This week, my buddy Josh joins me to discuss the new social movement that is gaining steam…Why is Unplugging From Social Media A Thing?
When I first heard of unplugging, or shutting off my social media contact for a period of time, I thought…Great!, because that makes sense.

Let’s face it, basic common sense would lead anyone to the conclusion that having your face buried in your phone 24/7 might not be the best choice for a rounded, fulfilled life.
There’s even a National Day of Unplugging that will happen from sundown on March 3rd to sundown of March 4th.
According to the organizers, “the National Day of Unplugging will vividly demonstrate the positive impact a 24-hour digital power-down can have on individuals, families and entire communities. People in every corner of the world are being encouraged to come together to reaffirm their humanity, combat societal disintegration and find reprieve from the persistent digital distractions that define our modern lives, by detaching from their devices and connecting face-to-face.”  And, if you do go to their website and take the pledge, they will send you a free cell phone sleeping bag!  For the record, I’m taking the pledge!

So, from that perspective, I’m all in…but should something that obvious be a “thing” which is beginning to look like a new social media “movement”?

Well, this is the question Josh and I tackled, and in doing so, I found some fascinating stats about how many of us are caught in the web and I found a few examples where people and organizations are using unplugging as a marketing stunt.
First, let’s talk numbers…

Ninety percent of young adults (ages 18 to 29) use social media. (Pew Research)

Just over half (52 percent) of online adults now use two or more social media sites. (Pew Research)

Seventy percent of the U.S. population has at least one social networking profile. (Statistica)

Of the 7.2 billion people on earth, 3 billion have Internet access; 2.1 billion are active on social media; and 1.7 billion use social networks from a mobile device. (Link Humans)

The average social media user maintains five accounts. (Link Humans)

From the Financial Times: A study published last month by Britain’s telecommunications authority, Ofcom, showed that 34 per cent of internet users have at some point voluntarily gone offline due to the pressures.

From the Harris Poll: two thirds (67%) indicate they make an attempt to unplug at some point during the year. Over four in ten adults (45%) say they try to unplug at least once a week.

Millennials are the group most likely to say they make an effort to unplug in the first place (82%)

Nearly four in ten adults (37%) each say it’s simply unrealistic to unplug for more than a few hours at a time and they have a fear of missing out when they’re unplugged. Just over one quarter (27%) say it’s difficult because their business never sleeps.

Looking at all these numbers, including these social media facts from BroadbanSearch, it looks like Millennials are fully vested in social media, but, they are the group most likely to realize they need to unplug once in a while.
Before I tell you about the second half of the show, I would like to provide you with a way to get my latest FREE mini-guide.  This one is all about 7 Proven Phrases That Will Immediately Bring More Love, Money and Happiness Into Your Life.  Here’s the link:      http://wp.me/P7LiCb-i1
This brings me to the, what I like to call, Bullshit Reason for Unplugging…as a marketing stunt.
In the show I talk about a specific example of an Instagram “personality” that used the concept of unplugging to separate herself from the pack in order to gain more pub…and, it worked.

I also brought up a few example of how some large corporations have used the concept of unplugging for marketing purposes.
At this point in the show it was time to pivot the conversation to the positive reasons why everyone should work in some unplugging time.