📗 Understand
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Dec 4, 2023
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5 min read
How often do you automatically open Instagram on your smartphone without realizing it? For some people, it becomes a reflex, and their finger instinctively knows the exact location of the purple Instagram icon on their home screen. They launch the app almost unconsciously and may lose 5, 10, or even 15 minutes…
At Jomo, we all try to use our smartphones consciously and healthily. This includes using Instagram consciously. In this article, we'll share all our tips for using Instagram consciously and breaking free from becoming a slave to the platform.
4 Reasons to Use Instagram And Social Media Intentionally
⏱️ Better Time Management
Instagram is a flagship app today, and one can quickly lose a lot of time endlessly scrolling through the feed or Explorer. Using Instagram consciously means spending less time on the platform, and your time there becomes more valuable as you have a specific purpose during your visit.
🧠 Mental Well-being
Everything on Instagram, even stories, is carefully curated. This can create a distortion of reality and a decrease in self-esteem. Being intentional on social media, including Instagram, helps limit harmful exposure to specific content or people, promoting mental well-being by creating a healthier digital environment.
⭐️ Higher-Quality Content
Intentional use of Instagram and social media can result in higher-quality content. By customizing your feed and recommendations and refining who you follow and unfollow to make the content you see more authentic and relevant, you contribute to a more intentional experience.
🫶 Building and Strengthening Relationships
Remember, Instagram is primarily a platform to connect with real people. By using the platform intentionally, you can engage in more interesting and authentic conversations because the people you follow align with your values. This can contribute to strengthening your relationships.
4 Tips for Using Instagram Intentionally
🗑️ Unfollow Toxic Instagram Accounts
Perhaps you're following accounts that bring you nothing but negativity, which can take its toll on your mind. A word of advice: clean up your act!
Don't follow accounts that provoke negative comparisons or jealousy. Remember that to use Instagram intentionally, the goal is to create a feed that uplifts and inspires you.
To start cleaning up your subscriptions, go to your Instagram feed, and with each publication, ask yourself the following questions:
Does this account add value to my life?
How do I feel after seeing this content?
If the answers to these questions are negative, stop letting this account negatively pull your energy and click the unfollow button. You can do it, and you're free to!
If you can't unfollow someone for various reasons, you can always go to the profile and select "Mute Story and Posts" in the options. This way, you'll no longer see that person's posts and stories without them being notified. It's invisible.
Be patient with the process, and remember that a mindful approach can lead to lasting, positive outcomes on the platform.
🧭 Customize Your Explorer Feed
Did you know you can shape your feed explorer so that Instagram only shows you publications that inspire you? In fact, Instagram's algorithm tracks your interests based on which publications you'll click on and even interact with. So, by interacting with the publications in your Explorer feed that inspire you, you'll be training Instagram's Explorer feed to suggest positive publications to you. The problem is that when we're on this Explorer feed, we click on the publications that shock us the most, and very often, they're not the most positive. This is why your Instagram Explorer feed may be less than 100% in line with your interests.
When you see a publication that doesn't interest you, press long and select "I'm not interested." On the contrary, feel free to like the publications you want. It may take a little time, but your Explorer feed will be tailor-made for you!
📩 Shift DM's to SMS or WhatsApp
Instagram, of course, created DMs for the ability to connect with creators you love. Still, they also did it so you could stay on their platform longer. We talk to some people in DM on Instagram even though we know them well... so why not shift that conversation to WhatsApp or SMS?
It's much more personal, and you'll spend less time on Instagram. Because even if you go there to send a message, you can be distracted by a publication and spend more time than necessary on the platform. And as a bonus, you might have way more focused and meaningful conversations!
⏰ Limit Your Time on Instagram
If you go to your smartphone's "Screen Time," you'll see that you may be spending a lot of time on Instagram. Maybe more than 30 minutes a day or even more than 1 hour. If that's too much for you and you'd like to reduce your screen time, then you should apply some actionable measures.
For example, suppose you'd like to have a goal of spending less than 35 minutes a day on Instagram. In that case, you can download Jomo and set a Condition > App Limit on Instagram to block the app until the next day.
Jomo works for all other social media if you want to set up similar habits on your iPhone and intentionally use your smartphone. You'll see that once you've set this up, you'll naturally use Instagram more intentionally. From now on, you'll want to take full advantage of your Instagram experience without wasting your time with pointless posts.
Following these rules will create a more intentional and value-added Instagram experience. The famous social media will finally contribute more to your life than it takes away. Be patient with this process, and remember that a thoughtful approach can lead to lasting positive results on Instagram and other social media platforms.
You'll realize the enhanced experience you earn using Instagram intentionally, and you'll want to do the same on other social media. Jomo will be there to guide you through the process of limiting your screen time and adopting a more intentional use of your smartphone.
