Happy Summer! How's your June? Are you resting? Running around? Taking deep breaths? Staying near your air purifier?

 

Two months ago, I wrote you with my reflections on two years off social media. And in that email, I shared that while I left my public profiles in 2021, I still had a private Instagram account and Twitter.

 

Sharing that publicly really got me in my feels. And less than a week later, I deactivated my Finsta and deleted my Twitter profile. I was back off the apps entirely. Good riddance!

 

 

Being fully off social media is always a balm for my attention and my intentions. When I detach from the apps, I breathe deeper. I think clearer. And I know truer. 

 

It's really that simple. The long-form equation goes something like…

 

Me on social media = Scattered. Distracted. Unable to connect or care because I'm so overwhelmed by the sheer quantity of things I see every day. Shifting priorities at the whim of the folks who make the most content. Buying things I don't need because the photos are pretty. Invested in documenting the experience more than experiencing the experience. Never reading books because I don't have the attention span. Binging reality tv shows I can't remember the events of. Knowing the names of more meme accounts than artists.

 

In contrast…

 

Me off social media = Focused. Intentional. Connecting with the people & things that really matter to me regularly. Rooted in my priorities and their slow evolution. Spending less money and knowing fewer brand names. Going for walks and swims without telling anyone. Losing my phone somewhere around my house for hours at a time. Reading two to three books at any given time. Watching films that have been on my to-watch list for years. Re-reading and rewatching things because they're soothing to me. Knowing the names of my neighbors (and their dogs).

 

 

Now that I've painted those two very different pictures — I also want to be clear that while leaving social media changed my life, getting off Instagram/Twitter/Tik Tok did not magically solve all my problems. 

 

I still work too much. I still miss my friends who I moved away from. I still stare at my computer screen 8+ hours a day. I still feel lost a lot of the time.

 

I also still scroll a lot. In fact, I don't think my screen time has decreased that significantly since I deleted all the social media apps.

 

The difference is that now I spend my phone time in different ways, lending my attention to things that matter to me (even trivially), instead of being sucked down the rabbit hole of whatever the algorithm cares about day-to-day.

 

 

So in today's email, I wanted to share how I spend my time on my phone instead of being on social media. 

 

I was inspired by Embedded's “My Internet” series and a question my partner asked me (lovingly) – how do you spend so much time on your phone without chess or Twitter? (If you know them, you know.)

 

So without further ado, welcome to My Internet-Phone sans Social Media. These are the apps that I spend the most time with, and links where you can connect wih me if they're social-ish. Enjoy!

 

 

 

Letterboxd – Since leaving social media, I've rediscovered my love of movies, and I've gotten super into scrolling Letterboxd to find new films. Rest assured, I am not a snob about it. Princess Diaries is in my top four (as it should be). Proof here.

 

Serializd – I also watch … a lot of tv. My inner critic used to yell at me about it, life is short! why are you wasting it on television? But honestly … I really like tv. So now when my inner critic chimes in, I just yell back, life is short! I love tv & I do what I want! Serializd is a Letterboxd rip-off for tv shows (since Letterboxd doesn't do tv). Find me here. 

 

Literal – I also love books, and I definitely read more since leaving social media. Literal is my fave place to set my annual reading goal and keep track of what I've read and want to read. Find me here.

 

Libby – I definitely believe that meme that says something like “adding books to your library holds gives you the same dopamine hit as online shopping." So I spend a lot of time scrolling Libby for books I want to read, and asking the library to give them to me.

 

Spotify & Bandcamp – Music I've purchased lives in the Bandcamp app, and I obsessively curate playlists on Spotify. Listen to those here.

 

Are.na – A Pinterest-esque feed, but without any algorithms or products, and it features all kinds of things curated by artists, academics, and visionaries. Scrolling Are.na always makes me feel smarter. Find me here.

 

Apple Podcasts – I'm a normie, and I use Apple Podcasts to subscribe to shows I'm excited about. My “saved episodes” is where I keep my queue of things I've loved and/or want to listen to. I update it obsessively.

 

 

Finch – My fave gamified self-care app. You take care of a little bird friend to help you take care of yourself. My bird just turned one year old! (Add me & my bird with friend code DR1G963YTW)

 

Township – Similar to Harvest Moon or Stardew Valley. You start and grow your own town. Mine is called Zoeville, after my dog, and I spend a lot of time there. Add me with the code VBJVXZ.

 

Water Sort – I totally downloaded this from an in-game ad in some other game, but I find sorting the water very soothing when my brain needs a break from life.

 

 

Discord – I love hanging out in a bunch of different Discord channels and talking about our shared interests. My faves lately are: Kindred Book Club for chatting about books with really sweet people & Shudder for chatting about horror films + watch parties.

 

Messages/WhatsApp/Signal – Yep, I still use my phone to talk to my friends. Messages for my text-friends, WhatsApp for my international-friends, Signal for my privacy-savvy friends. 

 

 

Voxer – I love voice messages, yes I do. I use Voxer to chat with clients and collaborators.

 

Overcast & Goodpods– I keep all my client pods & my own pods in Overcast. And I use Goodpods to curate podcast playlists and check out the charts.

 

ChatGPT – I've just started to integrate AI into my workflow, but lately this app is my fave way to write a quick headline or paragraph. I find myself opening it more and more.

 

ProtonMail & ZohoMail – ProtonMail for personal things & ZohoMail for work things. These are my email apps of choice since I dumped Gmail!

 

 

Ok now do you see how I still spend tons of time on my phone even without social media? But also how that time is spent on things I genuinely enjoy?

 

Whether you see it or not, thank you for being here, First name / friend. 

 

If you have fave apps, please reply and share them with me! I'd love to know how you spend your time on your phone but off social media.

 

I'll be back in your inbox next month to share the new season of my tiny tarot podcast. In the meantime… big hugs, deep breaths, and cheers to your sacred attention.  ♡

xoxo, Amelia

 

♡ ways to work with me ♡

 

for dreamers who want to leave social media – get the free Leaving Social Media Toolkit

 

for business owners who want community & support –  join the Lifestyle Business League

 

for creatives, freelancers + people seeking supportive systems – learn more about Living Systems

 

for (aspiring) podcasters – check out Softer Sounds for support launching or editing a show

 

 

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