So I “took a break” from the internet. And I learned a few things from doing so, which I’m sharing because perhaps you’ll find them interesting. Perhaps not.
(Unrelated: my new favourite phrase is “long hair, don’t caaare” but I have trouble working it into everyday conversations, mostly because it makes no sense. I just thought you might want to know where my slang life is at currently. That’s where it’s at.)
Anyway, what did I learn from my internet break? Let’s dot jot this out.
- The single most helpful part was not going on Facebook a million times (approximate figure) a day. I honestly catch myself checking it out just because I’m bored, but guess what? 90% of the time, nothing catches my interest when I’m scrolling through my newsfeed. Lesson? Facebooksucksnevergoonit. Suspend your account. Make the move, Stephanie!
- I missed my blog. I truly did. I don’t want to sound overly dramatic, but I started to feel like I was missing part of my identity. I had a couple really stressful days in the past couple of weeks, but I couldn’t help thinking that having some kind of creative outlet would have made it better, even if it would be more “work”. After not creating content for a week, I started to even forget just how much I love the process! That’s what stress can do to you, I guess. Lesson? Being creative is soothing and happy-making.
- I really love the internet. Some people (Mom) might cringe when they read this, but I really do enjoy the time I spend on the internet – or, most of it, when I use it properly. I love looking at beautiful things, getting inspired by DIYs or recipes or learning how to make things. And I’ve met some really great people through the internet (my penpal and my podcast partner, for two!). But Facebook, Twitter, checking stats, looking people up (and inevitably feeling bad when I do comparisons!), scrolling mindlessly through Pinterest or Tastespotting – that stuff doesn’t enrich my life or make me happy. Lesson? New goal should be to cut back on time-wasters, not the internet in general.
All in all, it was a helpful experience. Those are good lessons! I learned something about why I was motivated to cut back on my internet usage in the first place, and what I can do to fine-tune this goal in the future. I was surprised at how much I missed writing this blog. I needed the time off (or, I told myself I did) because it was a stressful couple weeks with visitors and back-to-school and meetings and work – and now I feel like I’ve managed to get my ducks in a row, so to speak. I feel much more calm and balanced. I’m glad I tried this little experiment! I’m sure my academics and sanity will thank me for the boost I gave them.
Do you think you’d ever try a break (or quasi-break) from the internet? Have you tried one before? Did you find (like I did) that it wasn’t really for you!?
Happy Wednesday, everyone. I’m happy to be back!
