Monday, September 16, 2013

Social Media Monday—It's Time to QUIT Social Media!


Yep you read that right.

The Queen of social media is telling you it's time to QUIT social media. 

NOT permanently (thought you were going to get out of it, didn’t you!), but I'm suggesting you take a break periodically, and re-examine your plan.

I used to keep up with social every single day, whether I was home or traveling. But I’ve learned that I can’t sustain a reasonable social media schedule seven days a week, indefinitely. So I’ve given myself permission to have weekends off and to relax when I’m traveling.

I know it sounds scary, but the truth is—it hasn’t hurt my platform at all—as a matter of fact it has helped it. Here’s two reasons why:

  • My updates are fresher.
  • I have time to expose myself to new blogs and new people.
So how do you know if it’s time to back off on social media?

  • You’re spending more than thirty minutes a day on social media updates.
  • You find yourself investing more energy in your blog than in your writing.
  • You’re updating about the same five or six sites four to five times a week.
  • You cringe when you hear the words social media.
  • You don’t have time to discover new blogs/followers/friends.
Here’s what to do.

1. STOP. Give yourself permission to quit social media completely for forty-eight hours. Don’t announce it on Facebook, Twitter or even your blog. Just STOP.

2. Rediscover what you enjoy about social media. AFTER the forty-eight hours of rest, spend a day or two just browsing. Take time to really read a couple of blog posts, visit with friends on Facebook, or hang out on Twitter.

3. Determine what you need to accomplish with social media. Then make a plan so you can accomplish it in no more than thirty minutes a day, no more than five days a week.

4. Restart your social media. Do it by sharing what you’ve learned. You can update about quitting social media, new blogs you’ve discovered, even new connections you’ve made.

I recommend a minimum of four Facebook posts per working day and six to ten Twitter updates. This is something anyone can accomplish during a quick thirty minute window.

Quick Tip: If you schedule your social media for the day in the morning, get a jump on the next morning by scheduling some of the next day’s updates in the late afternoon. A lot of blogs go live in the afternoon, so you’ll have a chance to que up some fresh material before you stop work for the day.

Now it’s your turn, what do you do when social media overwhelms you?

Don’t forget to join the conversation!
Blessings,
Edie

9 comments:

  1. I stick my head in the sand and don't do anything because I feel so overwhelmed. Going to work on social Media in the coming weeks! Thanks, Edie.

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    1. Pat, I totally understand that overwhelmed feeling. Email me with any questions you have or any help you need. Blessings, E

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    1. Susan, I thought it was something we all needed to hear. Thanks for stopping by, Blessings, E

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  3. You know, whenever I hear about people taking time off I think about how God rested on the seventh day and how Jesus needed to take time off by himself. But this blog made me think of rotating crops (or resting fields). I'm pretty sure that's in the Bible too. Sometimes we need to rest that field so it will be filled with more nutrients when we come back to use it.

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    1. Connie, I think both analogies are appropriate. We all need regular times of rest and crop rotation makes sense - whether we're farmers or not! Thanks so much for the insight! Blessings, E

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  4. A while back I started doing a social media "fast" on Sundays, and I'm considering moving it back to Saturday and taking the entire weekend off. It's so much more restful for me, and I find I'm in a better frame of mind when Monday morning rolls around. I still schedule posts and updates for the weekend, but I don't check them until Monday. I'm looking for the right balance, where social media works for ME and not the other way around.

    Great post, Edie. I predict this will set a bunch of people FREE :)

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  5. In the summer of 2012, my husband and I took an Alaskan cruise. Because I didn't want to pay the expensive fees for internet while on board the ship, I went without social media for days (even email.) I absolutely loved it. I came home refresh and relaxed and it was nice not to have that internal pressure to check Facebook, blog, etc.

    Great idea, Edie!

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  6. For several months, I've been observing "quiet Monday." After the plethora of family/friend emails and facebook posts, and the overload of sports, my eyes were rolling back in my head when Monday mornings came. Sometimes even Sunday mornings went by in a blur.

    I staggered into the den one Monday and reached for the TV remote. I felt God say, "Just be quiet for today. No TV, no phone, no social media...just quiet." I almost pulled my hair out the first couple times but now I hate to miss it like I had to the past couple weeks. God uses it as such a refreshing and refocusing time.

    So now you know why I usually comment on your Monday posts on Tuesday :)

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