Lily Snyder

I started the year with big plans to do lots of writing. I had goals for my blog to beat last year’s stats. The fact is, I have hardly written this year. It’s not surprising. 2020 has been a s*** show for everyone with a pandemic sweeping the globe. So, what happened? If anything, physically distancing by staying inside should have given me more time to write, not less.

Well, it also means staying home with my toddler more. We cancelled our gym membership (germs!) and day care closed their doors. So that means not only less time to focus and write (I’m sure many parents working remotely can sympathize here) but more of a little man taking up my mental energy.

On top of everything, I found out I was pregnant in March. Right in the middle of the toilet paper shortages and clinics and hospitals closing down to be ready for COVID patients. It was ok. Everything seemed to be going along smoothly. It only meant I was even more tired and had even less energy.

So there are all my excuses for not writing on this blog.

I have been writing. I’ve actually been doing really cool writing about futuristic topics for a client. I just can’t tell you because it’s ghost writing. I’m OK with that though. It’s enough for me right now. I feel fulfilled, even if my name isn’t on the final draft.

Digital Minimalism

I’m not the only one who has taken a break from blogging and being online this year. The most famous person I’ve heard of doing so is Dave Rubin, host of The Rubin Report. He went off the grid for 31 days.

Other people in my sphere like Ryan Schultz (social VR blogger) and Val Sopi (founder of Claritask) took breaks from the online world this year. Val took one and half months off from social media.

He wrote:

“Did I miss being online? Nope. Not at all. I don’t recall myself being this healthy mentally and physically. Not being online has given my focus back.”

Val Sopi

He wrote on his blog how it he was able to actually ask his friends what they were up to. Being off social media gave him a chance to have IRL (in real life) conversations and a chance for his friends to tell him something he didn’t know.

“Moving forward, I plan to be less online. Leaving less of a trace.” Val wrote. Like me, Val removed social media apps from his phone. He only checks social on his computer. He unsubscribed from newsletters and only uses his inbox for work.

I’m glad people are finding other ways to connect with each other than social media. I know social has helped a lot of people this year but I think there’s also something to be said for turning it off and enjoying the sunshine. I know I appreciate hearing real updates from my friends now since I don’t see what they post on Facebook. Plus, I too feel like I have something to contribute by not sharing every aspect of my life online.

Being sucked into the mind warp that is social media is different from writing though. It’s time we get back into blogging for there is much to discuss. Online internet trends like #buildinpublic, Facebook opening Horizon Beta to more people, and I just finished bingeing Upload on Amazon Prime and that is a must write about topic!

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Featured Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash