Why I Left Social Media... Part II

Social Media Promotes Impatience

 There are many differences, I think, between my parents’ generation (the Baby Boomers) and the Millennials and Centennials, the former of which I am a member. One predominant difference is that previous generations are, in general, comprised of more patient individuals. Perhaps you’ve heard this quote before:

 A couple was asked, “How did you manage to stay together for 65 years?”

Their answer: “We were born in a time when if something was broken, we would fix it, not throw it away.”

 That’s profound, isn’t it? We live in a generation in which many, if not most people, discard not only objects and activities when they break or prove frustrating, but relationships, too! There seems to be a widespread mentality that hard equals bad and not worth the headache.

We’ve been conditioned to believe, through years of living in a fast-moving, high-tech, easy-access, quick-results society, that taking time out of our day to seek answers, brainstorm solutions, solve problems with our bare hands, heal friendships, improve marriages, or simply sit still and do nothing for a while, is unacceptable. “Good things come to those who wait” is soooo 20th century. For Generations Y and Z, “good things come to those who don’t delay taking the easy way out.”

Social media perpetuates this 21st-century problem of impatience by promoting flashy, bite-sized morsels of media that whet insatiable consumerist appetites. From makeup and skincare tutorials and workout slideshows, to sensationalist memes about the horrifying state of the world, social media (Instagram, particularly) seems to provide a plethora of neatly packaged answers and solutions.

Want clear skin? Here’s a product you can buy right here, right now.

Want to shed fat fast? Follow this guy’s 30-day, failproof program.

Want to know what’s going on with gas prices and the Colonial Pipeline? Click here, then pass on the fear and panic to your friends!

Of course, social media isn’t all bad. There are, as I discussed with a friend of mine just last night, several benefits, like helping us keep up with friends we don’t regularly see, informing us of news that doesn’t make mainstream headlines, and helping us obtain knowledge and information that, as I mentioned earlier, is eye-catching and therefore often easier to digest than long-form blogs, podcasts episodes, and, the ultimate old-school medium: books!

But, as I wrote in Part I of this series, social media can be a bottomless well of distractions, so while we may log in to learn a few new activities for toddlers, or find a new restaurant for date night, we (and by “we” I mean “I”…) may easily find ourselves, 20 minutes later, watching ridiculous comedy videos.

From my experience, social media’s (and again, I’m focusing primarily on Instagram) emphasis on well-edited, magazine-worthy photos serves as one gigantic, never-ending commercial.

Toys…makeup…moisturizers…writing courses…dietary supplements…gym equipment… Those are the sorts of things that tempt me to whip out my wallet or click the sign-up button. I don’t actually need any of those things, but there’s little use telling myself that when Gottahavitis sets in.[2]

As for nonmaterial things, I’m a sucker for current events and find myself feeling literally sucked into content featuring the latest updates on X, Y, and Z crises and/or developing crises, the knowledge of which does nothing to enhance my day or help me become the type of wife, mother, daughter, friend, writer, trainer, etc. I wish to be. Quite the contrary. Often when I impatiently click and watch whatever news video has grabbed my attention, I wind up feeling anxious or fearful, which further distracts me from the task at hand as harmful thoughts and emotions invade my consciousness. Over the last fourteen months, I have reminded myself of this verse more times than I can count:

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” – 2 Timothy 1:7

Stoic philosopher Epictetus wrote, “Make the best use of what is in your power, and take the rest as it happens.”

Much, if not the majority, of the news with which we’re inundated, reports happenings that are entirely out of our control. The stark realization of our lack of control tends to produce angst, fear, even panic, as we take our eyes off the One who “holds all things together” and try to hold things together ourselves (Colossians 1:17). A futile pursuit indeed. It is infinitely more advantageous, as Seneca wrote, to “look forward to better things.” There are so many better, beautiful things before our eyes than what lies upon the dizzying, distressing, and distracting screens of our various devices.

Reason #3 I Left Social Media: It Stifles Critical Thinking

As a result of the impatience factor, I have found that social media can also lead us to forgo critical thinking in favor of fervently hopping on bandwagons, choosing sides, and leaving hearts and comments before scrolling down to the next post we can relate to, identify with, or feel passionate about.

We’re encouraged to share opinions and spread them like wildfire, not study facts or question the so-called experts. The platforms and the content they share move too fast for thoughtful analysis, and so it’s easy to fall into the trap of hastily forming opinions and making decisions that we might have thought twice about had we taken the time to research, evaluate, and, frankly, think for ourselves.

“Think for yourself, or others will think for you without thinking of you.” – Henry David Thoreau

I’ll be back soon with Part III. I hope this has challenged you to reflect on your own impulses and emotions when you’re on Facebook, Instagram and the like. Our life on this earth is – say it with me! – short, and so it behooves us to take inventory of our daily habits and the places, both physical and digital, where we spend our time.

Will any of us, in our twilight years, look back and wish we’d spent more time reading political posts on Facebook, or watching funny TikTok or Instagram videos?

We all know the answer.

[1] The only social platform I actively use is Pinterest (@dandersontyler) but I don’t use it socially. I only hoard pins, 95% of which I pin, then promptly forget about 

[2] Gottahavitis: inflammation of one’s sense that they must have a specific item in order to survive or feel contentment. Onset of symptoms can occur at any time, though they most likely manifest after being on social media for approximately two minutes.