Ep. 386 Young Adult Shares Six Reasons to Give Up Social Media
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Shows Main Idea – “In our modern world of progression and electronic communication, social media has become the primary way information is distributed and people connect. It is not common to find someone without social media, from personal to professional relationships, yet here I am.” In this episode, Rick interviews Tristen Thomas as she shares six reasons to reduce or give up social media.
Show Notes
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Interview Questions
- You received a smartphone later than most kids. Were your parents punishing you?
- What is organic thinking?
- You talk about the hurried mind, time-wasting, and not focusing on the right things. How do you think it’s amping up a general discontentment while diminishing our ability to focus, process, and make substantial life changes?
- How much did social media amp up the noise in your soul, and why did it?
- What are some reasons you think folks prefer social media over real-life situations?
- What is a good use of technology or social media?
- You said, “Maybe then we can go back to pleasant surprises of how much one has grown rather than contentment-breeding familiarity.” What did you mean by “contentment-breeding familiarity?”
- Why were you convinced that you did not want to be part of the dominant culture in high school?
- What are some good smartphone tips when you meet up with someone to chat?
Quotes from Tristen’s Post
#1 — To connect, I have to downsize
“If the goal is to revolutionize the world with our perspective, we must realize that that coming about by one person is a rarity. If anything, it’s often the death of an individual that inspires the masses. You will change the world through the ripple effect of being a good friend to those closest to you.” —Tristen Thomas
#2 — To fill my mind with good things
What about this danger? You said, “While you used to have to search out objectionable content, now it comes and finds you even if you’ve set up safeguards and filters. One little blip of an image is all it takes for a cascade of thoughts to follow.”
#3 — To use more of my time productively
“In taking the path of least resistance, we (as Neil Postman tragically put it) are amusing ourselves to death. Endless scrolling, clicking, and watching is shortening our attention spans, hindering our literacy, and stirring up restlessness.” —Tristen Thomas
#4 — To listen to the soundtrack of the world
“Instead of being wrapped up in my thoughts and the music that fed my dominant emotions, I suddenly had a holistic sense of the larger world I am living in. Wind, passing cars, and other people’s music bleeding through their car doors: a soundtrack hardly anyone listens to.” —Tristen Thomas
#5 — To connect with those around me
“There are infinitely complex people around you who each bear a snippet of what our Father in heaven is like. To experience this reality, we merely need to disconnect from the media and its channels and conquer our fear by reaching out.” —Tristen Thomas
#6 — To care for those around me
“By my junior year of high school, I was convinced I did not want to be a part of the dominant culture. I felt ignored and devalued by the excessive smartphone presence around me and did want that to be others’ experience when they interacted with me.” —Tristen Thomas
Call to Action
- What do I ultimately want out of social media? Why am I on this platform? What is the point/goal/endgame? When would I be satisfied?
- “Maybe how you are made up allows you to balance more than me. Regardless, I challenge you to consider who you are as an individual, what you want out of life, and how social media is helping or hindering you from getting there. Whatever you find, adjust accordingly.”
Still, social media platforms—just like anything else—can be used for good or evil, so a few recommendations.
- Set boundaries: use social media as a tool, not mindless amusement that feeds your insecurities. “Put up boundaries on your time, your integrity, and your responsibility,” Erika Rachelle Anderson suggests. “We could all benefit from more time being present in our neighborhood, our families, and around the dinner table.”
- Have a clear mission: cultivate the goodness, the silver linings, and the hard but good truth predominantly lost in the chaos of our world today. Don’t lose yourself in the myriad voices but maintain a clear focus on your purpose.
- Be open, honest, and real. Make thoughtful posts that edify other believers, point the lost to Christ, and glorify our Father in heaven. Someone will only hear the truth if it comes from you. Social media can be a powerful tool to influence those worldwide when done right. May Christ be magnified from the alters of our lives.
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Rick launched the Life Over Coffee global training network in 2008 to bring hope and help for you and others by creating resources that spark conversations for transformation. His primary responsibilities are resource creation and leadership development, which he does through speaking, writing, podcasting, and educating.
In 1990 he earned a BA in Theology and, in 1991, a BS in Education. In 1993, he received his ordination into Christian ministry, and in 2000 he graduated with an MA in Counseling from The Master’s University. In 2006 he was recognized as a Fellow of the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors (ACBC).