Before I left for vacation, I realized I was extremely stressed to the max. I was having trouble fully deciphering what my issue was, and then I googled it. Guess what? I was suffering from digital stress. My digital devices, social media, and email were taking a major toll on my body. Sometimes we don’t even realize this is happening until it’s too late. When I was finally on vacation, I never turned on my phone and realized I was fully engaged, relaxed, and open to more creative ideas than ever before because I wasn’t looking at my phone or computer every 5 minutes. A burden was lifted almost immediately.
Digital stress is real and we have to find ways to cope with it. As a business owner, I often feel this stress is magnified because we feel 24/7 responsible for everything, especially in communicating with our customers and their questions and concerns. I always hear, "There's no way I could do that. I need to be accessible." The reality is you need to take care of your well-being because work will always be there.
Here are some ways I’ve learned to more effectively deal with my digital stress.
Meditate Regularly - Meditation is a relaxing way to detach and focus for short periods of time. You can use an app, but since I’m trying to detox, I do it on my own without a phone nearby.
Understand You Have Boundaries - You can’t be everywhere all the time and you can’t respond every second of the day. Trust me, people get that. Don’t feel the need to be that person because you will burn yourself out.
Get Rid of Notifications - My phone is constantly going off with email and app notifications. When I hear the ring, I automatically feel the need to pick up my phone and respond. Without the notifications, I only go to my phone during designated times and it’s much more manageable.
Set Detox Times Every Week - Maybe it’s the weekend or evenings, but set aside time where you are not connected. Schedule it and make it happen.
End Your Day with a Gratitude List - What are you grateful for every day? Take some time of reflection at the end of your day to create a list. I bet your digital networks won’t be on there!
