Mindful Technology Podcast

Excessive social media consumption can lead to anxiety, depression, and loneliness. It can also be a waste of time and distract us from more productive activities. However, by shifting from consuming to creating content, we can use social media for personal growth and connection. Berend Mainz shares his journey of reducing social media consumption and starting his own account. Some positive changes include having more control over time and a sense of purpose. Tips for making a similar transition include journaling about social media consumption, setting goals, planning posts in advance, engaging with the audience, and setting boundaries for consumption. Social media can be a powerful tool when used intentionally. Welcome to the Mindful Technology Podcast, where we discuss technology, digital media and related tools for usage in school as well as everyday life. I'm your host Felix Sitter and in today's episode we'll explore how we can facilitate an effective social media use through shifting from an excessive consumption to purposeful content creation. Let's talk about why excessive social media consumption can be detrimental. Studies suggest spending too much time on social media can increase our feelings of anxiety, depression and loneliness. The endless scrolling and exposure to curated lives can make us feel miserable and disconnected from reality. Furthermore, it can be a huge time sink, distracting us from more productive activities. However, by shifting our focus from consuming to creating, we can turn social media into a tool for personal growth and connection. Creating content allows us to share knowledge and connect with like-minded individuals to build a positive online presence. To provide a bit more insight into this transition, I've invited a special guest. Joining us today is Berend Mainz, who has managed to step back from social media consumption almost entirely and now runs his own ex-account on psychology and self-improvement. Welcome, Berend Mainz. Thanks for having me, Felix. So, Berend, can you tell us a bit about your journey? What made you decide to stop consuming social media content and start creating your own? A few months ago, I was watching a lot of social media content, but then I realized that I was spending way too much time on it and it didn't really have any benefit. Even though I tried to watch informative content, it was still like coke and a waste of time. So, I decided to start my own ex-account and, at the same time, consume less social media and almost quit entirely. When my psychology study started, I had the idea to post about it, post about interesting stuff I learned and to try to provide value for others. Okay, nice. And what positive changes have you noticed since you made this shift? So, in general, I would say more control of my time and it is also a lot of fun to be creative and try to think on what to post, especially during my lectures. Yeah, and it gives me a sense of purpose, contrary to just consuming content. That's fantastic to hear. Do you have any tips for our listeners who might want to make a similar transition as you? So, the first tip I would provide is to journal about it, journal about your social media consumption and especially write down when you are consuming social media, what are the cues, what thoughts do you have before you go on social media and then just reflect on it and also measure it. There are also apps to measure your screen time and just make a decision to stop consuming and maybe start your own account or just reduce your time. Yeah, that's what I would say. Thanks, Bill. Mine is for sharing. Now, let's talk about some actionable steps and tools for you guys to use social media effectively. First actionable step would be to set clear goals and determine what you want to achieve by your social media presence. This could be building a personal brand, sharing knowledge or connecting with others in your field. Secondly, you might want to create a content calendar and plan your posts in advance to ensure consistency. Third, engage with your audience by responding to comments and in the end build a community. And fourth, limit your own consumption time and set boundaries for how much time you spend consuming content. And that's all for today's episode of Mindful Technology. Remember guys, social media can be a powerful tool when used intentionally. Thank you for your time as time is precious and I hope to see you for the next episode. Until then, keep creating and stay mindful.