Social Media Drain your Life. But are They Any Good?

These are fun activities for sure, but that’s exactly the problem. Watching videos on YouTube for example is very fun, but it also drains your time.

It makes you forget reality, which is your goals and what really concerns you. A typical scenario is this:

You start your day with a small goal… let’s say you want to write a blog post. But before that you decide to watch a video on YouTube. After the video is over, you see recommended videos that you find interesting.

So, you click on them and then you click at another one and at another one, etc.….

Without realizing it, 3 hours later you find yourself feeling dizzy and mentally exhausted by all those funny videos you were watching.

You don’t have a clear mind anymore, so you postpone writing your post for tomorrow. But tomorrow YouTube will still be there.

What are they NOT good for?

But what’s the problem with that? I just want to enjoy watching some funny videos and scroll down the Instagram feed to see what my friends are up to!

If that’s the case and you don’t want to have any other goals in life, then keep doing what you are doing.

But I am always writing these articles for people who have goals in life… for people who are looking for something more meaningful… for people who want to be special.

So, if you want to be someone special you cannot be scrolling down social media feeds and watching videos one after the other.

What are they good for?

Does that mean that I shouldn’t use social media at all? When it comes to Instagram… yes! Don’t use it at all. It has almost zero value. YouTube and Facebook however can be very valuable if used correctly.

YouTube is like Google for videos (same company) and it has many tutorials and problem-solving videos. So, if you want to learn how to light a fireplace for example then going to YouTube and watching a video for that makes perfect sense.

Facebook has 2 beneficial usages:

1. Messenger
2. Facebook Groups

Messenger is a form of communication and if you don't want to be left alone in this world, then checking your messages once per day (not 20 times per day) and chatting with people you love is a natural thing to do.

Facebook Groups are another form of Google in the sense that they can be very useful, if you want to find some specific piece of information.

When I need some info about a topic I am interested in I will never go to Google. I will go to all those Facebook groups that I am a member of and I will use their search functionality.

It is just like searching on Google, but the results you find are from people interested in the same topics as you… people who can even be your friends.

Your social media action plan

How do I take advantage of YouTube’s useful videos and Facebook’s groups without all the other crap?

Here is the catch… just go to YouTube or Facebook groups, find what you are looking for and then LEAVE. Don’t start scrolling down again!

There are even tools to help you with that like:

1. The Kill News Feed Google Chrome extension that makes your Facebook news feed disappear, so as you can do your job (send a message or go to a Facebook group) and then leave.

2. The DF Tube (Distraction Free for YouTube™) Google Chrome extension that makes the recommended videos column disappear, so as you can only see 1 video and then leave.

So, there you have it… this is how you can you use social media as weapons of knowledge and stop using them as tools of distraction.

How do you use social media? As distraction or a powerful tool? Leave a comment below (I read all of them).

Until next time.