I've been glued to my phone for weeks.
Sometimes I even trick myself into thinking I'm not addicted. I turned off my Twitter notifications from showing up on my screen a long time ago. But sneakily, left them on in the notification center, just so I could swipe down anytime in case something 'important' was happening.
I realised it was getting bad when it was just becoming part of my muscle memory.
In an effort to establish a more mindful Twitter routine, here are some of my new Twitter habits:
- I deleted the Twitter app from my phone. My phone is for fleeting interactions, not serious engagement. I have installed it back on because... Twitter Spaces & Fleets guys. But it's in my app draw and notifications are ALL OFF.
- I set up Tweetdeck, properly. After playing around with Tweetdeck for years, I finally nailed the setup with my three engagement lists (Inner Circle, Minimum Viable Tribe & New Tribe Members). Now I set time aside to engage in my lists and I'm finding the interactions much more intentional.
- Tweetdeck as my primary engagement tool. I find Tweetdeck doesn't have the same frenetic energy as Twitter apps. There's no constant red badge of notifications and I feel much calmer when engaging there.
- Focusing on real interactions. In Tweetdeck, I removed everything except replies and mentions from my notification center. Likes are cool and all, but I want to focus on the real magic... conversations.
Setting up these boundaries and systems has helped me feel like a growing Twitter audience is much more manageable and mindful without Twitter becoming my full-time job.
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