in social media is right here, on tiny buddha. Looking forward to read more from you!
anita
July 14, 2017 at 6:42 am #158032Ty
ParticipantHi Anita, glad to finally meet you. 🙂
The only social media I am using is Tiny Buddha and YouTube, because I feel like they both contribute something positive to my life. On YouTube, I have to actively refuse to watch anything that might make me upset or angry, but that’s easy enough for me. I enjoy watching animal videos and videos of people improving their lives. I find it many videos inspirational, for example Ted Talks.
Thanks for the reply!
-Ty
July 14, 2017 at 6:49 am #158038Anonymous
GuestDear Ty:
You are welcome. I like your selectiveness about what you watch on YouTube. I wonder if any other member will reply to you with their sharing of not using social media, particularly Facebook. You and I may be the only ones….?
anita
July 14, 2017 at 7:57 am #158058coconut
ParticipantHello. I wanted to say that I don’t use social media either. I don’t like facebook at all, I only use it for master cause we have a group there and we post things that we need to know regarding school. I don’t have any photos there, I only use it for that purpose. I have 1 more year of school and I can’t wait to delete my account forever. I also watch youtube videos and visit this site every once in a while. For me, it feels good to live this way and I wish I could find more people like this.
July 14, 2017 at 9:04 am #158078Amanda
ParticipantCongratulions! About 2 years ago, I took a 1 year break from social media (joined again in 8/2016). It was a great time to just reconnect with myself and go back to the “old fashioned” way of making plans: texting and phone calls! 🙂
I recently realized that social media (mostly Facebook) perpetuates my anxiety about relationships, so I’m taking another break beginning this weekend- I’ve already announced it to my friends. I’ll look at it occasionally to see if there are events I want to attend, but other than that, I won’t be using it as a means for entertainment anymore. Now that I’ve fully realized the extent to which Facebook highlights my insecurities, letting go of it seems much easier.
I fully applaud your decision to jump off social media for a while! Please post soon about how it’s going 🙂
July 14, 2017 at 1:53 pm #158160Rohail Bukhari
ParticipantHi Ty,
I think you made a very smart move removing social media from your life. I made a similar decision about a year ago and it has made me so much happier. I truly feel like everybody on social media is not being there true self simply because that is how the creators of social media want you to act. they want you to use it in a specific way. its so easy to create a persona of being an amazing person with an amazing life on social media because you want people to think a certain way about you. and what’s funny is that the more we use it, the more anxious we feel. it’s a drug.
July 14, 2017 at 2:08 pm #158168Nan
ParticipantI do not go on Facebook anymore, as it makes me feel like the whole world of friends/family are having magnificent vacations, lovey-dovey absolutely cutesy relationships and the posting of their food on their table isn’t relevant to me. I also found that people from high school ( over 40 years ago) would reach out and want to be “friends”. They seemed to have forgotten how awful they were to me in school, so it kind of creeps me out. It seems to be such an superficial thing!
If someone moans about a bad time or similiar, bunches of “friends” say how wonderful the complainer is, and seems like it is all false accolades in my opinion. Birthdays are the worst- if you cant text, call or email me, dont fill the FB mailbox up with the mindless and 30 second focus of Happy birthday, etc… For an occasion I take the time to get a gift, get a card, mail it and then get a 30 second ” thanks for the gift! Fred loves it!” on FB? Sorry for the ranting, I feel absolutely more peaceful and focused without FB. I treasure the friends/family who make the call and I can hear their voice, or email me on my private email. Must just be an old fuddy-duddy these days!
July 14, 2017 at 4:45 pm #158192PearceHawk
ParticipantHi TY…
The only social media I get involved with is Tiny Buddha and TED Talks. When social media came along I decided to hold back getting a membership because I wanted to see it grow first. I’m so glad I did. I have no use in putting myself out there to be “liked” or to have someone “unlike” me. It is an honor to have Tiny Buddha allow me to be here. I like real. I look forward to reading your posts.
