Category: New Year’s resolutions

Hold Up..Take Break Beyonce Is Pregnant With Twins 

.Reading time 10 minutes.


There’s no doubt social media is a significant part of our daily lives.You can hardly go out for dinner without having people upload pictures of their meals to Instagram or take a quick selfie. Our generation is defined by a culture of likes, tweets and snaps, which can all be very distracting at times (to say the least). So, this begs the question: Do the benefits of social media really justify the amount of time we spend on it? Here are seven reasons why you should limit the amount of time you spend on social media: 
1. Social media leads you to focus on others more than yourself. 

One of the main problems with social media is you are often bombarded by others’ accomplishments. Whether it’s someone uploading photos from his or her graduation or tweeting about an awesome new car, social media implicitly causes us to compare ourselves to others. It’s not surprising that studies have shown individuals who spend a significant amount of time on social media report feelings of increased anxiety and low self-esteem. The awareness for this type of problem has increased to the point where there’s now even a name for it: Social Media Anxiety Disorder. Furthermore, many people we to whom we are connected on social media aren’t even what I would consider to be friends — I know the majority of my Facebook “friends” are really just old classmates I haven’t spoken to in several years. The point is, we shouldn’t waste time scrutinizing what others are doing, especially if we aren’t even close with them to begin with. Instead, we should focus on pursuing our own personal goals.

2. Social media presents us with a distorted version of reality.

As I mentioned in the previous point, it’s obvious the majority of what we see on social media doesn’t relate to positive thoughts or happy moments. We tend not to see the struggles or low points in the lives of others, which makes us feel more conscious of our own flaws. As a result, many people who use social media fall into the trap of trying to make their lives seem more glamorous than they really are. In fact, I’ve heard many stories from friends who claim they are depressed or unhappy, despite those beautifully filtered pictures on their Instagram feeds. We sometimes forget the fact that what we see on social media does not truly represent someone’s life; rather, it’s just a glimpse at one specifically chosen moment in it. Once again, we should be more concerned with reality instead of trying to project a certain image via social media.

3. Social media causes your happiness to be too dependent on others.

Using social media is dangerous because you can easily get trapped in the mindset of seeking validation from others. Your happiness should primarily depend on whether or not you enjoy a certain situation and not what others think. For example, if you go out for dinner and eat an amazing meal, you should feel happy because it tasted great and not because you got over 100 likes on your photo of it. Unfortunately, many people who use social media too much get accustomed to receiving this kind of attention, and it becomes almost like an addiction they need to satisfy. While it’s a nice feeling to think people are paying attention to what you are doing, it is important to question how much it really matters. Should you really care if someone you haven’t talked to in several years likes your newest profile picture? Happiness should mainly come from within, and you should only really care about sharing your experiences with those closest to you.

4. Social media doesn’t allow you to interact with friends in a substantial way.

If you really consider people your friends, you should do more than post on their timelines for their birthdays and like their latest Instagram photos. In fact, I would say I barely use social media to interact with my close friends. The reason for this is simply because I actually spend time with them in real life or in more personal ways, like having a conversation via Skype. What I’m trying to say is social media doesn’t actually help you develop or maintain real friendships with others. Interaction via social media is usually superficial and has no real effect on whether we consider someone a friend. I hope you would not suddenly stop talking to your friends simply because they deactivated their social media accounts. Posting on social media is simply the icing on the cake when it comes to true friendships, but it certainly is not what sustains them.

5. Social media can distract you from the moment.
Social media often prevents us from paying attention to what is actually happening. I’m sure we’ve all had that one friend who spends more time checking his or her Facebook or Instagram feed for updates than actually talking when you go out for dinner. As a result, the whole experience becomes less enjoyable. It’s easy to fall into the routine of checking social media sites whenever you have a chance, but by doing so, we tend to appreciate reality less. If you attend a concert and are constantly tweeting about how great an artist is, aren’t you actually distracting yourself from the performance? Or, if you go hiking but constantly stop every couple of minutes to take a selfie, aren’t you missing out on the natural beauty of wherever you are?I realize these examples are exaggerated, but the bottom line is social media often detracts from the beauty of the moment. We should exercise caution when using it.
6. Social media tends to make your life too public.
Is it really important to upload those pictures from last night’s party that you can barely remember taking? Should all of your 1,000 plus Facebook friends really know (or care) about what event you are going to next week?We tend to forget almost everything we do on social media is recorded in some way. This can be problematic, as it could be possible for individuals we would rather not share things with (like our parents or a potential employer) to see certain areas of our lives. Even if you restrict who can view your social media account, it’s important to question whether it’s necessary or even safe, to reveal so much information about your life to individuals you barely know.

