Being Intentional- What I Learned from My Ten-Day Social Media Fast

I know you all have been feeling the "busy" start to creep in more and more now that we are well into Fall and are staring the Holidays in the face. I sure have! With all of the activities and things to plan for, I've found myself on my phone a lot more. I'm going, going, going and then when I get a second to sit down, I start scrolling! It's not good and it doesn't feel good either! 

Over the last few weeks I took the challenge from my church leader and went on a ten-day social media fast. It was quite the experience- especially as someone who works in social media! Today I'm collaborating with ECCO to share things I learned from that break and why I value being intentional about my time and my style this season.

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ECCO BOOTS // JEANS // SIMILAR CAMO JACKET // SWEATSHIRT // EARRINGS // SUNNIES // CROSSOVER RING // TURQUOISE RING

ECCO BOOTS

ECCO BOOTS

 ECCO BOOTS

ECCO BOOTS

ECCO BOOTS

ECCO BOOTS
The idea of taking a social media break honestly made me sweat a little. There are so many reasons I can justify my time on my phone and in those apps. But I'm a big believer that if we sacrifice something we will also gain something, so I was interested to see what those gains might be! 
I didn't exactly go cold-turkey. I spent a day scheduling out posts on Instagram and I shared on my story that I'd be taking a break. My assistant knew my plans, so she helped manage questions on Facebook and kept business going as usual. (She's the best!) Then I deleted my Facebook app and hid all of my other social media apps deep within my phone. And then it was hard! 
For about three days I kept picking up my phone and finding I had nothing to do on it. I checked my email much more frequently and started looking at photos on my phone. I literally didn't have any need for my phone if I wasn't hopping on to work on Instagram or shop. And I did shop a lot more. Most of what I bought I ended up sending back but I definitely ordered more things during those first few days!
But after those first few days of withdrawal- I started to notice other things! Some good, some bad, some that were just interesting! 
-First, I missed the validation. I missed the rush of reading comments, messages, checking number of likes, and notifications. I definitely missed it.
- I started texting friends again. I rarely text people, but because I wasn't passively seeing what was happening in their lives online, I started sending texts to check in with friends. And friends who were on the same fast started texting me too. It was amazing!
- I started looking at other apps on my phone. Some I found to be helpful and some not. I started reading the news from news sources (and promptly stopped). I downloaded a budgeting app and got started there. 
- I started reading more. I downloaded Bloglovin' again and re-subscribed to my favorite blogs. I haven't read blogs in forever! (ironic I know) But it was so fun to start again! Blogs are interesting to read, and they don't tend to be as comparison heavy as Instagram or Facebook. I felt better after reading blogs in my Bloglovin' feed, not worse.
-I also started reading more articles on websites like Inc.com. I had time to read things that taught me things and are interesting to me.
-I was more present with my kids. My boys would ask to see my phone and I didn't have it in my pocket for once. I even lost it a few times! I was not tied to my phone in the same way!
- I made progress. I got several things done at work and at home that have been on my list for some time. I actually got them done and it feels great!
I did miss the updates. I missed hearing from followers. I missed when several of my online friends had their babies. I was glad to end my fast and hop back on to catch up. I love the OLM community on Facebook and Instagram. And I love the people that I follow that encourage and inspire me. 
Overall, I think I learned how much my phone has control over my time and my life. And I want that control back! I want to be intentional about what I get done and what I use my time for. I want more time to think! More time to plan things and enjoy my life as a mom and business owner.
Being intentional is really important to me not only in my time, but in parenting, self-care, my marriage and in what I wear. Obviously as a fashion blogger I care about what I wear, but if what I wear is uncomfortable or poor quality I feel let down and I think you know the feeling. It's the worst! You may have seen my recent Wardrobe Basics Posts and if so, you know I am all about an intentional and easy wardrobe. My closet has got to have the right things to mix and match and the quality needs to be able to keep up with my life!
  Today I've got just the right causal Fall/Winter boot for you. I've styled these causal women's Soft 7 Tred Mid boots from ECCO with many of my go-to pieces from my closet and N&S. They have a warm soft lining with a great arch support which means I can slip them on and forget about them. They are cozy, easy to wear all day and will work so well as the weather gets worse over the next few months. I love that I can wear them with a wide variety of jackets, sweaters, fleece tops and more for easy and intentional mom-style all Winter long!
Check out my other picks from ECCO below!