FYI, I watched The Office TV show many, many times...and still love a rerun here and there. But since becoming a high performer, I realized how important time is to me, and gained a bigger meaning in my life. TV and social media no longer consume hours my life. Since I already have all the episodes archived in my head, I'm using it for good!

Warning longer post...and some harsh facts may slap you right across the face. 

How do you use social media each day? Is it a tool for your business? Is there a skill you're trying to build, so you're using social media to research and learn? Do you follow influential people and they motivate you to be a better person? Do you have a specific goal, and your consumption is in alignment with that goal? Or are you scrolling for entertainment...for hours. per. day? 

There is NOTHING wrong with entertaining yourself. Finding joy, laughter, and happiness in the little moments is important for your wellbeing. BUT too much of it and YOUR life does not stay YOUR life. You end up losing control of your life, and are sucked into whatever the algorithm is orchestrating for your life. 

As a CPA, I love math, because it's so binary. Numbers don't lie. So let's do some math. 

Let's say you are on social media scrolling, entertaining yourself, and/or distracted for just 30 minutes a day, on average. 

That's 3.5 hours per week.

Which is 14 hours per month.

Which is 182 hours per year!!!

Yes that equates to 4.55 work weeks a year!! Meaning, You could be progressing towards the goals and life you want, instead of getting distracted by someone else's life or agenda. You have lost 182 hours of your precious life. 

What if we say you live 80 years and you're 20 years old now. 60 X 182 hours/year = 10,920 hours in your life. When you're on your death bed, do you want to say to yourself, I'm so glad I spent 1.25 years doing nothing but being distracted? Or do you want to say, I'm glad I took those extra 3.5 hours a week, learned a new skill, and had a full and rich life that I designed for myself? 

Do an audit, do you waste 30 minutes a day on social media? Or do you do more than that? 

What if you also watch meaningless TV for an hour each day?

Add that into your calculations. 

Here's a chart to help: 

If you find yourself saying, "I never have enough time in the day"...start with really looking at these two areas above. 

Ok...that was just the TIME component of social media. The mindless scrolling does other mental and emotional damage to you and your life. It causes:

• increased anxiety
• Increased fatigue
• Increased stress
• Increased social comparison
• Decrased productiivty
• Less feelings of empathy

I get it, it can be fun and bring a hint of joy to your life...for a second or two.

But what is it worth? Your sleep? Your wellbeing? Your attitude towards other? Your stress levels? Your productivity? Your progress towards the life you really want? 

What about other distractions in your life? Taking too long to get ready? Doing busy work instead of productive work? 

What are distractions and social media costing you? Time with your kid at the park? Extra sleep? Enjoying date night with your partner? Going to a fun dinner party?

So what can you do instead to help combat the social media distractions and addiction? 

We need to go back to basics: 

• Meditation
• Exercise
• Diet 
• Sleep
• Positive Relationships
• Supplements (extra nutrients you need to optimize your energy and achieve your specific goals)

Make this your year for cutting out distractions. Clean up your social media to only those things that move you towards the life you want. 

Feel more rested, more energized, and be a better person for you and your loved ones (and the world)!

Hope that left you satisfied and smiling [that's what she said],

~Sara