You’re in the waiting room at the dentist.
You’re at the dog park.
You’re watching your kids baseball game.
You’re having lunch with friends.
You’re watching a movie with your significant other.
You want to check your phone for messages, but you don’t want to look like “that person”. You know the ones. You’ve seen them having dinner together, both checking their phones. Sometimes I wonder if they’re texting each other instead of having a real conversation!
And your KIDS! They don’t even use their phone to actually talk to people anymore. When you ask them if they’ve confirmed their plans, they say “they’re waiting for a text back”. When you suggest they actually CALL the person, they look at you horrified.
And then there’s this guy. I know I feel like this sometimes, how about you?
Here’s the dilemma. I’m a Social Media Strategist. I teach people how to run their businesses virtually. My business is set up so that it can be run from anywhere, my clients all email or text me. I teach Conversational Marketing, how to communicate with YOUR customers virtually to bring in more sales.
———-> Look over there. You can tweet me right now. ————>
How to you do that if you don’t always check your phone?
Before we get to that, I want to first let you off the hook. YOU’RE AN ENTREPRENEUR! Of course you’re always checking Social Media! That’s how you get new business. So you are going to be that person checking the phone at the dog park and at the dentist office. You’re a Social Media ROCKSTAR, and you want to be responsive when you can. That’s the beauty of running a virtual business, so give yourself permission to be that person.
Lets talk about when you’re with your friends/kids/significant other. And when you have to actually get some work done.
You must be present. Fully present. Maybe not all the time, maybe you can sneak a look at your phone while your kids are at baseball practice. When you stop for ice cream on the way home, leave your phone in the car. When you’re watching a movie with your honey, turn off your phone. When you go to lunch with your friends, put your phone on silent.
Here’s the other thing. You get more accomplished when you unplug from Social Media. Literally, sitting at your computer WITHOUT your email or Facebook open. Try it! Put a timer on and commit to 30 minutes of time, unconnected. You’re going to be blown away by how much work you get done. You’ll get four hours of “interrupted” work done in 30 minutes of “uninterrupted” work time. It’s like giving yourself more hours in each day.
It’s not an easy balance! We Online Marketers need to be more conscious than most about being fully present. We need to be fully present when we’re working, we need to be fully present when we’re with the people we love. We don’t work M-F 9-5, most of the Online Marketers I know barely take one day off a week, never mind two. That’s a blog post for another day. So it’s a constant issue. I suggest you turn off the notifications for all Social Media sites, it makes it easier to stay unplugged when you commit to.
Two things I want you to remember:
- It’s OK to often check your phone when you use Social Media to have conversations with your tribe.
- Your work and your relationships will benefit by regular “unplugged” time.
It isn’t mutually exclusive. You don’t need a Social Media Intervention. You just need to remember that it’s sometimes OK to be checking in, and it’s sometimes OK to be unplugging.
So tell me in the comments below, what are your tricks for staying present, for unplugging from Social Media?
(you can disconnect AFTER you comment)
Karen is one of our featured rock stars for the 2014 Rock Your Growth Telesummit happening January 27-31, 2014, click here to register for this life changing event NOW.
About Karen Yankovich, Online Marketing Strategist, Business Consultant, and Speaker, Karen Yankovich is the CEO of Dimare Group, LLC. Having “been there and done that” in the arena of losing (and then re-finding) a focused approach to business and life, Karen now offers heart-based consulting for entrepreneurs and small businesses.
Karen’s unique specialty blends her “get it done” attitude with a passion for soulful living in her personal services, live events, and online workshops.
hey, I’m Kim + I am ridiculously passionate about helping you to work smarter and not harder + to realize how freaking amazing you actually are, exactly as you are and how easy business really can be when you are in alignment + simplify + add systems to organize your business + plan your business growth. I’ve been geeking out about online business, online marketing + systems + personal development + all that stuff since I created my first business back in 2006 + sold it.
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