By Omar Usman
Every Ramadan we make goals oriented around improving ourselves and getting to the next level. There are two ways we go about this – either through increase or through decrease.
We work to develop habits by increasing how much we pray, attend the masjid, read Qur’an, make dua, spend time with our families, and even working out. Similarly, we try to up our game through decrease as well. This means cutting down how much we watch TV, gossiping, playing video games, eating unhealthy, and essentially anything else that we feel guilty about and want to remedy.
The reason Ramadan becomes the focal point of all these habits is that it is a 30 day period where our normal routine is completely shot. The momentum of this month makes it easier to make other changes as well (and of course it helps that Shaytān is locked up).
Some people feel that social media is inherently evil and therefore must be cut out. For others its an acknowledgment that too much time is wasted on it, and they need to focus for these 30 days. The important thing is to not project some kind of a spiritual superiority one way or another. It’s easy to see people doing a social media fast for ‘religious’ reasons and then feel guilty for not taking part.
Practical tips
Try unplugging for a couple of days. Deactivate Facebook for 72 hours and see what happens. I sometimes try to force myself to not tweet for 24-48 hours (even if I’m checking it). If you follow me on Twitter you might find it hard to believe, but it’s true.
Delete the apps off your phone. If you can’t commit to a full detox, try to detox your phone. Delete Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, or whatever it is you feel like you spend the most time on. Use them on your computer all you want, but just delete them off your phone. This alone could get you huge results.
Turn off notifications. If you feel the other options are too adventurous, just turn off your notifications. Disable all the push notifications, vibrate alerts, turn off those red numbers on your icons – do whatever you can to not let your device dictate when you check it.
Try to replace the time you freed up with simply making dua.
Not everyone is in need of a digital detox. Some people are responsible with their usage. But if you feel like this area needs improvement, Ramadan is as good a time as any to give yourself a little push.
What you can gain
There are two buzz-words (or phrases) I feel are appropriate here (both are terms I got from Michael Hyatt)-
Being intentional
Creating margin
Being intentional means taking control of your time. The problem is not with the tool itself (whether it be your phone or the social networks themselves) – rather, the problem is when we let those tools unintentionally fill our time.
If you’ve ever closed Facebook, then immediately opened it again out of habit without realizing you just closed it – then you know what I’m talking about. To break this habit, or cycle, your mind has to regain focus and become intentional about how and when social media is consumed.
Creating margin can be defined as “the space between our load and our limits… Margin is the gap between rest and exhaustion, the space between breathing freely and suffocating.”
We’ve lost the true value of things like silence. We need to rediscover the mental energy needed to simply reflect. Ramadan is a great time to reflect and give ourselves some margin in life. We all go through days where we feel busy, we come home exhausted, and we hit the bed mentally fatigued. But if we’re honest with ourselves, we probably didn’t actually do anything busy during the day. It’s just the cumulation of constantly indulging our email, txt, and social networks.
Use the practical steps above to figure out how to detox. Set a small attainable goal. It might be 24 hours, it might be a week, and for some it might be 30 days. See what you can fill the extra time with. It might be silence. It can be spending time with the family. It can be reading Quran, making dhikr, or making dua. Whatever you choose, see how it affects you.
Long term – try to create regular social media breaks and reset. This is not a one time thing, but Ramadan is a good excuse to give it a shot.
Editor’s Note: This article has been edited for spacing and brevity
Source: http://ibnabeeomar.com
Omar Usman is a project manager and leadership trainer. He has helped start a number of initiatives including MuslimMatters.org, Debt Free Muslims, and Qalam Institute. He regularly teaches seminars on topics such as the Fiqh of Social Media, Public speaking and Khateeb training, and personal development.
