I’ve used a lot of different tools to separate from websites I want to spend less time on. One recent “tool” that’s been especially helpful was actually a blog post: 7 Months Without Junk Media.
Excerpts:
For the last 7 months I have disconnected from news, social media, videogames, forums, web surfing, and streaming video.
The positive effects are cumulative. I feel like I have more time. I am more creative. I even feel less conformist. I invent new ideas instead of parroting the news story of the day. This effect is especially cumulative. I get more sensitive to how media brainwashes me as the months of abstinence accumulate.
[...]
Are you afraid that by abstaining from news you might miss out on important events?
No. In the last 7 months, exactly two important newsworthy events happened: COVID-19 and Black Lives Matter. I did not miss out on either of them [...] If anything, ignoring the news has focused my attention on the local action it is within my power to do, such as volunteering for a local neighborhood watch.
I read this post once per week. It hasn’t stopped me from using “junk media” completely (that was never my goal), but it has led to my spending less time on Twitter and games, and more time on books. (At least, those things have happened, and I think the post is partly responsible.)
I’ve used a lot of different tools to separate from websites I want to spend less time on. One recent “tool” that’s been especially helpful was actually a blog post: 7 Months Without Junk Media.
Excerpts:
I read this post once per week. It hasn’t stopped me from using “junk media” completely (that was never my goal), but it has led to my spending less time on Twitter and games, and more time on books. (At least, those things have happened, and I think the post is partly responsible.)
Thanks for sharing! Glad this is working for you. I’m seeing similar results: reading more and spending more time thinking.