Last week one of my blogging friends shared an article from someone who had dropped her Facebook group. The author of the article shared that she wasn’t getting much from her group and it was time to move on. As I read the article and participated in the discussion that followed, I thought about *my* participation in groups, virtual and real, and how I could make myself more than a passive participant.
I have been feeling like I am Jack of all trades, master of none. I dabble here and there, never quote mastering a thing and never quite excelling, just doing enough to get by and that’s not always enough. Part of me feels like I am too old (41!) to be flitting around like a butterfly trying to find my spot and then part of me feels like I should get in where I fit in, which leaves me meh.
Reexamining where I am, where I want to go, what I want to do has left me remembering WHY i became a part of some of the groups, activities, projects that I belong to. Some feed my soul, some nourish the nosy beast, some because “everyone was doing it!” and some because I really care. However, like Elsa, I have decided to let it go and stop worrying about FOMO (Fear of missing out), what everybody else is doing, HOW everybody else is doing and just keep it where my needs are being met and best served.
Link to the article referenced about: http://www.brandybutleronline.com/why-i-quit-my-facebook-community-and-girl-just-quit/
Time!
This was my 5(ish) minute Stream of Consciousness Sunday post. It’s five(ish) minutes of your time and a brain dump. Want to try it? Here are the rules…
- Set a timer and write for 5 minutes.
- Write an intro to the post if you want but don’t edit the post. This is writing in the raw.
- Publish it somewhere. Anywhere. The back door to your blog if you want. But make it accessible.
- Link back to this post (feel free to use the SOC Sunday graphic).
- Add your post to the link up
- Visit your fellow bloggers and show some love.
I’m in a few groups but I am not an active participant in any of them. I’ve been in some that were just too big. At least when I comment in the ones I’m in now I don’t feel like a stranger.
You make some exceptional distinctions here…. the fear of missing out is something that gets in the way of so many people enjoying so much of life. I’m glad you are working through this – hooray.
With each cycle of years, as we get older, we feel this more and more. Quality over quantity, but every now and then I wonder if I’ve done enough, have enough close friends, and interests. The answer for me us yes, but I inderstand its a dynamic feeling/thing.
Here’s the worst excuse to stay in a FB group: “I don’t want to hurt someone’s feelings.” That’s me until one day I decided I needed to simplify so I did. Life is so much better with less noise. Maybe then you will feel compelled to jump into the REAL conversations.