The last week of social isolation and work from home has meant an explosion of time spent online, especially using video conference tools like ZOOM and social media.
These tools are great for keeping connected whether it be for working remotely, group yoga classes, staying connected with friends and family, and getting news and information. I use zoom a lot for my coaching work and for the online yoga classes I’m teaching currently.
At the same time -- these tools can also create problems, especially when you don't control your own usage well, and with unfortunate bad actors looking to create problems.
Take these few easy steps to make sure you're using Zoom and social media in a way that keeps your anxiety down and keeps your productivity and connectedness up:
FOR ZOOM:
Set it up right. If you're hosting, make sure everybody has the meeting ID ready and easy. You don't need a new one for every meeting. If you're concerned about a sensitive population joining (i.e. kids) or you're discussing sensitive information, consider adding a password that participants need to join.
Disable "join before host" so that nobody, whether invited or not, can create problems or cause trouble before you're on.
Enable "co-host" to assign others to help you moderate. This is especially important for larger meetings or fitness classes, when you might not be able to monitor the in-zoom chat or all participant interactions.
Disable "file transfer" to prevent any digital virus sharing.
Disable "allow removed participants to rejoin" so that booted participants can't re-join.
Follow best practices for video conferencing etiquette. Make sure you’re aware of your surroundings, and consider muting your audio when not speaking, but keeping your video on.
FOR SOCIAL MEDIA:
The irony of social media is that during times of isolation and social distancing, we are relying on them more to stay connected, whether purposefully or out of habit, when multiple studies have shown that increased social media usage causes increased isolation. So, a few tips to help manage social media for health:
Monitor and manage the amount of time you spend scrolling and engaging. Set time limits for yourself (i.e. 5 mins max every hour, or no phone time before breakfast or after 8pm).
Have detox periods or social media breaks. Use the breaks between to do something else that's good for you and helps you feel better. Exercise, go for a walk, get some fresh air, call someone or talk by video in person rather than just via text.
Notice -- and then choose -- the type of content that makes you feel good and makes you feel anxious. A good question to ask is, "Why?" Why am I doing what I'm doing, or following who I'm following? Why might this person be sharing this content? If following the Insta stories of your exes or certain friends triggers you, unfollow or mute. Same with public figures. Same with politicians.
Choose what type of content you want to create. Based on your habits of noticing, from a place of choice rather than just habit, think about what you're putting into the world. Is it constructive? Is it to get attention or is it to contribute in some way?
Limit consumption of the news. The news is more or less the same, and you don't keep to keep up on every "breaking news"update as it happens. Set aside one or two times a day when you can keep up on what's happening, and do so with trusted news sources. You don’t need to follow a million news sources or pundits — they are posting to get attention as much as a public service. Instead, pick a few and stick with those. I’m happy to suggest some. Facebook has a useful Corona Virus (COVID-19) Information Center you can join that collects all relevant info.
Spring Cleaning. Lots of us are at home these days, and it's spring time, so spring cleaning might be a good use of some downtime. Cleaning out a closet, getting rid of accumulated stuff is good. Same with social media. Over time, many of us collect people and accounts we follow that may not actually serve us well in the long run. Some of it might now be infuriating, frustrating, or just uninteresting. Unfollow, delete, cut back. And you can then either leave it trimmed down, or you can replace some of it with people and content you find more inspirational, awe-inspiring, and positive. It might sound corny, but trust me -- the more positive, inspirational content you allow into your life, even unconsciously consumed via social media, the calmer and happier you'll feel and the better your interactions with others will be.
Keep connected, stay inside, take care of yourself and others. This is hard for everybody, but we are all in this together and will come out of this together.
I’m here for you anytime if you need anything, please don’t hesitate to reach out.