You don’t have to quit all social media, though some people I admire (e.g., Cal Newport) are big proponents of that.
In the last few years, almost all my new friends, running buddies, and connections have come from LinkedIn. Without that, I would have missed out on many wonderful people.
And yet, once you get sucked into scrolling any social media (including LinkedIn), you are doomed.
Then how should one navigate social media? So here is a mental model I want to give you. Think of social media like the puffer fish they eat in Japan – they call it ‘fugu.’
Fugu is a delicacy but is also deadly poisonous. So this fish has to be sliced very carefully by specially trained chefs, who remove the poisonous part.
Bring the same mindset to using social media – consume it carefully like fugu.
Here are some tips:
1/ Have clear boundaries – when and what will you use these social platforms for? And for how long? It is ok to do it for entertainment, but remember, you are in dangerous territory. Your cravings can suck you in.
2/ When you open any online platform (e.g., YouTube), don’t click on anything that looks interesting. Have a mechanism to save these links for later (I use Evernote for that).
3/ Every time you feel like picking up the phone, ask yourself, ‘Why do it now? Is it my craving driving me or do I have a legitimate need for it?”
4/ Make it harder to check social media by removing the apps on the phone. On the laptop, you can choose not to auto-save the password.
5/ Learn how to handle your cravings. Vipassana has excellent techniques for that.
6/ If some social platform isn’t serving you, then don’t hesitate to quit. I have done that and it is a life-saver.
There is a lot more I can share but this is a start. I have been using LinkedIn for a few years but by using this approach, have been able to avoid most of its ill effects.
We can’t give up technology and go back to the caves, just as we can’t give up automobiles, and go back to the bullock carts. But to avoid accidents, we learn traffic rules.
Similarly, you need to learn the ‘traffic rules’ for your social media usage. That is how you make social media a positive force in your life.
– Rajan