I wouldn’t go so far as to say that I’m addicted to facebook. I have a rather dormant account sparing the occasional attempt at being witty. In fact, I have often considered deleting my account altogether.
Recently, after scrolling through an avalanche of uninteresting posts and click-baits, I was tempted to finally delete my account. Then again, the platform does prove useful as a communication tool from time to time. For some of my contacts, it is the only way we can stay in touch. My account thus remained very much un-deleted.
I had to do something about it though. There were a few habits that had creeped into my everyday life that I wanted to get rid of. So I took the following steps to, at least, semi-quit facebook:
- I uninstalled all apps that had me scrolling through feeds: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn.
- I uninstalled Facebook Messenger.
- I made all my photos and default posts visible only to myself barring one or two profile photos…enough to help new contacts identify me.
- I’ve turned off all notifications. I want to check facebook when I want to, not when it tells me to.
- I’ve installed ghostery. It blocks trackers for advertising, site analytics and social media on websites.
The first few days were eye-openers! I noticed countless occasions when I’d pull out my phone with the intent of checking my feed: in the morning, before going to bed, on the metro, at work, while eating meals. I was surprised to realize how deeply-ingrained this behaviour had become. It has been a little over two months since I deleted the app and I couldn’t be happier. Here are a few consequences of taming facebook:
- I’ve stopped looking at my phone every now and then. When I’m talking to someone, they have my complete attention. My facebook browsing has reduced to not more than 2 minutes a day and only on my desktop.
- I’m reading a lot more and finishing books faster. When there are no notifications to attend to, even a 20 minute ride on the metro is enough for a quick reading session.
- I’m no longer just flicking through articles, I’m actually reading them.
- My impulsive expenses have come to a halt. With no ads to be seen throughout the day, my average monthly spending has gone down dramatically. I now make impulsive savings. My bank app lets me add money to my savings account with a few taps. When I’m dangerously close to buying something I don’t need, I add the amount to my savings instead. Feels great!
- My memory and recall has improved. “Yes, doesn’t it have that actor…what’s his name?…from that movie…what’s it called?!” I found myself talking like that so often lately that I was considering getting myself checked. Names of people, places, movies, albums, apps…I was forgetting them all! Not anymore. Not anymore…
I’ll be keeping track of these improvements and I shall post my insights again in a few months.