Social Media Cleanse

With Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, Tik Tok, and the mother of all social media for what it is today, Facebook, among many others, you might wonder if a social media cleanse is even possible these days.

Well, I’m here to tell you that it is.

You may or may not have noticed, but I’ve been pretty quiet on social media this summer, and even some of fall. It’s been crickets all over my Instagram account. Potentially some cobwebs forming too, but I didn’t really find out until just now when I posted this article.

Thank you for the messages and comments that still haven’t been answered (I’ll get to each one, promise). I appreciate the folks who thought of me in my absence enough to reach out #migente

Truth is that for the last few months I did spend on social before summer got into full swing, I found myself getting annoyed with the constant change in the Instagram algorithms. Posts just didn’t seem to be getting as much exposure as they once were. On the other hand, comments have historically come in heavy on my pictures, which I’ve always loved because of the engagement and interaction with others.

But those LIKES, man!

And why, WHY do we get so caught up on the number of likes someone else has versus what we have? Let’s not forget how we’ve all felt when we see a mediocre picture get more likes than your own incredibly amazing one #perception

Young, old, male, female. We’re all human and have felt our own ways at certain times when it comes to social media. You’d be lying to yourself if you said you didn’t.

After some frustration and frankly just feeling like IG was becoming work with no payoff, I just stopped one summer day in July. It was never really a “decision” per say, but more like a cold turkey thing. Side note: That’s what I do when I quit things. If it doesn’t feel right, I rip the band aid right off and never look back…BOOM! I know it sounds bad when I say that I’ve “quit” things (and cold turkey no less), but I’m only talking about quitting “bad” stuff here – habits, boyfriends, bosses…so, you get it right?

I think it’s fair to say that we’ve all gotten a little too comfortable with sharing, oversharing, and for some folks, even unnecessary sharing. At the end of the day, does it even really matter? Are YOU living what you’re posting about? Are YOU happy? That’s all that ever really matters.

Let’s take a closer look at this. Considering I only quit things that are bad for me, isn’t is saying something bigger that I just up and quit IG for a bit there? While social media can be great, it’s not always for the best. And let’s be real. It can sometimes be straight up bad. Have you seen recent studies on teens in the age of social media? Part of me can’t help but be a little sad for teens growing up right now. They’ll never know what it’s like to talk to their crush on a landline for 3 hours (busy signal for anyone else calling, while your sibling curses you). And what’s the world gonna be like when my son is dating? He’s TEN! It’s not that far off, realistically speaking.

Ugh… I digress…

Everything in moderation, right? I’m not saying I have fully quit social media, but maybe a short unannounced cleanse is very necessary for me. It’s what I need from time to time. Every detail of my day doesn’t need to be shared with my followers. I live a pretty damn cool life that I’m proud of and want to talk about, but more and more, I’ve been starting to value and enjoy privacy a lot more than I have in the past. It’s weird how even as an adult, you can really change and grow, or get a whole new perspective. You can wake up one day and just decide that things will shift in a new direction for you starting immediately.

So, what did I learn during my social media cleanse?

I learned that I just felt happier overall on a daily basis without social media. Apparently, I had JOMO, Joy Of Missing Out. This of course is the opposite of FOMO, Fear Of Missing Out. Some of my family and friends would occasionally mention a topic referring to something they saw on IG, but I didn’t know what they were talking about. I don’t think anyone in my life ever really got that for me, it wasn’t only about not posting, but I legit didn’t go on social media, not even to check things out, or just lurk. I was living my life happily, not giving AF about anything other than what I was doing at the time, where I wanted or needed to be, who I wanted to be with, and just being present.

My head has never felt so clear, and I was more productive than I have ever been. I spent the summer enjoying my family and friends without any thought of social media. I still took pictures, of course, because I always want to capture memories, but I didn’t feel the constant need or desire to share publicly at the time. It was so refreshing.

Below: Me on a mountain peak in Rocky Mountains National Park during the last week of August (please take note of the no fucks being given…)

Of course I stayed in touch with close family and friends, as always. My social media cleanse would never change anything with that. It actually brought some awareness about the people who want to stay in touch, make the effort, and vice versa, even outside of social media. It’s an unintentional social experiment, but an eye-opening one to say the least!

I’ve actually been spending a lot more time on professional networking through LinkedIn, so I guess I haven’t been 100% social media free, per say, but this has been time well spent, helping me grow professionally. I got in the zone and have been laser focused on my career. While fashion will always remain a passion of mine, networking outside of the blogger community is a new focus. And guess what? I got a new job! I still work in Technology for HBO/WarnerMedia, but on the Direct to Consumer side of the house. How lucky am I? I’ve been working towards getting my Scrum Master Certification renewed, and taking courses towards an AWS Cloud Practitioner Certification — who am I?!

Check me out HERE on LinkedIn

Fun fact: I recently celebrated a birthday! It’s crazy that I’m 43 now, and it’s taken this long on my journey of life to get here, but hey, I think I’m finally grown up. Gasp!

(As I sit with my unicorn horn and balloons on said 43rd birthday, but I digress…) #thisis43 #foreveryoung

Let’s be real…I’ll still be the goofball I’ve always been, but just more serious about my career goals, and being a bad ass more than ever in the work place! It’s amazing how much you can accomplish when you focus on what you really want, and work hard towards that goal. My recent social media cleanse has really helped me on this journey. And now a new chapter begins…

This was an unplanned post but once I looked back and realized all that had happened, immediately I thought I should share my story of a little social media cleanse that suddenly came to be, and all the good that came out of it.

Have you ever done a social media cleanse?

Did you meet any goals? What kind of productivity did you find in your life during that time?

If not, would you ever consider it? I can honestly say it was so refreshing, and something that has changed my personal habits for the better! I’ll still be social on the media apps here and there but you won’t find me getting lost going down a rabbit hole for hours of the day how I used to. Not this chica!

If you try it sometime, I’d love to hear from you and about your experience. Until then, mi gente!

xo Karen