To Live a Great Life, Learn to Live Offline

It seems inevitable…

In today’s world, we’re surrounded by screens. We seem destined to live life behind our computers, our tablets, our smartphones. We get drawn in by Twitter, Facebook, reddit, YouTube, news websites, countless blogs, podcasts, the list goes on and on.

It seems almost like an obligation to take part in this. As if you’re not a part of society as a whole if you do not vent your opinion on these public forums and keep yourself updated on the latest ideas, the goings-on of the life of not only your friends, but also people who you’re merely vaguely acquainted with, or those you haven’t even ever met in person.

Is this how you want to spend your precious time in this world?

You might comment a lot and be able to present your well-thought out opinion, thinking you make a difference in the flow of ideas. In reality, everything you say is quickly forgotten and buried in the untouched archives of the internet, only popping up on the 57th page of Google search results. If you’re lucky.

Ask yourself the question: does all of this add real value to your life? Will you look back with pride and joy on your social media use? Our answer is a definite no.

Imagine the alternative…

What could you do with your life if you didn’t partake in all this. The hours you spend on Netflix, social media, reading blogs (yes, I’m aware of the irony as I’m writing this, and you’re reading this).

You could travel, spend quality time with friends and family. You could write a novel, start a business. You could have more time to study, get better grades, have a better chance at getting your dream job.

Choose life.

Go on dates and meet the love of your life.

Be less distracted at work and get a promotion, earn more money, maybe get a side hustle to earn some extra money.

Start your very own business, be your own boss, choose your own working hours and work from home. Have more time for your children and see them grow up from close by.

You could have more and better experiences, and create fantastic memories that last a lifetime, instead of merely a minute or two.

In short, you’d have a big chance to live a life that’s worthwhile, a chance to make a difference. An amazing life, where, looking back when you’re old, you’d have no regrets.

A great life.

Here’s how to do it…

There’s one simple rule to make this happen: be radical. Cut your screen time to the bare minimum. Don’t just stop logging in. Delete your Facebook, Twitter and reddit accounts.. Cancel your Netflix subscription. Get offline.

Now, this seems simple. And it is, in most cases, you just have to click a few buttons.

Is it easy? Absolutely not. When you’re looking at that ‘delete account button’, you’re going to feel anxious. All those pictures, comments, and posts are going to be deleted. You’re going to be afraid that you lose that connection with hundreds or even thousands of people. You’re going to be afraid that you’ll become a hermit, a pariah of society.

Maybe the best decision you’ll ever make.

Honestly, it’s going to take a lot of courage to do this. It will be a tough decision, and once you’ve made up your mind and pulled the plug, you’re going to feel a bit empty.

This was merely the first step.

Now, you have to fill that void. Sure, you’ll free up hours of time per day, but that means nothing if you’re not going to fill those up with worthwhile experiences. Without something to replace your previous online activity, the temptation to go back to the screen is going to stay with you, eating away at your willpower.

Because of this, you have to plan ahead. Think deeply. What will you do with your free time?

Here’s our suggestion: make a plan, at least for the first month, and fill it up with activities. Plan a few activities in the weekend, join a sports club, set a few dates with friends and potential love interests. Go see a movie in the theater. Plan a little trip to Paris. Buy some interesting books for those dead moments when you’re at home and there’s nothing else to do. Go hiking and enjoy nature. Maybe you could even start writing a book yourself.

Learn a new skill: guitar, programming, cooking, some kind of martial art or another type of sports if you’re the peace and love type. You could brew your own beer or start gardening.

The options are limitless.

Your life could be filled with a lot of interesting things to do, activities that will add real value to your life and leave you fulfilled.

Once you manage to do this, you’ll truly understand how empty and shallow it was, that time you spent online playing Fortnite with foul-mouthed fifteen year olds.

Be radical

Let me be very clear on this, you have to be radical, and don’t leave yourself any wiggle space. Screens are addictive. Just like an alcoholic can’t even drink one glass without risking being drawn into a new downward spiral, one hour on Twitter has a large chance of rekindling your internet addiction.

If you really don’t want to delete your accounts in one go, then at least deactivate them for a month. Instead of completely disconnecting, you can try a temporary detox.

Preferably, you’d also get rid of your smartphone and instead get you a mobile phone with only the bare necessities: being able to call people and send texts.

It’s time to pull the plug. You can do it.

Now, there’s one thing you’ll probably won’t get around. In this day and age, you’ll still need a computer, and you’ll still need to go online to do stuff.

It’s likely that you have a job that has you glued to a computer screen all day, for one. (And I’m not suggesting you join the Amish or become a total Luddite.)

Besides that, you’ll have to order books on Amazon and buy airplane tickets for your trip. Manage your business and read your e-mails. And in doing so, of course you risk going down the rabbit hole again. This is where FocusMe comes in. FocusMe allows you to block social media, video games, Netflix, specific websites that you’ll likely spend hours on, clicking through until you’ve wasted another precious day.

So before you go offline, we suggest you try out our trial version, which will help you get through that first month and take the first step to a great life.

To conclude: I’d like to emphasize this again: going offline won’t be easy. Especially in the beginning But I do promise that the sacrifice will turn out to be extremely worthwhile. At the end of the yellow brick road, happiness awaits.

Your life will truly begin. Your life will be great.

All the best,

Jon