I’m almost halfway into my spring Media Fast. No TV, movies, DVDs, books, magazines, newspapers, blogs, or music.
I don’t take this too seriously. I’ll check out a blog article if someone insists, and I listen to certain music at work that puts me in the proper working mood.
But I’ve already gleaned 3 insights:
- I spend huge amounts of my days consuming media.
- Media is my default choice. If I don’t have anything to do, and I want to relax, I turn to media. I don’t meditate, or sit in my garden, or just daydream. I consume.
- I’m much more productive during my Media Fasts, and all around, I’m happier. I think this is because I’m less distracted.
I now plan to conduct miniature Media Fasts every week. From now on, I plan to consume no media Fridays and Saturdays. Obviously, if I absolutely need to read or watch something to get other work done, I will. But those days will be mini-vacations from media consumption. Days when I can truly relax.
Or I’m completely misguided. Still worth trying, I think. Perhaps I’ll have a very different opinion later this week!