I spent this past weekend hiking the Cutler Coast loop in northern Maine. Most of the time, I had absolutely no signal and was completely cut off from the network. This got me thinking about our class and our reading, most specifically boyd's Participating in the Always on Lifestyle. While hiking around Cutler, due to inability to access the network, I wasn't (always) on. I used my smartphone, primarily, to take pictures. So. Many. Pictures. I had a blast.
Thinking about connection and disconnection, I came across the article 4 Reasons to Take a Break from Social Media that Don't Have to do With Your Data. The Bustle piece nicely breaks down many threads of influence including social media's impact on happiness, how it can prioritize instant gratification, and at times breed toxic behavior. While social media affordances are copious, sometimes a break helps to highlight both the benefits and drawbacks.
Considering our class reading(s), and the Bustle article linked above, what's your take on taking a social media break? If you have disconnected from the network, what social media benefits and drawbacks did it help you see with a more critical eye?
The time that I took myself off the grip was a time that I wasn’t going through a lot and I needed to reset myself and thoughts and come up with a plan. In doing so, this involved me going off the grid. I felt this would help me become refocused and be able to recreate goals for myself to work towards. The whole point of me doing this was solely based off the movie Rocky when he becomes beaten in the ring and he retreats to the mountain so that he can battle and regain his confidence and of course get the win. As I began to do this blackout, I did notice I wasn’t always checking my phone for notifications because I knew there were non to erase or clear. It kind of felt as if I could finally just live my life without worrying about who’s trying to contact me. However, I also did notice myself just sitting there at times for example when I was relaxing after a nice lift at the gym. It was if my mind was mentally checked out and I would stare at the televison that was not on. So I do think not being connected constantly can create some issues when you are so use to doing something just like a habit.
ReplyDeleteI think taking a break from social media can be beneficial. Whenever I do some activity outside, whether it’s hiking, skiing, etc., I generally leave my phone behind. It’s nice, because it allows me to focus solely on the world around me without any kinds of distractions. It also prohibits that subconscious need to feel around in your pocket just to see if you have any notifications. In that moment, when you have no technology readily available and communication with the outside world will have to wait, it gives you an idea on how involved you are on social media. I don’t utilize social media to the fullest. I only have a Snapchat and really use it for communication with friends; I don’t post anything to my story. So, for me, giving up my phone for several hours at a time was easy. Its enjoyable at times not having a digital screen to look at. But for others more involved in social media, perhaps it’s harder or at least, less beneficial to be without a phone for that amount of time. For anyone who does use social media to a greater extent, is it harder to leave your phone behind, like when going outside for example, or is it easy to put it down?
ReplyDeleteI found the Bustle article interesting and in many ways, relateable and true. The first thing that stood out to me was how the author, Thorpe, mentioned that social media interaction doesn't actually replace face-to-face interaction, which I can argue on a personal level. I know other students, my age, who would much rather communicate through means of social media rather than in person which can be frustrating sometimes. I believe humans are getting to comfortable with social media interactions rather than using it to enhance their social skills.
ReplyDeleteA couple weeks ago, I went on a multiple-day camping trip with almost 100 other students; a handful I was friends with, but it was mostly strangers. No network connection, no wi-fi, but complete face-to-face interactions and it was the most beneficial trip I could have taken lately. Granted, it was for work. But it gave me a chance to step away from all means of social media (aside from an occasional phone call) and it made me realize a lot about my interactions with other people. I'm a generally shy person, but not having my phone forced me to interact with the other students more rather than relying on my phone for a "safe space." It gave me a chance to bond with the other students on levels I didn't think I would have otherwise reached.
Since returning from that camping trip, I've taken a huge step back from my phone. The only social media outlet I've used extensively is Snapchat, but I find myself checking Twitter and Facebook less and less (to the point where when I do check Facebook, I have at least 30 notifications at a time). In my opinion, social media overall affected my happiness and interactions. I've realized I don't need to rely on social media like I used to and since then have found myself less stressed.
I decided to read the 2017 paper mentioned in your Bustle article known as the ‘Happiness Paradox’. It wasn’t especially interesting to read because it’s a scientific paper and these papers rarely rely on flowery language. The conclusion of the paper was interesting, however, and can be summed up as such: your social media friends have more friends than you do. This disparity in popularity can (and does) make people who use social media less happy.
ReplyDeleteIf you’re wondering how you’re likely to have less friends than your friends (fun to say), it’s as simple as looking at the calculated mean of the data. Most people have a small group of followers, and also follow a small group of friends. However, looking at users of Facebook and (especially) Twitter, there are a tiny percentage of users who have millions of friends. This skews the mean of the data drastically. In 2016, counting only the number of Twitter users who had posted at least once in the past 6 months, the average Twitter user had 707 followers.