7. Social media can make it harder to move forward with your life.

Social media sometimes makes it hard to let go of our pasts. It’s difficult to get over your ex if you constantly see pictures of him or her with someone else or having fun without you. Similarly, it might be difficult to buckle down and study when you notice all your friends are constantly posting pictures of themselves, enjoying the beautiful outdoor weather. This relates back to the very first point in this article: Sometimes social media makes us less focused on our own lives and more focused on what others are doing. In order to truly move forward, we need to limit the distractions around us.

While social media has the potential to be great, like by sharing interesting ideas or thoughts with others, most of us use it in very unproductive and unnecessary ways. We could probably all benefit from limiting the time we spend on frivolous tasks related to social media and instead devote the time to the people and activities that matter to us. Above all, we should remember there’s a whole physical world out there. We shouldn’t be afraid to put down our smart phones once in a while and explore it. Via Moose A Elite Daily.

xxxxx,

Janice 

The French Girl’s Guide to New Year’s Resolutions

.Reading time 5 minutes.

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It is often said that nobody does life on earth better than the French. If this is true, then the holidays must be the pinnacle of this journey, complete with gluttonous feasts and debaucherous parties to rival no others. But what comes after, when the Dom Pérignon buzz fades and the New Year rolls in? Does the accompanying spirit of new beginnings and quest for self-improvement reach French turf, or is this yet another banal pursuit that this nation is (enviably) resilient to?

“After an intense weeklong food orgy, filled with foie gras and champagne, the question of New Year’s resolutions inevitably arises,” says Stéphanie Delpon, cofounder of Paris creative agency Pictoresq. “Most of them are linked to well-being and self-fulfillment: eat better, exercise more, be more productive, don’t hold off your dreams until tomorrow . . . .” Sound vague? Delpon confirms that the French are skeptical about making drastic resolutions, often seeing them as “a load of nonsense that is recycled year after year, quickly left forgotten.” Instead, they prefer to approach the New Year as a time to realign one’s priorities, starting with the very basics:

Head to the gym. The first resolution on every Parisienne’s agenda is to finally commit to the dreaded exercise torture chamber that she is inherently wired to resent, otherwise known as la salle de sport. Since this contradicts her mojo of being “effortlessly perfect,” she chooses to approach it more as a winter morale boost and some much-needed “Zen time” rather than a quest to drop those extra brioche kilos (which will inevitably come off in the process!).

Return to the essentials. Surprisingly, French women are not as trend-immune as they appear, often falling into the same high-street traps as their U.S. counterparts. “Our closets are constantly exploding! Every year, we aim to narrow it down to the essentials, to eliminate compulsive shopping and fast-fashion purchases that we regret five minutes later,” says Delpon. Another Parisian acquaintance sets a strict shopping cap of five new pieces a season, which allows her to build out an enviable garderobe with editorial precision.

Step it up. While we may aspire to the sneaker-clad ease of Caroline de Maigret, Parisians actually resolve to step it up—literally. “Every year, I promise myself I’ll put away my sneakers and start wearing my heels, adding a bit of much-needed elegance!” says Paris fashion merchandiser Julie Palasse, stressing that heels, when done right, can transform one’s attitude and posture. But no half-measures: “Just nothing in between—Parisians go all the way!” she adds.

Forgo the apéros. While the renowned esprit français is most notable on terraces and lighthearted friendly gatherings, the first weeks of January are generally spent ignoring social life in favor of balanced, home-cooked meals. This is no way entails cutting out entire food groups or embarking upon a spartan existence of green juice and granola; instead, the Parisienne simply turns off her phone, digs up a healthy recipe, and retreats to her couch with a good book.

Which leads to the main one:

Work on yourself. With the concept of “le burnout” being on the tips of Parisian tongues, there is a definite notion of taking more time for yourself, of stepping away from technology and exercising one’s attention span with a good book. “Next year, I plan on having something to read with me everywhere I go,” says a French girlfriend over coffee, showing off a historical novel that would probably take me all of 2016 to tackle. She seems excited to embark upon this mission, seeing it as a way to go back to her true interests that are often lost in the day-to-day shuffle. In the words of Delpon: “At the end of the day, it’s not about changing who you are, but rather becoming the best you can be—a stronger, more centered version of yourself!” And you certainly don’t have to be French to do that.

Marina Khorosh is the author of DbagDating.com via Vogue. Photographed by Irving Penn, Vogue, April 2006.

xxxxx,

Janice