Clubhouse and Social Media Burnout

If you’re not familiar with Clubhouse, I suggest giving it a Google. It’s supposed to be the next big thing, and I’ve been on it since November. That’s not a flex, I just happen to have a friend who has been on it for a while and she invited me into it.

If you’re on my newsletter (thank you!), I dove into the details a bit more and shared a fun story about one of my first experiences with it. Here’s the long and the short of it, adapted from my newsletter:

Clubhouse is an invite-only, audio-only chatroom style app, and it’s all in real time aka LIVE. You create virtual “rooms” on basically any topic, which makes you a speaker or “moderator”, then people can jump in to listen or raise their hand to speak. You can make rooms private too if you want, but social networking is kind of the point on Clubhouse, as well as LIVE access to people you wouldn’t typically have (like Elon Musk, Oprah, Drake, etc).

It’s a cool way to network and get connected to new people, plus it’s pretty big for creative types. As I mentioned, you have to know someone who has invites to “let you in”, but I feel like a lot of people are on it now, so you really shouldn’t have a hard time finding someone with extra invites.

One major downside in my mind? The time it takes. The few times I have hosted a room on “CH”, it’s dragged on FOREVER. I don’t know who has this kind of time. I’m alone and I still stand by this.

If you’re not on my email list – there’s a sidebar here to the right where you can sign up. There’s helpful life advice, recipes, and offer codes. DO IT.

A few weeks ago, a friend asked me to join in on her CH chat regarding social media burnout and how it impacts our mental health. Never one to shy away from a topic regarding anxiety and depression, I was all in.

During this chat, nearly everyone mentioned how they felt “lost”, “overwhelmed”, and/or “bogged down” by social media. And it got me thinking: if we all feel this way, why do we still do it?? Well, because a lot of us actually HAVE TO for our jobs.

I’m a social media manager for restaurants, and I’m a food blogger/”influencer”. It sounds easy, but it’s not. The comparison syndrome becomes VERY real, and you’ll find yourself going to the chiropractor for things like “text neck” and “text thumb”. These are real things. Let that sink in.

For those of you who don’t have to incorporate social media into your job, I would love to hear how your day is going. Spare no detail. If it didn’t land you in a puddle of shame over a poorly lit photo of spaghetti, you’re doing better than me. 

We’re all so overwhelmed with information, constantly on our phones, scrolling IG/TikTok, checking emails, etc, that we never even think to take 10-20 minutes to ourselves. I’ve spent more time browsing Reddit threads about cats and incorrectly painted street signs. 

So this kind of goes back to last weeks newsletter and blog post about angry cooking, but take a moment for yourself and think about a few little things that you enjoy. JUST YOU. SANS ANYONE ELSE. Then…do them. Pick one thing for every day of the week and see how you feel. I suppose browsing Reddit threads about cats can be one of them, but I encourage you to disconnect from the phone for this particular exercise.

Another thing I recommend? Not looking at your phone when you wake up. I know it’s hard to imagine, but really, try it. Looking at your phone the second you open your eyes is just not an ideal way to start the day. I obviously look to see if there are any important texts I missed while asleep, but usually it’s nothing that can’t wait. My clients are the exception. 

I make my coffee or tea, then I might meditate for 10-20 minutes, make breakfast, read a chapter of a book, or watch an episode of one of my favorite shows. JUST ONE. Ted Lasso has been a favorite – if you haven’t watched it already, get on that. I have watched it twice now (it’s on Apple TV just FYI). Link here for more uplifting viewing.

Obviously self-discipline is a factor here, because I tell some of my friends about this and they all say they can’t watch just ONE episode of a show. And to that I say, do you remember a time when you actually had to WAIT ONE WEEK for a new episode of your favorite show to come out?? JESUS TAP DANCING CHRIST PEOPLE YOU CAN DO THIS.

I BELIEVE IN YOU.

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