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Who here has quit social media?

David Fitz

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I would love to but I need fb ads and insta for my store.

On Facebook I unfollowed everyone and removed myself from groups I have no interest in.

On Instagram I follow very few friends and only follow accounts like Andy Frisella.

I don't have Snapchat.

My main killer is YouTube where sometimes I can spend hours watching stuff.

I don't have cable TV. 1 hour of TV a week and I try read instead.


I was also on twitter but removed myself. That platform is absolutely toxic.
 
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Swift

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I would love to but I need fb ads and insta for my store.

On Facebook I unfollowed everyone and removed myself from groups I have no interest in.

On Instagram I follow very few friends and only follow accounts like Andy Frisella.

I don't have Snapchat.

My main killer is YouTube where sometimes I can spend hours watching stuff.

I don't have cable TV. 1 hour of TV a week and I try read instead.
Get freedom.to to block out social media and other distracting sites while you're working.
 

Ludachris

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I am an unwilling participant in social media ... I'm only there because my readers are.

Otherwise I wish I could join the rest of ya and dump it entirely.

Unfortunately as entrepreneurs, it is a necessary part of business. You have to go where your audience is, otherwise opportunities are lost and you're not maximizing your reach.
Same here. That's the only reason I really use it, and the occasional checking in with a friend or family member every few months/years. Unfortunately, it's required for some business projects.
 

jacobp

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I have been tracking myself a lot this year I can spot a clear trend... the more time I spend during the day on social media = the worse I feel.

I get lazy, distracted, and sometimes slightly depressed. And I am very much a positive, focused person.

I shouldn't be surprised cause I know a lot of you have been talking about the dangers of social media for years.

At this stage, I am thinking about quitting Instagram and Facebook forever.
I can make a new Fb account just to run my students group and shut down everything else.

Do those people with some long term experience (quit social media for over one year etc) want to chime in?

What has been your experience?


I have felt a similar feeling HOWEVER.... due to the nature of our work and society, i feel as though it is almost impossible to quit these platforms, especially as technology continues to grow.

the advice I take comes from the ALL FAMOUS TIM FERRIS! where he explains that he keeps his phone on airplane mode throughout most of the day, and only allows a window of time once a day to check these platforms and respond/post etc.


doing so minimizes the urge and need to check out other peoples lives and focus on our own.
 
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Tiago

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I am an unwilling participant in social media ... I'm only there because my readers are.

Otherwise I wish I could join the rest of ya and dump it entirely.

Unfortunately as entrepreneurs, it is a necessary part of business. You have to go where your audience is, otherwise opportunities are lost and you're not maximizing your reach.

My main reason as to why not quit social media.

But is it true though? Is it a necessary part of business?

Maybe it's a necessary part of the business system one might've built for themselves, where they create clients and engage with them on social media. But I see two options here:

1. Being off social media might give you a competitive advantage as @PureA pointed out because you're not so distracted. With this you can generate more money, which in turn you can hire someone to do the social media for you.

2. What if you decided to change your business system to one that does not rely in social media? There are innumerous businesses that are very large and profitable that have zero social media presence.
 

Meerten

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I use these:

News Feed Eradicator for Facebook
Facebook Marketplace Ad Remover

No more distractions and junk in my head.
.. But, I keep the messaging and events systems.

It is now exactly how I want it: I use Facebook.
Not the other way around.

I highly recommend this if you're on the fence of terminating your Facebook.
As you can always disable these blockers again, and nothing is lost.
 

Kay__

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I have been tracking myself a lot this year I can spot a clear trend... the more time I spend during the day on social media = the worse I feel.

I get lazy, distracted, and sometimes slightly depressed. And I am very much a positive, focused person.

I shouldn't be surprised cause I know a lot of you have been talking about the dangers of social media for years.

At this stage, I am thinking about quitting Instagram and Facebook forever.
I can make a new Fb account just to run my students group and shut down everything else.

Do those people with some long term experience (quit social media for over one year etc) want to chime in?

What has been your experience?
Yup. Waste of time. Use it only for work
 
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BellaPippin

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I use these:

News Feed Eradicator for Facebook
Facebook Marketplace Ad Remover

No more distractions and junk in my head.
.. But, I keep the messaging and events systems.

It is now exactly how I want it: I use Facebook.
Not the other way around.

I highly recommend this if you're on the fence of terminating your Facebook.
As you can always disable these blockers again, and nothing is lost.

I use the Eradicator! That way I can just see the 50+ posts of puppies my parents post on my wall but nothing else. I leave the mandatory "awwww" then I go on with my business. I don't have the app on my phone just messenger.
 

