I don’t know about you but I find that social media can be a time-waster at the best of times, let alone during this current health pandemic.

There’s no quicker route to losing anything from ten minutes to an hour than the aimless scrolling on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and so on. It’s can become toxic over time.

Granted that these channels can provide a great way to socialize, have a laugh😂, and feel a little less alone, especially at the moment. There are also the benefits of growing your business, and of course keeping in touch with friends and acquaintances. But what about the darker side of social media?

When it starts to replace your time set aside for meditation, reading or quality time with your partner, it starts to be an invasive and unwelcome habit.

During the quarantine, I think it’s important to raise the topic of being mindful of the time we spend on social media.
If the first thing that you check in the morning is your phone 📱, you’re cutting your meditation or workout time. It might seem at first like a quick minute or so, but before you know it, you’re hours in on social media and you haven’t started with some of the most important things you should get done for that day.

Even if you meditate at night and workout in the afternoon, do you really want to kickstart your day on your phone? You risk your mood (and vibration) being negatively impacted instead of starting your day right with high vibrational activities like quiet contemplation, meditation, yoga stretching, journaling, or a walk outside.

Beginning your day like that every once in awhile isn’t a big deal, but if it becomes a habit, you can watch your precious morning time disappear into nothing before long!

You’re not alone, I have fallen into the same habit many times over the years. And the problem with habits is, they’re hard to break! You have to be conscious about your actions if you want to be more mindful of how you start your day.
Ask yourself what’s more important to you? Waking up and scrolling mindlessly or waking up and consciously creating your day? Which is more empowering? What makes you feel better? Be honest.

Think about the following questions:

1. Does social media enhance your life? Or does it distract you from being the best version of yourself?
2. What kind of emotions does social media evoke in you?
3. Does it force you to compare yourself or your life to others?
4. Does it make you feel more confused and scared, especially at the moment with all the information about Covid-19?
5. Do you feel the need to keep up with others?
6. Do you feel compelled to share something so that you will gain some likes and feel better?
7. Does using social media ultimately make you feel bad about yourself?

If you answered yes to most of the questions above, it may be that social media is beginning to shift you from a higher vibrational frequency into a low one.

It’s time to start becoming more conscious and mindful of social media.

• Decide to set an intention before logging in to your social accounts. Are you clicking to connect with others or to distract yourself? What do you hope to get out of your experience? It may sound grandiose (all you want to do is have a quick look and see what everyone’s up to right?) but by stopping yourself before you enter the minefield, you create a sense of mindfulness that you will carry with you as you scroll.
• Share what makes you feel good and express your truth. Don’t just share or write for likes, share to make others feel less alone, not to teach or try to convince them of what you think they should hear. Spread love and positivity not fear and stress.
• Don’t follow people, groups or organizations that create fear in you. If it makes you feel bad, ask yourself if it’s necessary to keep in your life. Follow and share things that uplift and empower you instead.
• If you find yourself being triggered by things that others post and share, ask yourself why that is and try to work through the emotion. Don’t judge others on what they decide to post.
• If you start feeling negative about yourself or comparing your life to others, become aware of why and consciously shift your focus to something else. Immediately remind yourself of what you are grateful for and what you have the power to change in your life.
• Focus on the positive things about social media like connecting with family, friends and like-minded individuals. Use it purely to create happiness and love.
• Create a new goal to not look at social media first thing as you wake up. Set aside a designated time where you can look at your accounts and then log out again.
• Turn off your notifications. So, that you are not tempted to click in every single time something happens, (let’s face it, 99% of these notifications are not urgent).
• Choose to replace your usual social media time with something that actually enhances your life better. A ten-minute meditation, a ten-minute sun salutation, reading a book, writing in your journal, adding a picture to your vision board, even learning a new language!

I’m not saying that social media is bad or that you shouldn’t use it, but we be a little more mindful of the ways we choose to approach it.

Never measure your worth in the amount of clicks or likes you get. Your worth starts with how you feel about yourself.

I hope that this helps you decide how and when you spend your energy and attention.

Empower yourself and get control where your precious energy flows, I promise, you will feel better.