Live your life. Instead of watching people live theirs…..

Everyone on Social Media looks like they’re having a great time. Fun adventures, travel, deep romances, amazing jobs. Are they really as happy as their Social Media persona claims them to be? Browsing these sites can make you feel connected to a large community.

Ultimately, Social Media is a narcissistic playground where the best, the funniest, the most charming aspects of our lives are publicized and the disappointing stuff, the boring stuff, the beige that is most of our daily grind never gets posted. All those walls are edited at some level and that makes them, at best, a deformed mirror image of real life or, at worst, nothing more than a fictional movie of how we want people to see us.

People use social media sites for myriad reasons; however, it usually serves, on some level, the same basic purposes: distraction and boredom relief. “Likes” and comments are positive reinforcement for posting information, making it difficult for a person to stop. People are addicted to it.

Addiction to social networks can be avoided. Don’t let your social media services become addictive, it is up to you to control it. Or are you a FOMO sufferer?

Alarmed??? Personally I use LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook , Instagram and SnapChat on a daily basis; I can say that I have never had trouble sleeping after using a social network, I can turn it off when I want to.  I have never accepted a friend request from a stranger – but hey! sometimes I don’t even accept requests from “acquaintances”. Last, but not least, I have certainly never experienced withdrawal symptoms. Quite the opposite! How nice is it to disconnect… Here is how I do it:

• Put your mobile device away
• Disable automatic app updates.
• Delete some Facebook friends. Supposedly, the mind can only handle 150 relationships at a time, although I think my mind can only handle 20 max!
• Check your privacy settings.
• Social Media is not real. The concept of faking a “perfect” life has been around as long as social media.
• The problem lies not in WHAT we post, but in WHY.
• Learn to enjoy social networks but don’t let them take over your life.
• Remind yourself often that what you see online is not a standard by which you should grade your life.

Growing in the information age is just the beginning of how life could be in the next decade…..we might just loose the human touch, so instead of using the virtual world as a cure for boredom, here are some alternative things to do instead….

• Converse
• Build personal relationships with value one on one mind connecting with people
• Call a friend and grab a cup of coffee
• Travel – experience the world and people
• Blow the dust of a old board game
• Go to the Gym
• Read a book or Write something

Basically, live your life. Instead of watching people live theirs on social media, go live yours. Fill yourself with new experiences and enjoy every moment.