Last year, the average internet user spent 2 hours and 24 minutes scrolling through social media every single day.
It’s a huge part of our lives, but for those of us who work in social media, either as a content creator or marketer, it can sometimes feel like your whole life. Constantly connected, your work and phone are never far away. It can feel overwhelming.
Social media abstinence isn’t possible or even desirable for most of us. So how can we make sure we’re using social media mindfully, productively and avoiding burnout, and how can you improve your digital wellness?
Enter Vamp’s experts. In our recent lives with Pinterest, a Vamp creator and an entrepreneur they shared tips on creating balance and fostering positive experiences on social.
Here are our six key takeaways on how to improve your digital wellness:
#1 Take control of your time
“Don’t feel as though you need to wait until the end of the year to take a social media break. Your breaks can start today” said Vamp creator @nadinemuller.
“To understand exactly which social platforms you need to take time away from, use your mobile’s screen time tracking feature. This gives you daily and weekly data on how much time you spend on each platform, and allows you to set usage time limits. Once you get hit with the facts, it’s easier for you to take control of the amount of time you spend on social media, improving your relationship with each platform.”
#2 Learn to let go and outsource
“Being a content creator, I also suggest outsourcing. Are there social media tasks you can offload onto someone else, such as a content planner, copywriter or graphic designer? If you let go of some control and outsource this work, you will free up your personal life and reduce the amount of hours you spend on social media. This leaves you with a more balanced and positive social media experience” said Nadine.
Learn more digital wellness tips from Nadine here.
#3 Mood board your way through 2021
Pinterest’s Creators Lead, Sophie Shepherd told us, “Something I’ve enjoyed doing recently, along with thousands of other users, is using Pinterest to create 2021 vision boards. I fill them with things that I am excited to achieve this year and positive affirmations to keep me motivated.
“I like to then make these my desktop backgrounds or go analog and print them out to stick up around my home. Pinterest is a platform that allows you to escape from traditional social media feeds, and surround yourself with positivity and motivation.”
#4 Use Pinterest’s wellbeing activities
“If you’re struggling mentally with stress, anxiety or you just want to improve your wellbeing, you can use Pinterest’s new wellbeing activities to assist you. Search for things like ‘stress quotes’, ‘work anxiety’ or #PinterestWellbeing, and our platform’s wellbeing activities will surface for you to use. These activities are actionable ways for you to improve your mood. Some topics include ‘how to feel more self compassion’ or ‘how to manage difficult emotions’.
“We also provide localised and external support resources such as the Lifeline number, if you need it. All of these searches are private and Pinterest’s algorithm won’t surface similar content to your feed. You also won’t get served ads based on these searches” said Sophie.
Learn more Pinterest advice from Sophie here.
#5 The power of small habits
Many social media managers, influencers and gig workers are freelancers – and that can often bring more financial stress. To help improve your financial wellness, Coverhero’s CEO Naby Mariyam says small steps systematically can lead into big things. “Make a little change today, and stick to that change every single day.
“For example, head into your banking app and start categorising your spending to help improve budget tracking. Or set aside $10 – $50 each payday to build up your savings. Continue doing these habits and after 12-months you’ll be in a completely different, yet positive mindset with your financial wellness.”
#6 Get educated to plan ahead
“Being a freelancer, you need to take the time to learn about things like your cost base and tax obligations in order to make sound decisions for your future. Having this knowledge is empowering and allows you to plan ahead for a rainy day. There are many government websites that provide you with all this information, or you can invest in a financial advisor” said Naby.
Get more of Naby’s finance tips here.
And that’s how to improve your digital wellness! Find out why influencers should be taking mindful social media breaks and use our FOMO-free guide to detoxing from social media here.
Plus, find out how this influencer uses social media mindfully here or learn tips to help you digitally cleanse here.
