The other day a Yoga teacher and influencer announced on Instagram that she would go for an Instagram detox. She would be offline for a couple of weeks so people should not be worried if she doesn't answer immediately or doesn't create new posts.
"Wow" I thought, and was already wondering if I should do the same. I was quite certain that I spend too much time on social media. After 10 stories about the perfect life of people I barely know, I often feel anxious or exhausted. But to be honest, so does reading the news about global happenings... or reading about the right things to eat. So yes, I needed to do something, but where to start?
Two days later she was back (our yoga teacher influencer) - just checking in of course - And after 5 days she gave up, but not without creating endless stories about how successful and life changing the experience was.
"Yeah right" I thought to myself and immediately realised what my detox would be going to be. I would stop taking in the artificial lives of others and simply skip the stories!
I would focus on meaningful things. I love authenticity and that's what I would search for. Since that day I review every moment asking myself:
Is this important to where I am right now or where I want to be?
Does it matter to me? Can and do I want to change something about this?
What will I do with the information or what will I do different after seeing or reading this? Does it inspire me?
Does it connect to someone that matters to me?
If the answer is no, I push skip or forward or simply don't read it. To further reduce the input of junk into my brain, I started unsubscribing from any newsletter that comes my way. I unfollowed accounts that don't matter to me or what I stand for. I stopped browsing the news while waiting for someone or something. I was shocked on how many things without purpose I had allowed into my brain.
What am I doing with all the new free time you wonder? I dream my own life!
I dream and use my own creativity to make those dreams come alive. I feel more authentic about the things I do and less anxious about pleasing someone else.
When looking for elements to detox your mind, you can ask yourself which information, people or other input create negative emotions such as anxiety, anger, stress, frustration, sadness or sleeplessness. Then explore how you can change the way you receive the information or how you can stop receiving it at all.
Scared of missing out? Be sure, you are not - use the new time to explore your own dreams!