How many followers do you have? I think it’s easy to see how someone’s self-worth could get wrapped up in these inflated numbers of ‘friends’—especially for those of us who use social media heavily, with little to no ‘down time’.
I went through a very similar experience in Northern Maine a couple of years back. Being from New Hamphsire I had been exposed to the peaceful solitude of nature and had access to that escape for my whole life. However when I crossed into Northern Maine I noticed that things changed big time and fast too. The Forrest was so dense and thick that it would be unimaginable to be able to navigate without the proper maps of the area. Cell service instantly depleted as well, absolutely no trace of a signal whatsoever, it didn’t matter how many times you would try to send the same text nothing would ever have the chance of getting through. Along with the challenges of sleeping and eating in the outdoors this was another obstacle to try to overcome somehow.
ReplyDeleteThe first day was extremely difficult and I had some withdrawal symptoms that were mild but noticeable. As the 2nd and 3rd day approached I completely started to forget about my phone and abandoning all opportunities to use it. After this my time in the wilderness became that much more rewarding and enjoyable. I felt more in touch with my physiology, the nature around me and the people that I was with. Conversation became more fluid, focused and in depth with greater meaning. This is when I knew breaks from phones are necessary part of technological health and wellness. Letting us recharge our interpersonal skills and lessen our dependence on electronic devices will lead to overall smarter use of cell phones and other devices.
It should said Brian up there but it says unknown!
DeleteUpdate your account to reflect your name :)
DeleteI believe taking a break from social media can be very beneficial for someone. We are so attached to our devices today and they can takeaway from a lot of elements in our lives; whether they are big or small.
ReplyDeleteA recent example of when I disconnected myself from social media was the weekend before the semester started. I spent about four days down in Boston for an eSports festival called Shine 2018 at the Seaport World Trade Center. Thousands of people from around the globe came out to attend it and it was a great way for me to disconnect from the digital world and work with and/or meet all these people I've either watched compete online or have talked with online via different social media platforms for so long.
Some notable highlights from that weekend was that I got to re-connect with a friend who once lived in New Hampshire back in 2015 before leaving to go to school in Arizona. He since moved out west to live there full-time and then became a Twitch streamer (he recently became a Twitch partner as he quickly grew his stream in about 3 to 4 months; dubbing himself the "Fastest Growing Twitch Streamer"). The last I saw him was earlier in the year when I traveled to California but we didn't get to speak much but it was awesome to chat in-person with a couple of drinks and just discuss all sorts of topics; whether it related to eSports, pop-culture, sports, or anything else we thought of.
While I was taking pictures and short videos to show my friends on Instagram, I often found myself avoiding using my phone a lot as I had other work to take care of since I was on Staff for the event. I kept myself busy with my positions, talking with other attendees face-to-face and getting to have fun myself without the need of a phone or laptop.
Taking a break from social media is honestly refreshing and enlightening for me. I never do it for long, and I usually wait until I have no other choice than to cut it off in order to get things done. I took a break from social media on Friday all day. After being on duty all night and not being able to sleep until 5am, I knew that if I wanted to clean and finish unpacking my apartment, I had to go into Do Not Disturb mode both digitally and literally. I got up, did a long bible study to motivate me, inspire me and bring me back to the reality I had been avoiding since I moved in: cleaning and unpacking. I put on my worship music and just did what I had to do.
ReplyDeleteTheres something about unplugging from media and plugging into Jesus that really resets my mind after a funk. These first two weeks have been extremely difficult to transition back to school full time. I thought it would be easier only having two jobs and going to school full time when I used to have three. But the stress of not finding a routine, taking two grad classes, and starting my own business had me snuggled in bed, binging Grey's Anatomy and avoiding all avoidable responsibilities. Being forced to listen to Praise of Jesus reminded me how lucky I am and motivated me to clean and organize so I can thrive in my own environment.
I do think that taking intentional breaks from social media is highly beneficial for the purpose of reassessing oneself and the relationship between virtual and physical existence. I have taken such breaks a handful of times and always seem to have results similar to those mentioned above: feeling a tangible absence of the device - or really, vice - at first, recognizing the moments in which I would normally be using it, and eventually moving into a sense of grounding within myself and my physical interactions with people.
