Thank for checking this post out. To front load things for busy people? I’m looking to create a community of people who are curious about renegotiating their relationship with social media the way it is done now. I’m calling to a community of people who are interested in connecting with each other and experimenting with unconventional ways of being in the world. Ways that are less connected to devices and more connected to each other. Events. Meetings. Parties to follow. Read on, sign up and tell a friend.
Dropping out tuning in
Last summer I read Jason Lanier’s Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now. I did just that immediately upon finishing the book.
Unplugging from the addiction
The process was more difficult than I imagined it would be. With some searching, I figured out how to back up my data, download it and delete everything. My best friend gave me a really hard time about it for a while. I missed out on jokes. I became irritated. Eventually, I turned a corner and noticed my kids, my wife and my real physical world more My data, my mind, my attention, my life, my spirit and my free will were all my own. I was relieved. My life improved considerably.
No mo fo mo
I missed events. That didn’t matter. Trump did stupid things. I didn’t hear about it. Polar ice caps melted. Petitions went unsigned. Mass shootings occurred. I remained blissfully ignorant of events beyond the scope of my reach. I became more relaxed, less anxious.
My business suffered
So, in an attempt to build it back, I returned to the data mining lands of Facebook and Instagram. This time? My goal was to be a customer. Someone paying to make advertisements. I didn’t want to be the product. With all social media, your attention is the product they are selling to all who are boosting posts and advertising. What’s more, everything they are doing on these networks is designed to just keep you there a little bit longer each and every day.
The road to hell
I go back on two months ago. The goal was just to purchase ad space and grow my business. I’m anxious again. I compare without knowing it. I spend less time there, but still, I notice how each day, I’m checking in a little more frequently. The algorithms are working. My attention, data, behaviors and time are slowly being stolen away by these data parasites.
Creating real connection
We all long for connection. Loneliness is an epidemic. Social Media is a cold, isolating substitute for real connection. We can connect with people half a world away – sort of – but miss the real bags of blood sitting next to us in a cafe. Technology is a miracle. And, it has the ability to isolate and enslave us all.
Here and now
So. Yes. I’m still using the internet. I’m still using a blogging platform. And I’m attempting to speak directly to you. If you are interested in being part of this? Sign up for notifications of events in Dartmouth Nova Scotia. I may even travel to surrounding areas. My goal is to create a guide for creating conscious, connected, human networks that don’t rely on American data mining influence peddling outfits.
Let’s make real connection go viral
Abandon social media. Liberate your spirit. Be more here and now.
If you have any friends that you think may be interested in this, please text them a link to this blog post.
Together we can lean in. Lean into our fears of rejection, of not being enough, of missing out. Learn to be ok, enough. Right here. Right now. With each other.
Who knows what else we’ll be able to lean into?
Gestalt Nova Scotia 