3 Things To Promote Better Digital Wellbeing

IMPORTANT:  Your digital wellbeing is important because you matter. If you feel like you have a problem don’t rely on this or any other article. There are people who specialize in providing professional help. Reach out to them locally or use the National Helpline (1-800-662-4357). You matter.

The Digital Self

The digital self is a construct of our modern lifestyle, your “online image”. Only you (and any ad trackers or spyware you haven’t disabled) know your digital self. For some people, there is one digital self and it is a pretty accurate reflection of the “real world” self. Others express an alter ego thru their digital self that may be very different from the real world self. Still others might have a spectrum of digital selves, ranging from puritanical to depraved.

Your digital wellbeing can be a healthy expression of mind, body, and spirit. Here are 3 things to consider when online to promote your digital wellbeing as well as benefiting others.

#1 Be Positive

You matter. It may not feel that way at times but you do matter. Know it or not, you have touched lives in a positive way. Let your digital self be an extension of your best. Bring positive intentions to your online encounters. You cannot change how others act so be the change you want to see and do not dwell on negativity and fear that we find online.

Fear Of Missing Out is now so common that it has its own weighty acronym: FOMO. And it is FOMO that keeps so many of us glued to interactions that can be painful. If your positive contributions are not embraced and reciprocated then perhaps there is nothing to fear from missing out in that online app, group, tribe, etc.

#2 Protect Yourself

There is a standing principle in the Perry Household for anything done online… assume it will be there forever and that everyone will know it was you.

Whatever you post, email, play, view, or otherwise engage online just assume you can never delete it and that such can be traced to you. This advice highlights a concern often overlooked… it is not necessarily today’s technology but tomorrow’s. New technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Quantum Computing, and more continue to develop. Their capabilities and impacts are not fully known. Be proactive now so you are not sorry later.

If you are unsure how to manage your online privacy, here are some good resources that can help:

• Common Sense Media
• DuckDuckGo Blog
• Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Surveillance Self-Defense

#3 Your Digital Wellbeing Impacts Your Mind, Body, and Spirit… Make It Good

Modern Life makes it pretty well impossible to avoid an online presence. How you engage online, your digital wellbeing, weighs on your overall wellbeing. Use digital assets that you control… don’t let them control you. Does the time you spend glued to a device take away time from loved ones across the table? Does an inspiring walk through the forest lose its impact with no cell coverage? Is there something missing in your life that you think is online? Your digital wellbeing cannot replace your mind, body, and spirit. What you do digitally can only promote or harm your real self. Make informed choices that benefit you… as you deserve.