Alexio

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this is my first post here in the forum

and I have 4 Facebook profiles

1 is an old profile from 2009
where I used to delete about the 100 "friends"
after 100 deleted friends I did not want to waste some more time deleting the other 170
so I've decided to create a new profile where now I have 87 "friends"

then I have 2 more Facebook profile, where a manage 4 different pages for "business" (a zero asset business) both with zero friends and a few followed pages (for interest and motivation), no there are no narcissist picture in the home
and 1 IG profile for one of the zero asset business

then I have 4 different youtube channels
and from my first VIDEOSCRIBE I can not watch any video from YouTube or Facebook
ones I've put myself on the other side of the screen (the content creator and not the watcher)
I can see how the director see the viewers : chickens

So I have decide -6 month ago- to use the social media and not to be used from the social media and the people how create videos and posts (better late then never)

if you feel depressed, start to go to the toilet without the smartphone in your hand
and buy a classic alarm clock so the first thing that you will touch in the morning will not be your smartphone (that's what I've done)
 

MattR82

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I was also on twitter but removed myself. That platform is absolutely toxic.
I'm glad I never got into twitter. I see nothing good come from it. Toxic is definitely the right word.
 
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ShepardHumphries

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I have been tracking myself a lot this year I can spot a clear trend... the more time I spend during the day on social media = the worse I feel.

I get lazy, distracted, and sometimes slightly depressed. And I am very much a positive, focused person.

I shouldn't be surprised cause I know a lot of you have been talking about the dangers of social media for years.

At this stage, I am thinking about quitting Instagram and Facebook forever.
I can make a new Fb account just to run my students group and shut down everything else.

Do those people with some long term experience (quit social media for over one year etc) want to chime in?

What has been your experience?

I make the excuse to myself that I keep it for business, but really I still fall for it for the same psychological reasons it was built. I have all of my "not-on-board and lower IQ "friends" listed as acquaintances, so when I post anything thought-provoking, I set privacy to friends except acquaintances. Next time I forget and post my controversial thought on the "public" setting and I am sure that my businesses suffer. lol
 

Kay__

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Misuse social media and you end up lacking BOTH solitude AND community.

Use it properly to connect with clients, with friends overseas, and get vital information (especially over FB or twitter).. It’s not a bad thing!
 

ecommercewolf

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No instagram app or Snapchat on my phone. That's half of the battle right there.

I'll check Instagram via desktop a couple times a week that's all.

A good book on social media minimalism is "Digital Minimalism" By Cal Newport
 
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G-Man

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A wise philosopher once said “Facebook is for people that aren’t smart enough for Twitter, and Twitter is for morons”

That philosopher was me.
 

Rabby

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I stopped using them. It frees up a lot of time, and frees up mental resources for real life. Also all the depressing news and political crowing are horrendous... I don't miss them at all.

I've noticed that anything with a "social proof" element can detract from my presence in the moment. Should I watch my daughter play, or upload a photo to see how many great-aunts hit like? I think this is the same for most people.

I remember a few years ago I was sitting by a waterfall with a friend and my daughter for several hours, just enjoying the experience. This was at a national park in Tennessee. Plenty of people came by with selfie sticks, took photos of themselves in a meditative pose in front of the falls (after ensuring their hair was perfect), and left before 5 minutes was up. Being there for a different reason, I felt a deep connection with the place and the experience. I'm sure the selfie-stickers got a thrill from their likes and moved quickly on to the next photo op. Plenty of them stared at their phones while walking. I just can't see myself making that trade, and the idea of it seems dangerous enough that I avoid the possibility.

I'm happier in the moment than I am staring at the metric of how many people validated the moment.

Admittedly, I am even wary of the same thing here in the forum... but the difference here is that most people are not taking photos of every deposit and posting it with an instagram filter as a brag to see who will hit "like." The negative addiction potential is more limited in a space where the types of interactions are more limited.
 

LightningHelix

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I've never got on twitter or instagram. Twitter seems incredibly toxic and I don't understand the benefit of instagram. I recently deleted the fb app off my phone while cleaning it up, as I barely ever use it. I keep fb messenger, because people i know prefer it over texting. I use Linkedin sometimes.

I used to use fb alot, its was a huge time waster and usually led to alot of useless political arguments. It never gave me happiness or knowledge.

Its a rotten fruit that needed to be cut off.
 
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klaipeda

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Social media needs balance and knowledge.

Personally I use social media only to get something back. I use facebook for connection, I installed a plugin on chrome that removes every ads and help me to unfollow every pages and friends. I don't get anything on my news feed, I just jump on the groups I want to follow and that give me something back. In other words I use facebook and I don't let it to use me.

I don't like instagram, I really don't feel the need to use it unless I get something back. Same for twitter.
 

