Finding a balance between the online world and personal is something I’ve struggled with since starting my blog. Whether you engage in social media or not, I think we can all relate. The ultra-connectivity and urge to check my phone has definitely progressed over the years, as a society we become more and more engrossed with our apps. And now with Snapchat and Instagram Stories, which I completely avoided for a long time but will now admit are fun, take it to a whole other level. There was a time when I was really bad. My guy would complain that I wasn’t paying attention to him–and sadly it was true. Now with baby on the way this is the one area I think I’ve been considering the most as I want to be cognizant of my screen time around him and careful about what I share. I definitely haven’t figured out the answer as it’s a big part of my world, but I’ve found more of a balance in the past year and have been making a conscious effort to unplug as much as possible which has helped my personal life and sanity immensely. Here’s what has been working for me.
Know when to shut off. I think it’s so important to know when to shut off. Designating times to check in and out has really helped me. Also, remove the phone from the table when eating, out for coffee, a party, or a meeting. Not only is it rude (especially if you’re getting notifications and texts) but you’re more likely to check it which takes your focus off the person you’re with. Simply choosing not to take my phone with me when I’m on a date night, our neighborhood walks, or even a whole Saturday to be in the present with my guy has been HUGE. If I really feel the need to take a photo during these “off times” I’ll grab his phone to document our hiking view or delicious pancake breakfast but at least I’m not tempted by my own.
Use scheduling apps! Woah, talk about life changing. My favorite apps for scheduling content are: Planoly (for Instagram), Tailwind (for Pinterest), and SproutSocial (for Facebook and Twitter). This way I can schedule my posts and content ahead of time. Now that I’m completely freelance and working mainly from home I’ve been much better about scheduling content out and leaving the evenings open so I can disconnect. Not only has this been awesome for when I’m on a shoot all day or in meetings and can’t get to my computer to post, but it’s also helped my personal life. I no longer feel like I should be pinning on a Sunday morning when all I want to do is go to brunch and be with friends (just schedule those pins ahead of time!). The overload of the interwebs, ultra-connectivity and feeling like you’re missing out or should be doing more can really drive you crazy.
Decide how much / what type of personal content you will share. For the most part my guy is a really good sport but I’ve definitely been in the doghouse a few times for posting images of him on social media without asking. I want to share snippets of our life so I am now careful to ask first before Instagramming away. With the baby coming I’ve been getting a lot of questions about how much I plan on sharing and honestly I’m not sure. I’m actually a pretty private person (hence why I waited 6 months to share that I was preggers) so we shall see how I feel when he’s actually here, but I know I will be completely obsessed and probably want to share a gazillion photos of him. Again, I’m just hoping I’ll find some balance and not spam you with baby.
How do you balance your social media presence and personal life? And moms, I’d especially love to hear how you balance the screen time with little ones!
** This post was a reader request–ask and you shall receive! I’d love any additional post ideas you may have (leave them here or email me) as I’m working to create a bunch of content now so I can take some time off from the blog when baby boy arrives.
Photography (look first seen here–but a good one to recreate for fall) | Stephanie Russo