I’ve spent the last (almost) 16 years with some sort of social media tied to my business. And, just like many of us, I’ve developed mixed feelings about social media. I love creating community, reaching you all, and sharing what I have to offer in ways I never could never have done pre-social media. But I also don’t enjoy feeling like it pokes me to constantly share, check likes, and feel like I always have to keep up. So I tried something out…

I went away on vacation for a week and didn’t share anything.

I didn’t post where I was going. I didn’t share anything from my trip while I was there. I didn’t put up a family vacation photo. The funny thing is that could seem totally normal if you don’t use social media. But how many of us share our vacations and trips on social? Whether you use Facebook for personal use to show your friends and family a slice of your trip or whether your job somehow is tied to Instagram (like mine) and you want to share fun things with your followers. You want to share. You’re so used to sharing.

The thing I learned is that everybody was fine while I checked out for a week. No one missed me. And I don’t say that in a sad way, I mean that everyone else’s lives went on. They didn’t notice I wasn’t posting because they had plenty of other things filling their feed. The world went on, and nothing bad happened. And, the positive thing was…

Everyone was right there when I came back exactly the same. I didn’t miss a beat or lose followers. They all had the same enthusiasm and interest in whatever I was posting as they did before.

Whether we post for our IRL community or our virtual one, we’re all so used to sharing something and then waiting on those likes and comments. What do they think? What do they want to know? Do they wish they were there, too? What questions can I answer for them?

There is nothing wrong with sharing (that’s pretty much a big part of my job, and I love it!), but I’ve learned it doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Do what feels right it. I’ve always only shared a tiny fraction of my life on social media, and I get to decide that (no one else). I get to decide if I want to share less on some days or more on other days. I get to decide if I want the world to see my vacation or if I want to keep it to myself. Remember to use this amazing tool to bring you joy…and take breaks when needed.