So I’ve had this thought for a little while now, and coming across this article made me think that my thoughts could very well be true. Simply, the article says that people that use Facebook get lower grades. Now the study isn’t the most accurate study, and it suggests that it could be due to causation - in other words that other factors could contribute to the lower grades. Things like Facebook users are more likely to have active social lives, or be involved in sports, music, or other extracurricular activities that take up their time. But the thought still remains... could spending time on Facebook be ruining my grades? My job? Or my life?
Well, in my opinion, yes, it is. And I think people are just starting to realize that although social media is beneficial, done in excess it can certainly be detrimental to one’s life. Think about how much time an active social media user spends online in a given day – 4 hours, 5, 6, more? That’s quite a lot of hours. I mean according to Tim Ferris all you need is 4 hours in an entire week to run a whole business, and people are spending 4+ hours a day blogging, chatting on Facebook, looking at pictures on Flickr, tweeting, etc. Imagine what could be done if people used their time doing other, more productive things. Imagine how much time people spend at work sitting on these sites rather than actually working. And like the article mentions above, imagine all the college students that are wasting their hours on Facebook instead of interacting with their friends, studying for tests, or being active in the community. After all that, does spending that much time on social media sites still make sense? Or is it just a big waste of time?
I’m not saying that people should spend zero time on social media sites because there are some benefits, but I think people need to realize that these sites are addicting, and that there are more efficient things that people can do with their time. I’ve listed 4 easy different things that people can do with their time instead of spending it in front of their computer.
1. Read a book. There’s nothing better in my opinion than a good ol-fashioned book. It helps you zone out, relax, and it helps keep your intellectual spirit running.
2. Go on a walk. With all the time that people spend on their computer, it’s important to take time out of the day to go outside and get some fresh air. It’s healthy, relaxing, and it will help get your mind off the nuances of life.
3. Spend time with your family/friends. These are the people that get hurt the most by your excess time spent online. Every hour you spend on social media sites is an hour that you don’t spend interacting with friends or family
4. Start a side-project. So much can be accomplished with all of the extra time you would have if you cut down on your social media time. This can help keep you do something that you’ve always wanted. Create a new product, re-engineer a car, solve a puzzle, or do whatever it is that excites you.
I think that if people cut their social media time down by an hour or two they will realize how efficient they really can be and how great of an impact they really can have. So next time you want to stalk your friends on Facebook or read tweets on Twitter, think against it and do something more productive.
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