Why social media could be killing your creativity

Feed the art, not the feed

Welcome. Nest is a home for creatives and curious minds. A place where we honour creativity and curiosity, and celebrate the imperfections of being human. Where different thoughts and perspectives are not only shared, but welcomed. I’m on a quest to explore the important intersection of curiosity, creativity and simplicity in today’s chaotic world. Come join us!

Photo by Jane Boyd & ECE Workshops on Unsplash

Sometimes I get quite overwhelmed thinking about how fast the world has changed over the last fifteen to twenty years.

Sixteen years ago, I joined what was then known as Twitter. I was a stay-at-home mum, exploring how I could work at home using my skillset. It was the start of my online ventures as a virtual assistant, which turned into freelance writing, then copywriting, and brought me to where I am today—writing books, writing about creativity, and helping others write and nurture their own creativity.

Social media, the internet… it was good, for a while. For quite a while. Until it wasn’t.

Back in 2009 social media marketing was a toddler learning how to walk. The landscape was open and expansive. It was relatively simple to make connections and reach people. Taking those first steps was easy.

Back then, nobody had social media feeds fuelled by algorithms or inboxes overflowing with unsolicited marketing.

But as they say, all good things must come to an end.

Now, as we know, social media has been taken over by the tech overlords. By the algorithms of capitalism, the influencers desperate to be seen, and every brand, person, and their dog being trying to be heard for better or for worse.

For creatives, social media arrived as a way to share our work, connect with likewise minds and celebrate creativity in our chosen form.

As a writer, it enabled me to form connections with both readers and other writers. Without social media, and most certainly without the internet, my writing would not be read by anyone other than me reading it aloud to my cat.

Like anything, we have to take the bad with the good. And we do. We have done so. We know it’s a means to an end. That being online is frustrating, overwhelming, time-consuming, but an unfortunate necessity. The way of the world.

It’s no secret that our attention spans are dwindling and our brains are being rewired. All at a speed that is hard to fathom.

But, for creatives, does it come at a cost we haven’t yet realised?

Social media is killing our creativity.

It’s a big claim.

I have no qualifications or scientific data to prove my theory. It’s simply that: A theory. An opinion. But one, I think holds a lot of truth.

Our creative mind works in mysterious ways. It uses deep thinking. It engages the subconscious and the unconscious minds allowing us to free-range, brainstorm, and materialize ideas into existence. It engages parts of the brain that don’t typically work together Our brain is such a complicated organ! Isn’t it wonderful?

However, when we engage in social media, typically in the endless and mindless addictive scrolling that social media induces, we become conditioned to the instant reward and dopamine hit.

But it’s more than just seeking out the ‘hit’. The mindlessness ends up stifling our creativity. It reduces our need for critical thinking. We lose the ability to engage in nuanced thinking and we are less able to tap into imaginative thought and idea generation. Our brains become overwhelmed, foggy, disconnected, and tired.

So, how can we expect our tired brains to dig deep and help us create, discover and develop new ideas?

Not only are we filling our creative day with ‘engaging’ on social media, but we are inhibiting our brains ability to open thought patterns. We are stifling our creativity.

And while there are some studies and data to support this theory, I can speak from personal experience.

Since leaving Meta (namely Instagram and Facebook - you can read about that over here), I’ve been surprised by a couple of things.

Not only by the amount of time I have regained in my day, but at how much clearer my mind is.

In the past few weeks my ideas have flourished. My thoughts are different. It’s hard to put into words. It’s like I’ve had a colon cleanse in my brain and the gunk and build up of social media junk has been washed clean and my neural pathways are talking to each other again, ready to party.

I have so many new story ideas in my notebook.

I have so many new drafts of Substack posts and ideas to develop.

I am clearer in my own creative vision.

It’s pretty great, actually.

But it’s not about switching off completely and going all Walden (unless you want to of course), but it’s more about giving our creative minds the freedom to breathe and do what it does naturally. And, we can help that by feeding our creative minds with good things.

Feeding my brain with good quality, long-form writing in different forms, such as here on Substack, has no doubt had a positive effect. That deeper, more engaged form of critical thinking combined with creative thinking is like an energy drink for the mind. This along with the space from social media has found me more inspired, excited and allowed me to connect with my creativity again.

So if you’re looking for another excuse to stop the scroll, let this be it. Who knows what you might discover!