Vigilante

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I love Facebook. From the businesses I follow to the friends in other states. I only have “friends” there that I know personally, and no business associates. LinkedIn is all business, Facebook for me is all personal. Local sports news, my church... everything is on Facebook. And, all my business interests have a presence on Facebook. I am a prolific Facebook user. I volunteer with the Red Cross as a first responder and many times I can tell if we are going to be dispatched based on my local newsfeed. My extended family uses Facebook to keep in touch. All my local restaurants post, as well as craft beer updates from the area. I’ve traded big brother knowing my grid points for a high level of constantly streamed information. I am not interested in removing this. It’s not a time waste, it’s a time enhancement. It’s really my main news feed, fine tuned for interest and relevancy.

Sorry to be the only cheerleader invited to the sour grapes party!
 
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MJ DeMarco

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I remember a few years ago I was sitting by a waterfall with a friend and my daughter for several hours, just enjoying the experience. This was at a national park in Tennessee. Plenty of people came by with selfie sticks, took photos of themselves in a meditative pose in front of the falls (after ensuring their hair was perfect), and left before 5 minutes was up. Being there for a different reason, I felt a deep connection with the place and the experience. I'm sure the selfie-stickers got a thrill from their likes and moved quickly on to the next photo op. Plenty of them stared at their phones while walking. I just can't see myself making that trade, and the idea of it seems dangerous enough that I avoid the possibility.

So sad, I see that a lot too. People clamoring to catalog the 2-D facsimile while totally missing out on the real experience. Selfieing your meditation, but not really meditating. That right there is some clinical shit.
 
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George Costanza

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I think it really depends on HOW you use social media.
I barely use facebook besides useful groups, and I don't follow many people on instagram (and I mute a lot of people/stories).

In my opinion reading the news is much worse than using social media (and according to research, social media can have a positive/neutral effect if done for: keeping in touch with friends/family and in addition to real life connections)
see Digital Communication Media Use and Psychological Well-Being: A Meta-Analysis and Why You Should Quit the News | Mark Manson
 

falcon87pl

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I check LinkedIn a few times per week on desktop, Facebook mobile app has all notifications turned off (and I do not follow most of the people )and I disabled Messenger notifications on the locked screen.

I believe disabling all/most of the sounds and notifications on the locked screen is the key to the success not to get distracted too much.

I mainly use Messenger to communicate with my wife and one of the fastlane-mindset friends but used to have a small group with 2 colleagues from work. In November 2019 I let them know I will be leaving the group as I wanted to decrease the use of social media even more. I asked them to call or SMS me for some high priority/ critical stuff....

They have NEVER contacted me via those channels since that time.

Well, it seems that work-related and funny stuff is not that important they can't wait till the next day .. :smuggy:
 
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RyanLPainter

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I've considered it once or twice, but I've found despite its annoyances, is still extremely helpful.
 
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Beerbread

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I have IG and Twitter for business, but even then I still get fixated on them. YouTube is my latest addiction and I'm trying to switch my mindset to produce work rather than consume content. It's easier said than done. I quit one addiction only to find another.

In terms of posting things, especially with my personal stuff, those accounts are gone or abandoned. I realized as I was going through pictures and footage that I wasn't remembering a lot of what I was shooting. I only take one or two pictures these days just to say I've been there, but I'd rather be in the moment. It drives my family and friends crazy, but I appreciate my adventures more.
 

AndreHimself

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I've been off social media for 3+ years. Best thing I've ever done. I don't have as many "friends" anymore but I know who my true friends are now. I don't feel the need to get on my phone and go on social media the second I get bored. It feels like you have much more time in a day when in reality it's the same amount, you're just using it more efficiently. I have a much clearer head and it's easier to focus on a task because I'm not bogged down by all this useless information. Not to mention all the depression and anxiety that's caused by constantly comparing your life with others on social media. I hope this was helpful.
 
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shahabshahabian

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One reason I haven't already is I love to travel, take pics, and meet new people.

It has been great to connect with a lot of people all over the place but when I really dig into that belief only about 10% of the time I spend on social media is talking to people and the other 90% is total nonsense.
 

Madame Peccato

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I uninstalled Instagram at the start of the year. I have never been a big Facebook user either, and I only check one group I'm in, not even every day.

I have never used Twitter.

I do have a LinkedIn profile, and I check it every day, but only once, and only for a couple of minutes. I scroll down, read the first five or so titles/intros to the post, and then either read one of them or just ctrl+w out.
 
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Vigilante

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I was looking for a guy named Warren Buffett on Instagram and Facebook but he is not there. Probably he is quite poor and sad, because business and happiness in 21st Century are great if you are on Socials :oops:


”It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.” – Warren Buffett
 

Vigilante

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