With today’s digital society, it’s becoming harder and harder to shut down our laptops or turn off our mobile devices. Especially working in social media, the lines tend to blur between client notifications and your own. Whether you find yourself in a social media black hole on Instagram or Tik Tok, here are a few tips from Account Manager, Hannah Graves, to help you completely unplug and stay offline after hours:

Turn off push notifications after 8 pm. This will help to avoid the influx of notifications and the temptation to work after hours. 

Put your phone away AT least an hour before you go to bed. This will help you get enough sleep and also minimize unnecessary distractions. 

Use third-party applications to post on social media. This allows you to avoid logging in on your phone and getting distracted by your newsfeed. At Metter, we use applications like OnlyPult and Sprout social to schedule our content. 

Give yourself 30 minutes to scroll through your own feeds. Setting a time limit is a great way to avoid social media black hole. 

Understand and remind yourself that you can’t be everywhere! We’re not saving lives here so a delayed response isn’t going to hurt anyone. It’s a great idea to set boundaries and expectations for yourself. Here at Metter, we have a strict 9-5 availability. 

Here are a few other ways the MM team has been making mental + physical wellness a priority:

I’ve been spending a few minutes every night reading a book about being more content. — Angela Bray

OTF, obviously, and spending time with my husband + friends – also the occasional *print* publication to give my eyes a break. — Lyssa Goldberg

Reading before bed, hanging out with friends, going on a walk/to the gym without looking at my phone! — Katherine Bennett

Drinking more water, reading for a half hour every night, doing a face mask on Sundays, running again (because of the nice weather) and spending more time with my family. — Alea Gilhuly-Mandel

I love how OrangeTheory gives me an hour to myself in the morning to wake up + work out and doesn’t allow phones. On the weekends, I like to leave my phone in another room while doing things to detach. I also like doing “no phones” dinners and outings — it’s really fun to not being able to Google everything. — Lauren Metter

I genuinely enjoy having (and sticking to) my early morning routine. It’s nothing novel — drink my coffee, watch the news, go to the gym — but without it, I think I’d go crazy.  — Ashley Rego

Waking up 10-15 minutes earlier to start my day without my phone, drink water, and plan my day. — Jen Soule

Going to yoga is my absolute favorite way to unplug on my own. #zen When I’m out with friends I like to leave my phone in by bag — out of sight, out of mind! — Kim Valentine