There's an advanced feature called 'Denoise' in a popular music editing software application called 'InShot'. That's where I got the word from, and thought it'd be applicable to our lives as well.

Remember those good old Facebook days when you used to see GOOD content in your feed? 🤳 Now, today's generation will argue that 'good' is relative from person to person, but, those who've used Facebook back in the day know what I'm talking about. That raw, basic, and life-transforming content was what made everything so interesting. Too much noise has been generated by the Social Media to cloud 💭 all the good information, which is still out there. Like as if the intention is to hide it or make it difficult to find.

The world has reached a point where you can simply give a prompt and generate write-ups, photos, videos, voices, backgrounds, and even replace a celebrity's face with yours. In fact, you can make a living out of that 💰

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None of this existed when I was a teenager. Me along with my female cousins used to play indoor games like placing broken bangle pieces in a stack, and removing each piece one by one carefully. You fail if the rest of the stack moves even a little bit.

We don't need to go back to the 90s. We don't want to alienate ourselves. There are two reasons why we don't play such games today: 1. It would be almost impossible to find other players 😂 2. They don't give us the same amount of excitement or joy as they did in the 90s. When you find something more exciting, there is a very less chance of you switching back to something old. As nostalgic as we feel about 🎮 Mario, Contra, and Prince of Persia, we would prefer playing games that are more current.

And that's where the problem begins. The more you keep exploring and consuming, the more endless and more exciting it gets. And if that becomes part of your nature, habits, or 🧬 DNA, you keep doing the same stuff for years and decades. That's the exact cycle or loop that is vicious, harmful, and detrimental to your overall progress 📉

I'm so glad that I was born in 1982. I'm so glad that WhatsApp and Instagram didn't exist during my developmental stages and ages. I would've been dead long back. At the same time, being someone who is very active and creative, I tend to use some of these platforms very actively - be it Grindr, Instagram, WhatsApp, YouTube, or Facebook. I do NOT use some other commonly used apps, and I have no plans to go there ever. My brain 🧠 just can't hold all of this. It can replace things, but not keep adding.

Here are a few solutions that can be helpful to you. I always try my best to practice them myself as stringently as possible:

1. Digital Fasting:
Reducing distractions helps in clearing the Mind, leading to better focus and cognitive function. You don't have to take breaks from Social Media. You have to use Social Media only for a specified time throughout the day. Not more than an hour. That too should be completely avoided on a few days - just like fasting. I try my best to not post anything to any Social Media product on Mondays and Fridays. Same goes for Netflix, for example.

2. Integrating Productive Activities:
It is critical, in today's times, to engage in activities that can help you grow as a human being. Reading 📖 can help you in focusing on a task for a significant amount of time, besides adding to your knowledge, and keep your brain active. Dancing 🕺 is a fun way to stay active and improve cardiovascular health, strength, and flexibility, besides it allows for creative expression, which can be a great outlet for emotions and stress. Physical exercise 🏋 helps boost creative thinking and problem-solving abilities, because that's the time when you're not consuming anything, but creating it.

3. Mindfulness:
You cannot limit something after you're addicted to it. The idea is to not get addicted in the first place. That is why regular fasting (such as my June Fasting) from the Social Media is necessary. While using Social Media / other apps and products can be amazing and very helpful, limiting their usage is also extremely important. You cannot limit the Information Overload. You just have to train yourself to be a selective sifter

4. Limited Consumption:
Whether it is others' stories or statuses, my blunt question to you is, "How does it matter?" Well, 2-3 people may matter to you. Or at the most 10. But there are people who follow 100s of people on apps like Instagram. I'm like, "How does that help? How do you even keep up!?" It is good to limit all of that. Personally, I have muted everyone's WhatsApp statuses. I go and see statuses selectively once in a blue moon. Also, I follow 0 people on Instagram. I go and spend some time in the Explore tab, when I want to have a little fun. Entertainment should take up 5-10% of your life, not 90-95% 🤷

5. Time Management:
Short videos on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube can keep you hooked for hours. Therefore, your focus should not be on reducing screen time. The highest priority should be to do your Activities and Tasks on time. Eat on time. Sleep on time. Read at a fixed time. Exercise (Workout) at a fixed time. Meditate at a fixed time. Go walking at a fixed time. And yes, Entertain yourself at specific times for specified durations. That's how you manage your time effectively.

Related Links:
• The Problem with Entertainment
• Entertainment Destroys Your Life
• Awakening | Social Media
• June, my Social Media Fasting Month

Thu, 06-Feb-2025
🌞 awakenwithsagar