Documenting Life Through Media: My Disconnected Week Findings

          Disconnected week is over & this post will consist of my discoveries and what documenting my life through media means to me. In order to keep track of my week, I used my own note sheet to write out some notes on what was going on during my week and also the app EveryMe to privately post statuses of how I'm feeling to myself. It was an extremely long week for me and I was glad that I finally decided to be offline for a little while. 

           For the first few days, I felt a lot more relaxed than usual, but overall it wasn't as different as I thought it would be. The only major change I noticed was the fact that I was much more tired earlier than normal. In the middle of the week, I loved being able to communicate directly with my family and best friend, reading a book, and trying to get my journal in order. Although, I wasn't too happy about the fact that I had a lot of e-mails to take care of and things to get done. I was trying not worry about it, but I had deadlines. (Unfortunately, some of my work is never done). The rest of the week, I slept earlier for a couple of days and spent more time with my family.

           I will admit to slightly cheating for the first few days by using the internet to search or send a few messages because it was the only way to contact some people, but can you blame me? I've been using the internet almost every day since I discovered it existed. I couldn't cut off ALL internet access all at once. 

          I learned a lot of important things this week. I learned that sometimes spending too much time engaging in social media will overwhelm you. I learned that actually spending time with the people you love is a lot better than communicating online and that it's okay to text or instant message sometimes. Plus, the biggest lesson I learned this week is that the best thing about memories is MAKING THEM!

         That brings me to explaining what documenting my life means to me. Well, I love social networks and the ability to share little glimpses of your life with your friends & family. However, through the years the purpose and concept of these social networks has been lost and now it's become more of a popularity contest by getting the most likes or retweets. That's not what social networks are for, they should be for sharing positive aspects of your life or "documenting your life through media". To me, it means to share my life's moments with those I still try to stay in touch with. I want people to have little glimpses of me and my life and I'll always continue to share that. Although, I'll try to refrain from using the internet and social media all the time.

xoxo,

Disconnected Week

     This whole summer I've been trying so hard to avoid over-using my smart phone and avoid spending too much time on the internet. With all the current projects I'm working on, it's extremely hard to do so. I get so many notifications and e-mails about things that aren't working properly on my websites or things I need to care of. I've been torn between getting all these tasks plus the tasks I already have on my agenda done. It gets hectic and overwhelming.

    When I was browsing through Pinterest, I found an info graphic about how social media and the internet effects our mental health. It explained how social media really influences our mind and how we tend to spend so much time on social networks, rather than our own lives. This post didn't frighten me or make me feel like "Oh my, social media really is getting to my brain!". It made me realize I do spend a lot of time trying to document my life on social networks and on my blogs and websites that I forget that I need to create memories in my own life in order for me to document it.

    In attempt to start living my life in present time rather then on the internet. For an entire week I won't text, instant message, e-mail, update social networks, read news posts, watch videos, browse the web or post on my blogs. Plus, I already suspended my gigs on Fiverr so I won't have order deadlines I wasn't aware of to finish. For my personal e-mail I'll be setting up an automated vacation response and for those important messages that must come to me, I will be sure to allow on the safe list. I'll be shutting down all types of communication so in case of any emergency, I'll be sure to answer important calls.

    All these years, I've put up so much online and it's so much work to disconnect it all so I'm making sure I schedule nesessary posts & updates on some of my online presences. This way I don't lose followers, subscribers, and traffic on my sites. I got everything covered for this event!

    If you're interesting in doing this for yourself as well, I created a print-out sheet with basic tips and a place to keep track and record everything you'll experience offline. Click here to Download it & enjoy disconnected week!

xoxo,

New Name? New Look?

      If you're an old follower of this blog, you may have noticed the renovation that's been done here. (Or you may not). I changed the name from "The Life Of A Zobot" to "Journey To Eternity". I thought that "Journey To Eternity" sounded more suitable for a blog about lifestyle combining my goals & documenting my life. 

    "The Life Of A Zobot" still exists, but now it's a new kind of blog. Remember that quote blog of mine that I mentioned every now and then? Well, "The Life Of A Zobot" is now the new quote blog! All my quotes are on that blog now! 

    So, what about this whole new look? With the new blog name, I thought a new design was necessary. Guess what's so great about the design? I designed it myself! My first complete web/blog design, from scratch!  

What do you think of the new blog name and the new look? I'd love to hear your thoughts. 

xoxo,