Pearce
July 15, 2017 at 10:02 am #158276Joe
ParticipantTY
I don’t use Facebook any more – it’s mind blowing just how parasitic it can become, how I wanted to get likes on everything I uploaded, adding people I had only ever spoken to once even though we could pass each other in the corridor and not glance at each other. It just seemed really artificial and vapid. People only posting the really good bits of their life and it projects this idea that everybody has this seemingly perfect life. Nobody wants to read about negativity or “people being real” and nobody wants to read lengthy posts about “real stuff”. I just feel like Facebook has made people more shallow and disconnected, and it’s almost like it has made all of us have a really short attention span.
Facebook is something I avoid like the plague – I don’t want to connect with idiot former classmates or my idiot relatives, I don’t want to add people I hardly even speak to anyway and then trawl through endless status updates reading about how much they love watching ‘The Only Way Is Essex’ and I have no desire to put up with the subsequent whiny messages of “Why haven’t you added me? Why have you unfriended me? Why don’t you like me?” (Probably because I can’t stand you in real life?)
The only social media platform I use is Instagram but that’s purely to promote my art business. I hate the fact that to make a Facebook page for my art business as well, I need to make a personal Facebook page when I really don’t want one.
Joe
July 16, 2017 at 7:50 pm #158436Wanderer
ParticipantAn interesting discussion. I too question if I want to continue with Facebook. It seems people have so many different ways of using it. I keep my friends list small, only actual friends and family. My posts are to friends only, and consist mostly of birthday greetings and pictures when I travel for extended periods, as some folks worry about where we are. I refrain from using the like button for memes and other public traffic. Still, I find it quite amazing to see what some people post, share and like. I have no interest in Extreme political opinions (on all sides), mockery and hateful posts. I enjoy seeing pics of friends. While I don’t mind a few pics of the family pet, I don’t have the time or interest in seeing EVERY cute animal picture that is on the net. On the other hand, my son has over 700 friends and rarely posts at all and follows only a few close friends. He uses it as a contact directory. So I guess what I’m saying is use it only if it adds value, or not at all. There are far better sourcs of news and entertainment.
July 24, 2017 at 9:07 pm #159962LifeInsideJack
ParticipantFacebook gets too familiar with your other online activities. I use it as a means to connect with my Life Coach and reach out to a small group of folks that read my stuff on a Member Group. Other than that I find it frustrating and full of folks that post first and think second. As for Instagram you can find me there, under this handle, as I live mobile and promote the mobile lifestyle to others who are interested in fleeing the cubicle for life under the stars.
I think realizing that it is time to shut those medias off is a big step at seeing you were once at a particular place in your life and are now moving towards something higher. It’s a recognition that life isn’t posts and cute cat videos. When we choose to live life outside of the box we’ll find few that can understand our words and actions, and of those who do we must reach back and bring them along.
Good for you, and good for the person you are becoming.
All the best,
May 6, 2021 at 7:41 pm #379312Sarah
ParticipantHey TY,
I’ve came across this forum and honestly, it’s relatable. I’ve deactivated my ig account, and delete fb apps and all social media apps on my phone and turned off most of notifications on my phone, except for whatsapp. It feels soo freeing to have this opportunity to choose what we want to do with our lives. It’s only been a week, I realised I have soo much more time. I even get to make breakfast in the morning before work, and I get to bring along some leftovers for lunch. It is liberating for sure. My close friends and families can always call and text me to connect, honestly there is no need for social media. In the morning I read some news online, enough for me to know what’s going on with the world. I have never been more peaceful in my entire life. I get to focus and meditate as well, and realised that I’ve been living a beautiful life afterall.
Thank you for sharing this and I hope everyone who’s in the same journey, get to become the person we are all along.
Wishing love and light to all.
– Sarah
May 9, 2021 at 6:34 pm #379562Anyone
ParticipantGood job, Ty!!! It is sometimes difficult to realise what might be pulling us down or has the potential to do so!
I chose to delete my Facebook account back in 2011 and never looked back nor has there been a moment I felt that I am missing out on something, except for the informational content which is usually not on news website!
Love & Light!
-
AuthorPosts