I’ll be the first to admit that being online 24/7 has hurt my creativity. I have less original ideas (or ideas in general), and nearly zero motivation to sit down and create something.

And don’t get me started on the shorter attention spans. Focusing on one thing at a time feels like torture, and while it may be the undiagnosed ADHD, I know it’s also partly because of my constant online consumption.

Sound familiar?

If so, you’ve come to the right place! Here are some ways to bring you back to reality, reset your mind, and help you find life outside of the screens.

Remove All Social Media Apps

Having social media on your phone may seem like an easy way to check in and update your followers, but it also allows you to hop on and doom scroll at the drop of a hat.

I’ve lost hours scrolling Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts, and I always feel dumber, sadder, and bored afterwards. However, once I took those apps off my phone, I was forced to find alternate means of entertainment.

I read more books, enjoyed actual movies and shows, practiced my Sudoku skills, and wrote more. I also got back into macrame and braiding bookmarks, which occupies my hands and prevents me from picking up the phone.

Deleting your social media apps is the first step to resetting your mind. When you can’t scroll, you have to do something else. Plus, it helps ease stress (have you seen the state of the world today?) and allows you to focus on you, your family, and things within your bubble of control.

Practice Mindfulness

Mindfulness is becoming aware of your body, emotions, and surroundings. By practicing mindfulness, you can ground yourself in the moment, reaffirm (or make) mental boundaries, and take in the beauty around you.

You can become more mindful in a few different ways, including:

• Scheduled meditation
• Actively paying attention to your surroundings
• Enjoying the moment
• Controlled breathing exercises

The thing about mindfulness is that you don’t dwell on it. Instead, you focus on one thing (such as the flow of your breath or the sound of a clock) and let the rest swirl around you. When thoughts and feelings inevitably rise up, you acknowledge them and let them pass without judgement.

That’s the hard part, but letting go is one of the essential ways to reset your mind and return to something more natural. We weren’t made to hold the weight of the world, and the more we burden our brains with information, the more emotion we gather as well.

By practicing mindfulness, we can recognize what’s we need to keep, and what needs to go.

Embrace Boredom

90% of the time, we go online and scroll because we’re bored. Most apps are made to combat boredom, and the algorithms are programmed to keep us hooked and “entertained” by feeding us something-anything-that will ease that boredom.

But why are we so scared of being bored?

Boredom isn’t profitable for the online companies or social media sites, but it can be extremely beneficial for you. By embracing boredom, you can:

• Boost your creativity
• Boost your mindfulness
• Find clarity
• Process thoughts and emotions
• Breathe
• Rest

Boredom isn’t a bad thing. It’s a way for us to rest, reset, and remember what it’s like to exist offline.

Try it for a month

Change is hard, and breaking an online addiction can be even harder. It requires discipline, and there will be setbacks. However, if you can implement these changes for a month, you’ll be amazed at the difference!

I’m about to start the process again after slacking, but I felt incredible after the first time I tried it!

Remember- all you have to do is remove the unnecessary apps from your phone, embrace boredom, and pay attention to the real world and her beauty!

How do you reset your mind from the flood of online information? Let me know in the comments!