The Amish and IG Reels

Picture this…

Horse and buggies parked under a large oak tree, a family in homemade clothes eating dinner by candle light after a long day of working on the farm and churning butter.

Something from the 1800s right?

Nope.

This was something I would see almost every day with my own eyes growing up.

You see, I grew up around a bunch of Amish people.

Contrary to popular belief, they don’t all live in Amish Country (Northern Ohio/Pennsylvania).

There are small pockets of them all around the country.

And I learned something really interesting from this small pocket…

They actually use electricity.

(gasp)

Yeah, I know, it’s really not that big of a deal.

But, most people think they don’t use it all.

So, my family was shocked to learn that the Amish construction crew my friend started working for would drive a 15-passenger van to a job where they used air nailers and electric drills.

I don’t blame them.

Makes the job a lot easier.

The remarkable part, is the rules they had in place for these tools.

• Someone else that WASN’T Amish would always drive the van (they just rode in it)

• They never used electricity at home (they left it at the job)

Among a bunch of others that I don’t remember right now.

But there is an important lesson here:

You must master technology; technology shouldn’t master you.

In this day and age, there’s an INSANE amount of entities vying for our attention, time, and emotions.

If there is any hope to achieve your optimal potential, you have to be just as insane about what gets your attention.

Be like the Amish.

Set up rules that allow you to use the technology and take advantage of what it do FOR you, without letting it take over your life.

A quick tactical way to do this:

Time block.

Set up time on your calendar for:

• Posting

• Sending DMs to network

• Commenting on other posts

• Watching strategic videos from your Watch Later playlist

I could go on.

The point is that you are being intentional about how you use technology.

You aren’t going down a 45-minute rabbit hole watching IG reels and feeling like garbage for the rest of the night.

Be like the Amish.

Be Optimal.

Swanagan