Learn to Relax Your Mind and Free Yourself From Social Media Addiction

Do you find yourself logging on to Facebook when you're meant to be working online, or refreshing the Twitter feed on your smartphone every five minutes? Maybe you even feel unsettled if you can't get online to update your status? Don't be alarmed at your lack of self-control! A recent study by the University of Chicago suggests that these social networking forms are harder to resist than cigarettes or alcohol.

According to the team leader of the study, Wilhelm Hoffman, one of the reasons people may give in to the desire to constantly check and update their social media is that there is no obvious or immediate downside to it- apart from being a huge drain on the user's time.

Similarly, you may find it hard to switch off from work mode- commonplace now with the invention of smartphones and their instant email notifications. A recent move by car giant Volkswagen in Germany means that many workers have their work-related emails stopped from their BlackBerry half an hour after they finish work for the day- a motion very positively received!

How to relax your mind and reduce addition to social media and the internet. As well as taking up a big portion of your down time, social media/email addiction does not allow you to be completely relaxed. While it's great to be in constant touch with friends or feel like you're one step ahead of the game with work matters- you need some 'me time'! Why not give yourself a break from work emails and detach from social networking for a short period everyday? Here are some tips on giving your mind some true relaxation time:

1. Allow yourself only 2-4 times a day to check your emails, messages, tweets and anything else. Be disciplined and set specific times to log in.

2. Take action as soon as possible, if something has come in i.e don't wait to allow requests to accumulate, take what ever action you can in your allocated checking in time, so that your in box does not over flow.

3. Delegate what you can to others, colleagues or delete if it is not important. You do not need to action or read everything that is sent to you.

4. Plan your goals the night before so that your mind as the chance to plan ahead for you. This will allow you to immediately appreciate priorities and to get rid of the rest.

5. Close the PC, laptop or mobile phone at least 2 hours before bed time.

Now go and relax. You've become 100% more organised and it's time to put your feet up.