Let me start by saying, Instagram isn’t bad. It can be a source of inspiration and a great way to connect with other like minded people.
But instagram, if left unchecked, can have a negative impact on our mental wellbeing. And that’s what I noticed happening with me and my PERSONAL Instagram account recently.
When I took a moment and asked myself:
What destroys my peace?
What protects my peace?
What would happen if I let those things go?
Under “what destroys my peace?” I scribbled “Instagram.”
Why?
Here are a few reasons…
Instagram can be a comparison trap
Not really the biggest problem Instagram causes for me, I’ll go into THAT later. But this used to be a problem for me with my Business Instagram. I would:
Compare my achievements with other business owners on Instagram
Compare likes
Compare lifestyle & revenue
Compare communities
Compare where THEY are to where I was
I would like to remind you about a quote by Brene Brown, “Stay in your lane. Comparison kills creativity and joy.” This couldn't be more true.
2. Instagram can cause us to spend more time consuming than creating
According to Inc, the average person spends 4 hours a day on their device.
Most of that time is spent on Social Media, likely on Instagram.
Let’s say 2 of those hours is on instagram.
If you didn’t go on it, what could you do with 2 extra hours each day? 10 extra hours a week?
You could create + launch an e-book or course. Go to the gym every day. Make time for a morning self-care practice.
If you freed up just 2 hours a day to do this, what would your life look like in 1 year?
Food for thought.
I decided to start analyzing why I post on Instagram.
I had to ask myself these hard questions:
Why do I post?
External validation
Instant gratification
Posting for just one person to see
Posting to “perform” or “impress”. This is when you post your achievements to impress someone or everyone. Post travel pics to prove im interesting. Selfies to prove im pretty. Gym pics to prove im fit and strong. Work pics to prove im intelligent.
3. We can sometimes post on Instagram for the wrong reasons
This primarily applies to your personal Instagram but it could happen on your business page as well.
Do you find yourself posting on Instagram just because you think you should?
Are you on Instagram stories because you think you should be?
Get into the habit of asking yourself why you do things in your business and personal life. Asking ourselves “why” reveals whether we’re doing something for the right reasons or not.
If the answer to “why” is ever because of external validation, instant gratification, or because you think you should, it’s not a good enough reason. This was precisely why I took a break from Instagram.
Putting boundaries on Instagram
Here is a major step I took recently. I put boundaries on Instagram by deleting the app temporarily for 7 days. This means you will not see me on my stories for 7 days but you will still see posts on my feed. After that, I will be reinstalling the app but not logging in to my personal page, only my business page. After 3 weeks I’ll log back into my personal account.
Here are some boundaries you can put on Instagram:
Limit the time spent on it. Try the Freedom app. It blocks apps for a period of time.
Delete the app from your phone for 24 hours
Delete the app for a whole weekend
By the way, deleting Instagram (or your favorite social media app) from your phone is one of the 21 self-care ideas for solopreneurs that I put together in a cool free workbook for you. Click here to register for it!
Your Assignment
Delete instagram for 1 day. Just one day. And after that day, note how you felt, what you did with your time instead.
Tag me @neshawoolery because i’ll be back on there Oct 21st 2019!
Related Post: How To Recognize & Avoid Business Burnout
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More From Nesha
Hey there! I’m Nesha, the host of The Simple Business Show. I teach solopreneurs how to organize and simplify their business so they can do less and earn more. When I’m not podcasting or helping my course students, you’ll find me sipping caramel lattes in Starbucks, binge-watching This Is Us or traveling the world with my backpack and my laptop!
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Organize & Automate - Use my premium course to organize your entire online service-based business in just two weeks (on the side of your regular routine!) so you can stop stressing and fall back in love with your business.
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