A year ago, I deleted all of my social media apps.
Every time I looked at my phone, I felt bombarded with two things; very edited pictures and unnecessary information. The funny thing is even though I didn’t want to participate, I kept scrolling and scrolling. An hour later, I’d look up from my screen and be appalled at the time wasted. After many months of this, I started a 9-month social media detox.
During those 9 months, I gained so many hours of my life back that I even started a nonprofit. When it was time for me to rejoin the social media world to promote that nonprofit, a strange problem arose.
I didn’t know how to limit myself.
I found myself in the familiar environment of scroll city. Many times during the day I would have the urge to open the apps and sure enough, this became a grand time waster all over again. I thought to myself “If I‘m having this problem, I’m sure other people are too!”
During my research, I learned that the demographic most affected by social media are college students. In an exploratory case study done by Johnson and Wales University in Providence, RI almost half of the students questioned said that they felt certain effects of social media on their mental health.
In an attempt to learn some life hacks and tips for handling social media in my day-to-day life, I chose to speak with the students of St. John’s University in New York City.
St. John’s is known for having one of the most diverse student bodies and most of their students interact on social media, yet seem to have a balanced life. I wanted to know how they do it.
Here is our panel discussion:
Special Thanks to the Office of Marketing and Communications of St. John’s University