A couple of years ago, I decided to go bare ass screenless for one day a week in efforts to get away from social media, emails, text message and visual noise pollution.
I thought about my decision and its impact recently as I was listening to Nicole Abboud’s podcast episode about her 30-day detox (as she calls it) from social media. I’m a big fan of Abboud’s Gen Y Lawyer Podcast even though I’m a bit removed from Gen Y at least chronologically. Abboud’s podcasts are always thought-provoking and stimulating no matter your age or status in life.
Like many of us, Abboud uses her social media accounts as a business development tool as well as a purely social one. Those of us who aspire to be thought leaders often feel compelled to be always “on” our social media accounts staying abreast of events, getting ahead of developments and offering (we hope) enlightened comments to draw an audience and get business.
Before you know it, we start to value and spend more time on social media than on real personal interactions, reading, and just plain reflecting.
But as Abboud points out, this effort has a dark side as well as we get more and more consumed by social media and try to do and say more. And as lawyers (or ex-lawyers), we remain highly competitive, driven A-personalities’ which fuels us even more. Before you know it, we start to value and spend more time on social media than on real personal interactions, reading, and just plain reflecting.
So Abboud detoxed for 30 days and, in her podcast, talks about what she discovered: more creativity. Less distraction. Less affected by what was going on in the outside world. Improved self-esteem as she quit comparing herself to others and began thinking more