Above: Graphic by Chandler Littleford / The Choate News
During vacations, Choate students’ social media accounts are often strung together by a similar set of features. Though I’ve seen everything from a classmate’s community service trip to Peru to a friend skydiving over Australia, I find that most of my peers don’t hesitate to fill their Instagram pages with these impressive experiences.
Having grown up in Wallingford, where some of my closest friends have yet to see the interior of an airplane, I used to gawk at how some Choate students spent their vacation. It took a while before I came to view this as a casual attribute of the “Choate life.”
During winter break, to fill the notorious void of Wallingford’s dreary December days, I found myself constantly scrolling through a continuous stream of Instagram posts. Picture after picture, I began to question this habit. What was I truly gaining from liking a distant friend’s photos of a beach vacation? I was spending too much time seeing what other people were doing — couldn’t that time be put to better use? More importantly, I ruminated on how I spent my own free time. If I wasn’t climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro on Christmas Day, would I ever be as happy as my friends?
On New Year’s Day, the obvious answer to these questions led me to abandon social media altogether. I was tired of constantly comparing my life to those I saw on my feed. It’s been nearly a month since then, and I can say with confidence that this decision was worth it.
On January 2, rather than instinctively watching Snapchat stories after I woke up, I opened the nytimes app. After reading a few articles in the science section, I was much more satisfied than I would have been scrolling through social media.
For the remainder of winter break, I happily evaded reminders of others’ exclusive experiences. And after a month, not only are the activities that fill my free time more productive, but I’ve also successfully avoided questioning my own sense of happiness, even if what I do isn’t necessarily as “impressive” as what I see on social media.
You’ve heard it before — social media provides us with an entirely artificial outlook on others’ lives. Most accounts are nothing more than a meticulously maintained series of photos and captions, fine-tuned down to the color scheme. Though this is all true, social media presents itself with even greater dangers. It’s a game to see who can attract the most attention. Consequently, it compels you to question your own self-worth.
So, take a break. Quit wasting your time mindlessly on Instagram, Facebook, or Snapchat. Even if it’s only for a week, logging out works wonders.