ReplyDeleteOne point I have yet to see brought up is the act of consumption involved in social media. When I am in phases of heavy social media and cell phone use and often before I decide a ‘break’ is necessary, I begin to recognize a pattern within myself of always looking for more. My newsfeeds cease to be fulfilling as I read every new thing posted by my favorite accounts and ultimately run out of content. I have literally finished the end of an Instagram scroll and thought, “Is that it?!” This way of treating social media as something that I consume through reading and engaging with changes the way I relate to other people: their social media lives ultimately become material for my personal use. In this bizarre relationship between content generators, content consumers and content platforms, it’s interesting to consider exactly who or what is the product: social media itself, the individuals posting content, or the ones consuming it?
Hiking is one of my favorite hobbies! So far I have done eleven of the NH 48 4,000 footers! It must have been nice to be without your phone and without service and take every single inch of nature in. Whenever I go hiking I always put my phone in my backpack and don't touch it unless I come across something really interesting. I've never hiked anywhere else but NH. Seeing these pictures makes me really want to go to Maine and hike.
ReplyDeleteI recently took a break from social media when I went to Nashville for vacation over the summer. I felt it was needed since I was with family and friends for a whole week. Being away from my phone to enjoy my new surroundings for a whole week made my whole vacation so much better. Some things I noticed were people always had their phones out taking pictures of everything and not taking it all in person. Even though I took my phone out a couple of times to take pictures of things I would want to remember, it was nice staying "offline". Also, tonight as I am writing this I was unpacking from going home this weekend to find that my phone kept buzzing and buzzing. I eventually put it somewhere that I won't walk over to touch it. It felt nice to get all my unpacking done at once and not taking 10 minute breaks whenever my phone buzzes. Being away from my phone sometimes keeps me on my toes because I want to check it every time it goes off. But this was the normal thing back then, no one had phones or social media. Being in this class makes me think about how much social media really controls our lives.
I love how we are talking about taking a break from social media because I personally just took one myself the other week leading into this conversation. To me I feel social media just becomes way to much and is a thing we as people need to learn how to be able to shut it down when we need to. The reason I did it was because I felt like I didn't need to keep following other peoples lives that week and just focus on my own. When I mean following other people I just mean not always looking at people Instagram posts or for example all peoples snapchat stories. Just for me it felt like it was unnecessary to have since most of the time it doesn't benefit us just entertain when the present is not doing so. When I logged out of my accounts I found the first day I would always start to look at my phone but then remember I have nothing to look at. It honestly at first made you wonder what was going on and what people were saying or doing but then you shortly slip out of that thought and would carry on with your day with out even noticing your phone. I feel also if you are always are on your phone you start getting into bad habits and prevent yourself from getting in a good daily routines.
ReplyDeleteI feel that social media breaks have proved to be almost essential for people of all ages. I try to take a break from a social media platform when I begin to notice how unnecessarily often I have been checking it and I notice some of my friends occasionally doing the same things. I think this is very important, to be able to notice these times and reset our usage into something more average.
ReplyDeleteI personally only use a few social media apps. I do not use Instagram or Facebook, and I find that there are both benefits and drawbacks. Some drawbacks of social media can be the way it leaves people comparing their lives to the way other people’s lives seem on social media. It can be easy to forget that we choose what we post, and someone’s social media is not a valid thing to compare ourselves to. Social media does create an opportunity to stay connected with people who you may not be extremely close to but still care for. We can leave a nice comment instead of going out to lunch. We are also able to stay connected to people on multiple platforms and are reachable at almost all times.
Social Media has become a huge part of almost every person's lives even if they like to believe it or not. The social media epidemic has taken over the world and most of the times not for good. I personally believe that social media breaks is something that would be beneficial for people of all ages. Now a days we see children as young as 8 and 9 having smart phones, which is completely strange for most of society who did not get phones till late teenage years or when they were adults. Along with these seat phones that these children have come social media accounts. I personally believe no young child should be allowed to have instagram, snapchat, or any other sort of social media accounts. As a society we are teaching the younger generation to rely on these things. By people taking social media breaks they would as a whole be more aware of their surroundings and appreciate life more. At times people are too worried about what is on their screens than life itself. The biggest problem that would occur from disconnecting from social media would be disconnecting from your friends and family. A lot of times the only time people are able to connect with friends and family are through their accounts such as facebook. Other than not being up to date with these people I still believe that disconnecting could be helpful and I would be interested in trying it sometime.
ReplyDeleteI personally have never disconnected from my social media accounts. Not because I feel like it would be too hard for me to delete those apps but because I've never felt like I had been getting too obsessed with them. Although I have never done that myself I do have a friend who has gone on multiple "social media cleanse". When I asked why he did it he said that he feels better when he does it. It takes away stress and he doesn't feel controlled by social media and his phone screen. I honestly think his decision to disconnect is really smart and others should try to do so as well if they feel consumed in their phones.