Two-day social media break – Membership Services team

Earlier this week we found out how the Marketing team here at Life Coach Directory got on after taking two days off from social media at the weekend. Today we see how the Membership Services team found the challenge.

For a team who love to chat and connect with people, it was quite the challenge…

Sian, Membership Services Executive – “I managed to survive the whole weekend without social media! Saturday morning, my first instinct was to scroll through Facebook but fortunately I had deleted the apps to remind me that I shouldn’t be doing this. 

Several times throughout the weekend I would again reach for my phone – at this point I realised that actually, maybe I am addicted to social media (which I would never have admitted before!).

I found other things to do which were more fulfilling like reading the news or messaging a friend/family member I hadn’t spoken to in a while. On day two I tried to stop spending time on my phone altogether and had a much more productive day.

Overall I really enjoyed the experiment and am still yet to go on Facebook to find out what I’ve missed out on… I’m also yet to put my phone on charge as apparently, it lasts a long time when you’re not constantly scrolling!”

Jo, Membership Services Manager – “I found the weekend harder than I thought I would! I use my phone as my alarm, so when it went off Saturday morning I automatically flicked onto Facebook. As soon as I realised what I had done I closed the tab – but not quickly enough to miss glimpsing a red notification alert. This bugged me all weekend!

The app that I missed the most was Tumblr, which really surprised me. Because I follow a number of blogs I couldn’t shake the thought of all the new posts to get through when I finally returned, and that stressed me out a bit (I am always compelled to read through all the updates).

I found that I didn’t actually spend any less time on my phone or the computer over the weekend; instead, I found myself looking for other things to replace my social media channels, and I spent a lot of time idly surfing the web, wasting time.

I think the internet as a whole is incredibly addictive – we’re so accustomed to being able to find new information and things to do as soon as the mood takes us that we genuinely can’t wait anymore. I’m quite keen to try an internet detox for a weekend – since my problem appears to be more internet addiction rather than social media, I think that would do me a lot more good… anyone with me?!”

Lucy, Membership Services Executive – “I embraced the challenge of having a weekend with no social media, and I found it very liberating! I removed the apps from my phone to avoid temptation but found myself reaching to have a cheeky scroll, it was a shock every time to not see the familiar icons.

I have always gotten frustrated with myself at how much time I waste scrolling through the same pictures and information of people I hardly know. Don’t get me wrong, I am a sucker for a funny video of someone falling over, but I have found a whole evening disappearing and all I’ll have achieved is knowing where a school friend’s aunt went on holiday – definitely not on my to-do list!

I managed to get several things done at the weekend which gave me a real feel of self-achievement, I took a little more time for myself and spent quality time with friends and family without a phone in my hand.

It’s nice to take a step back and focus on enjoying the moment, I would definitely recommend for people to have a detox from social media now and again! I have still not reinstated the apps on my phone so I’m taking the challenge on for a little longer… hopefully, I’ll get a few extra jobs ticked off my to-do list!”

We highly recommend challenging yourself to take a couple of days away from social media. It helps you learn about your current relationship with it and may encourage you to change your habits. Many of us are now spending less time on it, something I don’t think we expected to last past the two-day experiment!

Will you take the challenge next weekend? If you do, let us know how you get on in the comments below!