Social media stress? Not anymore!

I missed your Twitter updates, why haven’t you been on Flickr for the past few days, your Facebook needs to be updated, why haven’t you written a new blog yet, you didn’t upload any new videos on YouTube, I thought we would Skype last night and where were you in Second Life yesterday? Say that last sentence out loud. No time to breathe right? Social media: it can be fun, it can be useful, but it can also lead to pressure and even stress. And we don’t want that. So, here are the latest tips (thanks to Soren Gordhamer of Mashable) to reduce social media stress. Yes, again a list with tips. I like lists (really, you should see my agenda) and tips, well, you never know if they might be useful.

Tip 1: Take time to disconnect. Looking at a screen for hours, doesn’t do you any good. It freezes your brain and you cannot process information anymore. Feeling a “brain freeze” coming? Then, turn off that computer (you can do that, be strong!) and go do something else.

Tip 2: Breathe. There it goes: in… and out… Now, don’t forget to do so often.

Tip 3: Eat food that adds energy. And that doesn’t mean that you should drink 10 cans of energy drink a day. Eat HEALTHY food.

Tip 4: Awaken the body: move! Sitting at your desk for hours and hours, that’s not going to increase your working ability. Stand up every once in a while: dance, walk, jump or whatever.

I like to add my own tips too (for what it’s worth)

Tip 5: Pick a time. I heard this at a time management workshop: you should pick a time a day (say 8.00 PM) and write your tweets, blogs and so on at that time and not throughout the whole day. The question is: are you strong enough to check your mailbox, Facebook, Flickr ect. only once a day?

Tip 6: I can manage my own time, thank you. So what, if you haven’t updated your Facebook or your Twitter and you weren’t on Skype yesterday. It’s your life; you are in control of when you do what.

And? Are you gonna change your social media behavior? Will you find the right balance? I am willing to try. So now, I will take time to disconnect and move my body.

PS. Thank you for your comments on my last two posts. Yeah…, I didn’t get any. But I understand: it’s the social media stress. For the people who are still wondering what I changed about my layout: it’s the font.