I don’t like the app on your phone that tells you how much time you spend on social media. I honestly don’t know how, but my average daily time on social media is between 2-3 hours! Anyone else having this problem? If I spend those 3 hours every day working on a business idea or learning a new skill, I would be a master! I’m not one to dread on what could, should, would happen, but still …
I’m trying to focus on what I can do to keep moving forward, but I keep getting distracted by everything happening on my phone screen. How do you do block out the noise of social media that is skewing your reality?
How does social media influences your financial decision. Are you leaving in reality or a made-up world? Like many, I scroll down on Facebook and Instagram looking at people’s representation of themselves and I can help to wonder how much of that is reality! More than that, it cultivates a culture of comparison. Comparison kills! It kills your financial future. How? Well, you don’t envy people who have less than you and you don’t lower your standard of leaving to imitate people who have less.
Facebook or Instagram?
Everyone knows that Facebook and Instagram don’t represent the whole truth about one’s life. They are moments that a person chose to share for a specific reason. So why do we still fall for it? It’s not because we don’t know, but because we don’t want to face reality. When looking at someone’s vacation pictures, you imagine yourself going on vacation because your reality is less desirable. What if you can make your dream became a reality? What if you can create a life where your reality is worth an Instagram post? It will take intentionality and discipline to achieve this level of financial freedom.
Don’t let social media influence what your financial freedom should look like. There are a few things that helped me:
Time limit
Limiting the amount of time, I spend on social media. What you feed your soul will manifest in your behaviors soon or later. Self-control & will power are great but don’t tempt yourself too much.
Context
Put what you see on social media into a context. Are those people your friends or celebrities? You might still compare but if you know that the person you are comparing yourself to is a celebrity, you give yourself grace.
Inspiration
Use what you see as inspiration. Every time I look at something that I wish I had I turn it around and ask myself what I’m doing that will help me get it in the future. It is not a one-time thought; you have to actively keep practicing turning thoughts around. Social media influences our thoughts and desires but it should not be the main factor.
Wait
Delay gratification is also important in keeping you in check. What a lot of people end up doing is jump ahead of their finances and buy whatever they think they need and get into debts while they could have waited until they can afford it. Social media influences what we think is necessary. If everyone has it, maybe I should get it too! NO, you shouldn’t.
Need vs Want
This might sound basic knowledge but what you want is not necessarily what you need. If you were able to live without it until now, you can probably live without it for a while longer. If you had to see it to remember that you need it, you probably don’t need it!
Long-term
Think long-term not just what will be good to have today. Your financial freedom is tied to your future, not your present. Is one post on social media worth years of heartache and debts? People are not going to look at that post for more than 10 seconds and they are less likely to look at it more than once. Is it still worth it?
We love social media. It gives us a way to escape our reality for a minute, but we should not let it compromise our finances and future. You can make your reality better by moving to your rhythm. We don’t want to follow blindly the trends, get caught up in what is popular. Focus more on your individuality and what will have a greater impact on your life but also the lives of the loved ones.
“Social media has created jealous behavior over illusions. Sadly, some are envious of things, relationships & lifestyles that don’t even exists.” unknown
