After the year we’ve had, we as business owners could all use a refresh when it comes to our relationships with social media. I know that so many of you have been caught up in the trap of comparison and spending too much time mindlessly scrolling which is why we’re diving into how to have a healthy relationship with social media as a business owner.
You want to get out of it but don’t know how. So, you just feel burned out and want to delete the whole thing!
IE 241: How to have a Healthy Relationship with Social Media as a Business Owner with Caroline Addington
Well, my guest today is here to share the best way to have a healthy relationship with your social media as a business owner. We talk about changing the way you view your platform, taking breaks, and how to flood your system with dopamine so you can come to social media in a positive headspace.
Dr. Caroline Addington is a former engineer and neuroscientist who has refocused her time and talents onto all things Instagram and organic marketing. She helps coaches and online service-based entrepreneurs fill up their client roster and their programs on Instagram without being a weirdo.
(Caroline and I had a previous conversation on her podcast, Empowered Expression.)
A Healthy View of Social Media
Social media provides you with a sense of intimacy that you won’t find in other places when marketing. In this day and age, being able to go along for the ride on someone’s daily life is something that people are longing for.
Social media is a way for us to create ripples of change every day for the person following us, not just on the days they buy from you. You can put good out into the world every day.
But social media can also become robotic, a chore, and feel like it is just obligatory. When you view your social media in this way, you have given it control. You are no longer the one in the place of power.
You get to choose how you use your platform.
When you switch it around and choose to use your platform because of what you have to say and how it will serve your audience, your whole relationship with social media becomes so much healthier.
Taking Healthy Breaks from Social Media
As a business owner, you have to set boundaries when it comes to social media. You might hear that you have to be posting every single day or else your business will not grow.
That might not be sustainable for you. You need to be doing what you can. You have to set standards that you can meet. Every single time you show up is a win.
Eventually, being on your social media will be habitual, and you will not even think twice about it. But if you are thinking too much about it, reevaluate the time you are spending on it.
Caroline is a huge believer in taking mini-breaks. As soon as she begins to feel like her social media is an obligation, she takes a few days off.
Taking these days off allows her to feel sustained when she is showing up. As soon as you begin feeling stressed about showing up on social media, give yourself permission to take a few days off.
Simple Strategies To Prevent Burnout
If you are working towards have a healthier relationship with your social media, so that you don’t have to take long breaks in order to recover, there are a few strategies.
The first is to remind yourself that you are in control and you get to choose whether you show up or not. Just that simple reminder can sometimes be enough to make you want to get on and share.
Another way that is more proactive and preventative is to play with your neurochemistry and what is happening in your brain.
When we think about the comparison traps of social media and the mindless scrolling we all find ourselves trapped in from time to time, we know that that affects the relationship we have with social media.
Stopping the Mindless Scroll
If you are always coming to social media to share good things and release positivity, you will love being on your social media. If you are using social media to mindlessly scroll, social media will make you miserable.
We fall into these things for a dopamine pickup. Social media creates an artificial sense of community in the mindless scroll. It is mimicking a sense of connection, but you are not actually creating a real connection.
To avoid this, you can be proactive by giving yourself dopamine rushes throughout the day. Sunshine, movement, genuine connection with loved ones, good sleep, and meditation are all things that will flush your system with dopamine.
You will be stunned by how much less interested you are in comparing yourself and mindless scrolling when you make these small and attainable changes in your life.
Show Up for Your Person
Caroline has a strong boundary that she will not consume anything if she is planning to create something. The “inspiration” that some of us look for can actually just cause confusion and muddy the waters of our minds.
Showing up on your platform just for the sake of consistency is not enough. You have to be consistent because of your intention to help.
Think about what you want your person to feel when they see your content. How can you help them today?
This will change how and why you show up on your social media.
Caroline is careful to show up on her social media while remaining true to who she is. You can do what feels good to you. You don’t have to jump on a bandwagon just because that wagon is moving and it seems like it is the only way. Do what is right for you.
Reclaim Your Brand
Operation Reclaim Your Brand is a mini-course that Caroline created that will help you flush your system with dopamine and avoid the negativity of social media.
It is a two-week reset that provides you with tools to have at your disposal the next time you fall down the rabbit hole.
You can connect with Caroline on Instagram and find more free things on her website.
Action Steps:
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