No social network usage until I have created something online.
No Facebook. No Twitter. No Instagram... Ello... Google+... or anything else.
Nothing on any of those each day until I have done something such as:
- Published an article on one of my blogs / sites, including the ones for where I work.
- Published an episode on one of my podcasts.
- Done something else to add content online.
The issue is that I've noticed lately that I've been doing more consuming of content versus creating content.
And as I looked at why, I've noticed that I've been spending a longer time inside of social networks. Before I start my work day I'll fire up Facebook... and 30 or 40 minutes later I emerge. Or on a break I'll scan Twitter or Instagram... and... again time goes by.
Which isn't to say that Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / etc. aren't useful... they definitely are.
But I find I am letting them distract me into consumption of news, updates, etc., instead of creating my own.
So my little experiment is NOT to check any of those until after I've created some content in some form.
Now, I've given myself permission to "cheat" a little in that I might schedule several posts to go out in advance... but the point is to be publishing more than I am doing now.
We'll see how this goes...
Image credit: A few years ago Donna Papacosta posted a photo of this button on her Facebook page. I liked it so much that I printed it out and taped it up on the cross-bar of my office window so that every time I look up from my computer I see that image! The photo is of that image between the blinds that I have covering the window on sunny days.
UPDATE #1 - So on the second day I already failed... I was just getting going and had my phone open checking something else... and bam... I fired up Facebook and started surfing through my Newsfeed. Almost an unconscious action at this point! Will take some re-training to break this habit.
An audio version of this post is now available:
