#Day 2: 7 DAYS PRODUCTIVITY CHALLENGE
Yawns
Stretches and turns to pick up phone
Checks for messages on BBM, Whatsapp, email accounts…
replies messages…
Scrolls through IG,
Looks at the time, jumps off the bed, rushes to get ready for work…
Does this sound all too familiar? Well that brings me to Challenge 2;
Challenge: Limit time spent on social media!
This isn’t rocket science. Social media is and remains a great contender of time and a great enemy of productivity. To be a productive individual you would have to cut down some excesses, just like making a budget. This may not seem like a challenge until you consciously regulate the time you spend on social media. Starting from today the aim is to cut down the time spent on social media and gauge your progress for the day. You may require active social media engagement due to your job but know when it’s for work and when it is for pleasure and create a balance.
I stumbled on this alarming statistics on Social Times; Social media users aged between 15 and 19 spend at least 3 hours per day on average using platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram while users between the age of 20 and 29 spend 2 hours per day. 18 percent of social media users can’t go a few hours without checking Facebook, and 28 percent of iPhone users check their Twitter feed before getting up in the morning. 39,757 years of our time is collectively spent on Facebook in a single day. Between 60 percent to 80 percent of people time on internet during work has nothing to do with work.
From the statistics, it is obvious that we have all struggled with the urge to comb Instagram or to take a sneak peek at our Facebook accounts during work hours. Just a few minutes you say to yourself, then a few minutes turn into hours, if not the whole day. That brief response to a chat that turns into a long conversation. We have all been there, I am also guilty of this. In fact, in some companies, you aren’t allowed to bring your phone to work because your employer wants to get a worth for his money. So if you are self-employed I bet you want to also want to get a worth of your money since you are an employee in your company, then learn to say No to social media when you need to.
This simply means not using the time allocated for a productive task for social media. If you have to use social media ensure it is for something productive, the purpose of this challenge is to increase/boost your productivity as we earlier stated. These are a few tips that can ensure that your time online is productive;
- Allocate time in your to-do-list for social media; Arrhh, who even does that kind of thing? In two words -Productive people!
- Ensure that your time on social media platforms is productive; I have come across great opportunities from social media. It is also an easy way for me to keep in touch and slash phone time. I reply my emails promptly, make WhatsApp calls, send important messages to people I work with online through any of the social media platforms, share my posts and I go back to my task for the day. Of course, there is always the temptation of wanting to do other things while I am online. However, having a direct idea of what I am supposed to be doing or looking for, helps me channel my attention properly.
- When you need to take a break from work instead of feeding that indulgence read a book or a newspaper.
The thing about social media is its ability to distract. Five minutes turns to an hour, sometimes a day. Learn to say No at such times. Do I use social media? Yes. Should you stop using social media? Well, if you are a social media addict you may want to consider that. Social media is a tool that should be used and not a tool that uses us. Be in control of social media and not social media in control of you!
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Have a productive day!
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