The overall thing that I learned from doing this was that Facebook had become something like an addiction for me. I kid you not...I actually experienced withdrawals somewhat reminiscent of a time when I gave up caffeine for a while.
I would have posted this last week, but I actually didn't finish until last Thursday, so it made since to hold off the post until today.
The idea for this came about actually a couple of weeks before I decided it was time to actually do it. To be honest, it took me a couple of weeks for me to admit it was something I needed to do. Facebook was becoming and had become a large component of my life. It sucked away minutes, hours, who knows how long...so without further ado, here are my daily recordings:
Day 1: Thursday
This morning I announced on Facebook that I was peacing out for a while. I was surprised when multiple people throughout the day actually asked me why I was "peacing out." The thing that I noticed the most today was how many times I pulled out my phone to try and open an app that was no longer there. I hadn't really realized how much I would pull it up, scroll for a few minutes, and close it - on the bus, in class, walking through campus...The second thing I noticed today was that I felt a little lost when I tried pulling out my phone to register for an event they needed a head count for, only to remember that I had deleted my app. So instead, I just told someone personally that I was coming...yeah, surprising but that was an option too haha. I must admit, Facebook does, however, make it so convenient for event planning, so I guess there are some positive aspects to it. I'm excited for this next week.
Day 2: Friday
Today was hard. I had a lot of free time, and spent the afternoon/evening at a coffee shop with my laptop out. The amount of times I went to type "facebook.com" in my search bar was a little ridiculous. And the sad thing was that I would just open my browser and it was like a natural response...I guess Facebook is in my subconscious or something. Also, I went to a party tonight. The fact that I couldn't post pictures was somewhat devastating to me. And to be honest, I'm sort of bothered by how much it bothered me. We'll see about tomorrow.
Day 3: Saturday
I worked from 7-4 today, so I wouldn't have a lot of time for Facebook anyway, right? Wrong. I'm given a 30 minute break for every 4 hours I work. Amount of time on break I usually spend on Facebook: probably 25 of those 30 minutes. Well, today I couldn't do that, so I focused on having some real, live conversations with the people around me. Weird, right? (*sarcasm*kind of...) It also made me realize how much other people are on their phones. Another random fact: I feel like I've been checking my email a lot more than usual too. Maybe it's something to do with that feeling of wanting to be needed...idk...I'll stop playing psychologist now. The second part of my day that was most impacted was when I got back home from work. I would usually sit down in front of a computer and browse the web. This browsing generally consists of one page. You guessed it: Facebook. Today, however, I took my dog for a walk out in the beautiful weather. Generally, I'll look up from my laptop and wish I had spent what was left of my afternoon outside, and today, I had no regrets. And I went to bed early - what!?
Day 4: Sunday
I worked again today, but only 11-4 - yay sleep! Again, I struggled a little during break to not reach for my phone to press on an app that wasn't there. I was a lot more social and more involved in conversations where I would usually have just gone, set down, and scrolled through Facebook for break time. After work, I took my dog for another walk, cooked dinner, and sat down to watch a movie. I started to do that thing again several times where I would type the letter "f" into the search bar before realizing what I was doing. I intend on going to bed early again tonight. Twice in a row!? Maybe I'll actually feel rested this week - especially if it's like last night. Usually if I try and go to bed early, I'll actually end up laying in bed on my phone before realizing how long its been.
Day 5: Monday
The first challenge was the bus. The second challenge was class. The third challenge was that hour break I have between all three of my classes on Monday and Wednesday that I usually spend scrolling through Facebook. I took my dog for a walk again today when I got home, instead of sitting down in front of the computer and scrolling mindlessly through posts.
Day 6: Tuesday
Day 6? What? Today was weird. I didn't really have the desire or impulse to pull up Facebook, even in class. I did find myself creeping on other people who were on Facebook, though...I think it really is the pictures I miss most to be honest. I also hope I'm not missing out on any events and stuff. I think I've learned how valuable social media can be to keep up-to-date and informed, but I've also learned how I need to balance my time and not be so addicted to it.
Day 7: Wednesday - The Finale
And here's my last day. As of tonight, I have officially made it exactly one week without logging onto my Facebook page. I'm actually sort of impressed with myself. I didn't know if I would cave in half-way through or not. Honestly, I've learned a lot through doing this challenge. I've learned more about the value of time and how addicting something like social media can become in someone's life - particularly mine. I've learned over this past week how not to look at value in the number of likes on a status or picture. I would challenge everyone to do this (if, for nothing else, to prove just how addicting Facebook can be). JABFOBAONF
Now get ready for the barrage of cow pictures! :)
Megan
Day 3: Saturday
I worked from 7-4 today, so I wouldn't have a lot of time for Facebook anyway, right? Wrong. I'm given a 30 minute break for every 4 hours I work. Amount of time on break I usually spend on Facebook: probably 25 of those 30 minutes. Well, today I couldn't do that, so I focused on having some real, live conversations with the people around me. Weird, right? (*sarcasm*kind of...) It also made me realize how much other people are on their phones. Another random fact: I feel like I've been checking my email a lot more than usual too. Maybe it's something to do with that feeling of wanting to be needed...idk...I'll stop playing psychologist now. The second part of my day that was most impacted was when I got back home from work. I would usually sit down in front of a computer and browse the web. This browsing generally consists of one page. You guessed it: Facebook. Today, however, I took my dog for a walk out in the beautiful weather. Generally, I'll look up from my laptop and wish I had spent what was left of my afternoon outside, and today, I had no regrets. And I went to bed early - what!?
Day 4: Sunday
I worked again today, but only 11-4 - yay sleep! Again, I struggled a little during break to not reach for my phone to press on an app that wasn't there. I was a lot more social and more involved in conversations where I would usually have just gone, set down, and scrolled through Facebook for break time. After work, I took my dog for another walk, cooked dinner, and sat down to watch a movie. I started to do that thing again several times where I would type the letter "f" into the search bar before realizing what I was doing. I intend on going to bed early again tonight. Twice in a row!? Maybe I'll actually feel rested this week - especially if it's like last night. Usually if I try and go to bed early, I'll actually end up laying in bed on my phone before realizing how long its been.
Day 5: Monday
The first challenge was the bus. The second challenge was class. The third challenge was that hour break I have between all three of my classes on Monday and Wednesday that I usually spend scrolling through Facebook. I took my dog for a walk again today when I got home, instead of sitting down in front of the computer and scrolling mindlessly through posts.
Day 6: Tuesday
Day 6? What? Today was weird. I didn't really have the desire or impulse to pull up Facebook, even in class. I did find myself creeping on other people who were on Facebook, though...I think it really is the pictures I miss most to be honest. I also hope I'm not missing out on any events and stuff. I think I've learned how valuable social media can be to keep up-to-date and informed, but I've also learned how I need to balance my time and not be so addicted to it.
Day 7: Wednesday - The Finale
And here's my last day. As of tonight, I have officially made it exactly one week without logging onto my Facebook page. I'm actually sort of impressed with myself. I didn't know if I would cave in half-way through or not. Honestly, I've learned a lot through doing this challenge. I've learned more about the value of time and how addicting something like social media can become in someone's life - particularly mine. I've learned over this past week how not to look at value in the number of likes on a status or picture. I would challenge everyone to do this (if, for nothing else, to prove just how addicting Facebook can be). JABFOBAONF
Now get ready for the barrage of cow pictures! :)
Megan
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