Bye, Bye Birdie

I deleted my Facebook at the beginning of this year. Soon after that, my Instagram account was no more. Today, I'm taking the leap and getting rid of the last social media platform app I have downloaded onto my phone: Twitter.

I deleted each account for completely different reasons unrelated to each other, but I feel like this is necessary to further my journey of minimalism and simplicity.

Deleting Facebook was the hardest of the three. I had been active on it much longer than the others. I shared hundreds of pictures, thousands of posts and so many memories throughout a decade of my life.

The main two reasons I removed Facebook was (1) all the wasted time I spent each day scrolling and refreshing my life away for no real reason at all (2) the majority of the posts from "friends" were meaningless... memes, shares of viral videos and funny pics, or my personal favorite: soapbox rants over politics, religion and personal drama. This is why I felt like the first step in regaining my life was for Facebook and I to part ways.

The first week away from The Book was difficult. I was constantly reaching for my phone, out of routine and reflex, every single time I had a spare second. I had no idea how obsessed and addicted I was until it was gone. Was definitely a much needed slap in the face, to get my attention.

Instagram, on the other hand, was a lot easier to bid farewell to. I only used it for vacation pictures, family get-togethers, concerts, parties and events. It took me about an hour to back-up all of my Instagram photos to the cloud, then I signed off for good, having no regrets at all.

I mainly kept my Twitter open because my favorite artists, bands, authors and bloggers kept me updated with posts on any new and upcoming ventures. A few times a week, I also used it to post positive thoughts, inspiring quotes, as well as my new blog posts.

After several months of using Twitter as my only form of social media, I realize that any one of them (when not used carefully) can become a slippery slope. Unintentionally, Twitter has transformed into my new Facebook. Although their names differed, the addictiveness remained.

Instead of using it periodically for motivation and inspiration, I have been using it as a time-waster and filler. Instead of using it purposely, to create and to be productive... Once again, I have fallen right back into the rabbit hole.

For me, I guess the temptation is too strong. I'm not sure why it is so alluring to my senses, but it is. It has such great power and control over me... I see that now.

So today, Twitter, this is goodbye. It's been fun. I am glad you have been a part of my life to lead me on to new and better things. You have taught me an important lesson I needed to learn:

Don't let any thing or anyone dictate your thoughts, your actions, your life. They belong to you.



P.S. 
I'm not anti-social media. This is just a personal conviction of mine and mine alone. If you find value in any of the above platforms, please continue to use them. [To each, their own]