'Oluchi, you need to stop this thing right now. It's not benefiting you' It said.
'I knoww. Give me two more videos and I'll be done'. She responded.
'Heaven helps those who helps themselves, you know'. It said finally, giving up.
The conversation above is a conversation between me and my conscience whenever I'm on TikTok. That's the app that consumes my data the most, thanks to it's talented content creators.
I find myself entering TikTok at the slightest opportunity I get and the reason I always give myself is that I need to unwind. That's a lie. I'm trying so hard to not admit to myself that I'm addicted to the app.
And being obsessed with the app now, is hilarious because few years ago, I saw the app as overrated and would have chosen Instagram over it, if ever, I was asked. But guess who now spends more than two hours on the app?
As much as I love TikTok and venture into the app, whenever I get the chance to, it's still not my most active social media app. You can't even text me on TikTok and be expecting a reply within a two to three weeks. I'm sorry, I need more time. I find it very weird texting on TikTok. The interface, the features, nothing about the app, comes off to me as textworthy and as a result, I don't even bother checking the notification button no matter how it indicates 99+ notifications. I think my only job on that app is to consume content and nothing more. So, I ignore the nags I receive from my conscience whenever I spend too much time there.
My most used social media app is Whatsapp. That's the app where you text me and can expect a reply immediately, hours, a day after and maybe never. It all depends on the importance and how sensible your message is. Apart from the messaging feature, there's the status update. I'm a huge fan of the status updates feature. I enjoy posting on my status and viewing in return.
When it comes to digital minimalism, my first step would be to stop my addiction to TikTok. Situations like this, I really wish there was a phone feature where if I surpass the amount of time set for an app, say 1 or 2 hours daily, it disables the app and enables it the next day. It's very hard to lose control once you get into the app and then, I'll start telling myself that the video below will be my last. Oh, the irony! TikTok will definitely be my first step if I ever want to achieve minimalism digitally.
Another thing, I find very hard to achieve digital minimalism in, is with pictures that I no longer have use for. Going to photos and choosing to delete photos from my gallery, can sometimes be seen as torture because I could as well use that precious time to read a book and enjoy the time better. I usually admire my friend who is meticulous in things like that. The last day of exams, she'll swiftly go to her gallery, deleting notes she snapped during the semester, deleting pdfs she no longer needs. It feels like a waste of time to me because I would enjoy reading or texting someone at that time, rather than do that. Maybe if I get a phone where storage space is more of a luxury than a privilege, I would do better. I won't be shocked if I find out I still have pdfs from three semesters ago.
Every mail that is sent to me, has a designated email address for it. Work, school and personal mails have an account. Promotional mails from apps, have an account for themselves. This makes it easier for me, to sort between mails whenever I need one. Since I don't declutter very often.
This is my response to the digital lifestyle community prompt that talks about the topic digital minimalism. Find more about the prompt here and be free to participate.
Images are mine
Thanks for reading