The Impact of Social Media on Productivity: Solutions for Mindful Internet Use
Social media is a platform for all kinds of content for all types of people. This often leaves space for discussions that can become very aggressive very quickly. What is most notable about this is that while such an occurrence is frequent online, it is rare for such a thing to happen in real life. This is because the lack of physical confrontation prevents users from feeling the force of what they say. Social media takes what would be a regular conversation and turns it into a performance. These situations often gain more momentum as virtual bystanders are asked to pick a side by publicly liking or disliking the content.
Such encounters are occurring endlessly thanks to reverse chronological content and infinite scroll features. These allow for the timeline to constantly contain new posts and for the user to scroll endlessly and never run out of content. Additionally, social media creates a forum where nearly all information can be presented as equally credible. This lack of hierarchy often leads users to believe and share false information.
Because content moves so quickly, audiences are pushed to consume posts that focus on extraordinarily short-lived scandals, jokes, and conflicts. While this has a negative impact for all people, it is particularly profound for younger generations because it creates a novel form of cultural instability. Older generations grew up with sets of beliefs and ideas that took longer to develop and, as a result, were able to function as a uniting factor with a long-term impact. Younger people lack this structure, and it is wreaking havoc on their social systems and mental health.
Action is necessary to alter this trend, and there are two general approaches to creating this change. The first is by changing the way social platforms function, and the second is to alter the way individuals interact with and utilize the internet. The most beneficial things social media platforms can do is reduce focus on or eliminate likes, encourage accountability by requiring accounts to be verified, and ensure that information is credible before being scared. Some of these approaches are currently in use. For example, Instagram recently created a feature that allows users to choose whether they want likes to be visible on their posts. Instagram also links to COVID information when it detects a post about the topic.
“The goal of productive meditation is to take a period in which you’re occupied physically but not mentally- walking, jogging, driving, showering- and focus your attention on a single well-defined professional problem.”
The other method of combatting this problem is to reduce internet use or use it more mindfully. Doing so will create a natural hierarchy in information as it avoids sensationalism and reverse chronological presentations of information. It also frees the mind to focus on deeper topics. However, reducing internet use is not as simple as it may sound. It requires acknowledging the temptation and then finding ways to fight it. This practice is challenging and takes time to master.
One of the most effective ways to accomplish this is to allow yourself to be bored. In small moments such as waiting in lines, most people rely on the internet and social media to occupy themselves. This habit gives way to more frequent use and mental occupation with menial topics that detract from deep work. In his book Deep Work, Cal Newport suggests blocking out specific times to use the internet and engaging in active meditation.
Blocking out time is effective because it holds the user accountable for how much time they spend using the internet. It is widely known that concise scheduling is conducive to productivity, so it is not surprising that the same is true with the internet and deep work. Newport also notes that it is beneficial to plan internet blocks in personal time as well. This is because restricted access during the workday often leads to gorging during personal time. He notes that many people rely on connectivity for relaxation time (such as streaming) and encourages accounting for this as well.
Newport also relies on moving meditation because it physically prevents you from using the internet. He made a schedule that involved walking to work and running because they were already part of his day. Similar to reducing overall internet use, this is often very difficult. Newport recounts engaging in this practice for two weeks before he began to see results. Like most things, it becomes easier with practice.
Overall, mindfulness and accountability go a long way in productivity and deep work. Adaptation is necessary to success because there is no cut-and-dry way to execute deep work; it often depends on the requirements for each individual based on both their preferences and the demands of their profession.
