3 practical ways to get rid of your social media addiction

Social media has literally pushed the envelope of distraction for today’s youth. Do you find yourself compulsively scanning your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat profiles every now and then? Then, chances are that you are suffering from a social media addiction. Nowadays, the first thing most people do when they wake up and the last things they do before they sleep is sneak into the virtual world and check their social media notifications. Such addiction is, thus, a problem that needs to be tackled with utmost seriousness.

Social media addiction has also affected the productivity levels at workplaces today. Employees often seem to be distracted by their social media platforms, pay less attention to their work and eventually become non-performers. If constant tweets and notifications are luring you away from your work, here are a few tips that will help you detox from social media enslavement:

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Switch to alternatives and connect with people in person

It is not necessary to mention every feeling or emotion you experience on your social media profile. Instead of updating your status on a social avenue, try brainstorming with your colleagues. This will not only bring you closer to your team but also heighten your ability to face challenges head on.

Most young people are dependent on social media because they feel they have nothing better to do. A good alternative to getting distracted by the virtual world can be reading a book or subscribing to a magazine. Switching your attention to other sources will accentuate your knowledge and keep your mind alert at all times.

Engage yourself productively and indulge sparingly

Prioritise! You are the anchor of the ship called life. So, don’t let your spare time be governed by social media interaction. Rather, engage in team-building and multitasking activities that will eventually benefit the organisation and add value to your skill set. Think of a new plan of action that will add value to your work and increase the output of your fellow team members. For instance, if you find that you have some spare time at work, try out a brain-game session with your colleagues. This is a sure shot way to kill time while exercising your brain cells.

Another tactic that has shown incredible results is limiting social media activities to a certain time period. Such short breaks can be a good way to refresh the mind from daily mundane work. The lesser you engage in social media activities, the higher will your productivity be. For instance, the rule of 15-15-15 works better in such a setting – 15 minutes in the morning, 15 post lunch and 15 minutes towards the last hour of the day.

Disable notifications, right now!

Another insightful way of staying away from social media is by disabling notifications from your social media pages. Once you activate this setting on your smartphone and tablet, you will no longer be notified about what the world is doing. This is also a good way to trick your mind into believing that no one is sending you mails, texts or WhatsApp messages and you are definitely not missing out on anything important in the virtual world. It has been noted that employees who have disabled notifications are less distracted and more constructive during work hours.

Stop following the herd. Be an example for your fellow team members by performing well and not getting swayed by the virtual world. It may seem hard to take the first step, but once you get past the initial challenge, it is a sure-shot way to success.

If you still find it hard to let go of your smart gadgets, subscribe to business pages and magazines that are related to your industry that will help you direct your addiction in a way that is useful for you. So while the others are checking their social pages, you can stand out by the knowledge you gained online.

Social media networks are not bad spaces. As long as you use them for constructive growth and learning, it is not a matter of concern. However, if you are addicted, then the detox measures listed above will surely bear effective results in no time. Additionally, if you can train your mind to understand that technology is designed to hold you hostage, you will be more motivated to set time limits and get off social media as soon as you can.