Why We Need Breaks from Facebook

Author:
Michelle Liew
Updated:
Aug 25, 2014

All of us have overt love affairs with social media. These days, most of us cannot bear a mere 10 minutes away from Facebook and virtual networks.

That we have such tightly woven relationships with social media is not surprising. It has become an essential took for connecting with friends. Social media also serves the business needs of organizations.

Our dependence on social media is heavy, yet we all need breaks from it after a while. Clearly, it has its benefits and drawbacks.

So saying, we need to use it with discretion and management.

Before discussing the need for consistent breaks away from social media, we need to acknowledge its advantages. its use in this era of internet technology, after all, is a must.

a. Cost effective

For a start, social media is cost-effective, whether for socializing or business purposes. There is no need for us to pay hefty phone bills. Video conferencing over platforms such as Google Plus and Facebook does not cost anything over and above your internet subscription.

Using social media is also the cheapest way to promote your business or brand. Create Facebook or Google Plus Pages for your business in mere minutes. Creative posts, instead of money, are needed.

b. Friendship and traffic increase greatly.

To add, using social media allows you to bond with others and get traffic to your sites. Using it is the only way to make friends globally.

These days, it is an essential for businesses. People, particularly the young, spend more time on the web than in front of the television. Social media advertising has become a better way of getting your business the traffic it needs.

c. It stretches your creativity.

Further, social media is a comfortable platform where you can stretch your creativity. Writing intriguing posts that capture attention is an art. The better they are, the more attention they receive.

An added boon is that you can exercise this creativity without feeling awkward. After all, you have the protection of a masked identity.

f. You have a covert advantage.

Indeed, social media gives us a covert advantage. People do not interact with us in person, which reduces awkward feelings.

This covert protection allows you more freedom of creativity, with less fear.

e. Allows greater transparency.

Scroll to Continue

a-red-ranger-journeys-to-another-world-in-january

synth-single-review-where-tigers-are-said-to-roam-by-color-theory

Yet, it allows greater transparency. What is shared online becomes, by default, the property of all.

It makes people more responsible for what they write, despite the inability to match names to faces.

g. It allows you uniqueness.

The last benefit of Facebook and other social media platforms is that they allow you to be yourself. You share what you are comfortable with.

More personal freedom is available over these platforms.

3. Why we need breaks from Facebook

The benefits of social media are always being extolled and are numerous. Still, being on Facebook almost 24 hours a day leads to what we know as “social media burnout.”

Here are some of the reasons why it does.

a. It exposes us.

The first strike against social media is that it exposes us. Even though our identity is covered, everyone is aware of our actions.

We must exercise care with whatever we do. This necessity creates pressure that we are, at times, not aware of ourselves.

b. It is time consuming.

As an article writer, I also add that it is time consuming. I am sure that others will agree. It takes at least 15 too 20 minutes to create lively captions that get your well-written articles well-deserved attention and later, share them across various networks.

This is time, some writers may feel, to use for actually writing instead.

c. It is distracting.

Further, social media, with many opportunities for chit chat and other forms of interaction, are distracting.

Photographs of that doe-eyed little puppy or a rambunctious kitten, too, call us away from other tasks.

d. Negative influences

Social media, in addition, has created a few undesirable phenomena. The internet is rife with material not for young eyes.

The internet has given rise to phenomena such as cyber stalking, cyber bullying and extortion. Intimacy in front of web cameras may precede requests for money. People give it willingly, fearing that the other party tells all.

e. It is less personal

Another drawback of social media, for some, is that it is less personal. Friends made on the web seem less real than those they know in the flesh.

Face-to-face interaction still has its place.

f. Disrupts work life balance.

Social media also puts a toll on work-life balance. Young professionals, now known as ‘millenials,” often complain that they feel obliged to answer their employers’ email requests instantly.

The pressure to make oneself available immediately removes valuable family time. It is common for people to glue themselves to their IPADs or IPhones for fear of missing important instructions.

4.Managing your Facebook Use

Hence, while social media is an indispensable tool, we must manage its use. If you suffer from social media burnout, these suggestions may help.

a. Identify the symptoms of social media burnout.

To manage your social media use, first acknowledge that it has become an absolute necessity. If you spend hours on social media without being particularly productive, you know that it is time to restructure your usage.

When using social media becomes a chore, you know that you have to retreat and assess how you use it. A red flag is when your messages become rude or tactless.

If you are updating while cooking or taking a shower, you know that it is time to change your direction.

b. Take consistent breaks.

If these signs are familiar, take a break. It is even better to take consistent ones. Schedule a time in the day when you are on social media and do not be visible at other times.

c. Do not depend too much on social media.

Try not to depend too much on it as well. There are other ways to make friends and promote your business.

Socializing with “real” friends helps balance your time on social media.

c. Use networks selectively.

Further, do not use too many of these networks. Not all of them will generate the traffic you need, Create more presence on the ones that are used more heavily.

Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter and increasingly, Google Plus, are popular networks and generate enough traffic if you are active on them.

d. Create quality posts.

Then, create posts that grab attention. Your persona on social media plays a definite role in creating traffic for your pages and sites.

Instead of posting many posts, write a few and make sure they have engaging captions.

e. Decide what updates are essential.

Lastly, you do not have to update constantly. If you do not have time to update what you had for dinner or where you shopped, skip that.

Constant presence is not necessary.

5. Conclusion

We all need Facebook-like platforms, though we have to manage them.

Other Technology Hubs by Michelle Liew

Why Netiquette is crucial - how we can observe good ...
The importance of Netiquette can never be undermined - we need it for survival in the Cyber World.
Harnessing technology in the classroom
Using technology in the classroom

Comments

Michelle Liew (author) from Singapore on September 02, 2014:

Thanks, mattramzzz

Matt Ramsey, M.Ed. from Adelphi, MDII on August 27, 2014:

What I've come to realize is that social media is bigger than what I commonly thought of it as.

Pop-up ads are inherent in social media, the same way that other social media users can be found who are trying to sell something.

These "users", in my way of thinking, are converting

"social media" into "commercial media".

Michelle Liew (author) from Singapore on August 27, 2014:

Thanks, Nithya!

Nithya Venkat from Dubai on August 26, 2014:

Great advice, we definitely need to take a break from Facebook and not rely on it totally for our social interactions. Great hub, voted up.