June 15, 2014

ISIQ-0504

“Procrastination is opportunity’s assassin.” – Victor Kiam

I recently said goodbye to Facebook. Permanently. I have logged out, changed my password to an unintelligible string of meaningless characters, deleted the app and the bookmark, and intentionally made it extremely difficult for myself to get back onto the site.

I found I was spending far too much time procrastinating on Facebook – living vicariously through a network of hundreds of people I barely know – instead of doing the work that really matters, and doing what my family and myself need to do.

I wish I was the kind of character who could pursue moderation with unbreakable self-discipline. Unfortunately, my darker side is an addictive personality, and I find it easier (safer) to remove the temptation altogether and break the habit. Go “cold turkey”, if you will.

Once I’ve “reprogrammed the twitch” to check Facebook every 5 minutes (huge thanks to Joshua Fields Millburn’s and Ryan Nicodemus’ new book Everything That Remains for that phrase) I may consider coming back to Facebook for business purposes only.

In the meantime, I’m done.

The upsides: In the past 48 hours since I announced my decision, I’ve had several really meaningful, deep email conversations with dear friends in the USA and Canada; I’ve spent more time being present with my kids and playing with them; I’ve played the piano for the first time in months; I’ve read a book, and I’ve had more time to simply BE.

That time would most likely have otherwise been spent thumb-scrolling page after page of meaningless crap on my iPhone, zombied-out on the couch while life happened around me.

Instead, I feel like I’ve been able to get back to what really matters – my kids, my family, my art, my creativity, and my meaningful work.

So if you’ve noticed that these IQs no longer auto-post to Facebook, that’s the reason. The “Share” buttons still work, so feel free to share with your own networks and encourage them to sign up. It’s just I’m not there anymore, and I won’t likely be back.

NOTE: I don’t judge anyone who uses Facebook – I know it has benefits, and I know it gives people connection to their friends. I simply suggest that it no longer adds value to my life commensurate with the volume of time I was spending.

I would also say this: anything that is free to use means that YOU are the product. Be really really be sure of your reasons for continuing to participate in anything where YOU are the product.

With love,
Israel. xo

 

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