MEANINGFUL AND MINDFUL WORDS
As part of my exploration of my Word of the Year "Mindful" I've come across a few terms recently that have caught my eye. They're words that have depth and meaning to them, and they carry a little "something" that I'd like to incorporate into my own life. I've chosen five to explore further over March - which I'm making into my month of meaningful, mindful reflection.
Bloom-scrolling is the next word in my March series....
WHAT IS BLOOM SCROLLING?
So what is bloom scrolling and why does it appeal to me so much? Lucy Bloom coined the term and she describes it as:Bloom-scrolling is the intentional practice of consuming uplifting, positive, and inspiring social media content to counteract the mental drain of "doomscrolling". It involves actively curating feeds to include nature, art, and calming content, acting as a "soft rebellion" to nurture mental health rather than fueling anxiety.
SOME KEY ASPECTS OF BLOOM-SCROLLING
Intentional Consumption:
Instead of passively scrolling, you consciously choose to engage with content that brings joy, calm, or inspiration, because the more you click on this type of content, the more it will appear in your feed.Because the algorithms are designed to draw us in and keep us hooked, they are strongly influenced by what we show interest in. Every interaction you have with them becomes data that teaches the algorithms what to feed you next.
Curate Your Feed:
Mute or unfollow negativity, and follow accounts that focus on nature, art, education, or uplifting stories. I was so amazed at the amount of views my post on Neurographic Art has received - and I think it ties in with people who are looking for creativity rather than complexity.Choosing A Mindful Break:
Bloom-scrolling serves as a mental, emotional, and digital detox, and allows for a slower, more intentional, and restorative interaction with online content. It leads to healthier and more positive thought processes when we're engaging with aesthetic, calm content, rather than the stress-related doom and gloom that's wanting to grab our attention.HOW TO PUT BLOOM-SCROLLING INTO PRACTICE
Lucy Bloom has some great tips from her article From Doom Scroll to Bloom Scroll she calls it "rewilding your feed" and that's such a cool description! She mentions 4 really helpful tips:- Create a niche account
Start a fresh Instagram or TikTok account with a specific focus on something you adore: French Bulldogs, architecture, crochet. Whatever makes your eyeballs widen with joy and your chest feel warm. Follow only accounts in that lane. This trains the algorithm from scratch. - Ruthlessly unfollow
If your main account has become a digital dumpster fire, start cleaning. Unfollow or mute anything that doesn’t serve you well. Especially your cousin’s MLM journey. Unfriend the people you have no real connection to. I do this when I think, ‘who even is that?’ - Train the feed
Every like, comment, share, and even how long you pause on a reel tells the algorithm what to feed you more of. Pause on beauty, scroll past trash. Three dots on the bottom corner of an ad will give you the option of never seeing that ad ever again as long as you live and you can choose to say why. I always choose ‘irrelevant’. - Save what soothes
Bookmark posts that nourish you. Platforms notice when you save content, and they’ll serve you more of it.
BLOOM-SCROLLING VS DOOM-SCROLLING
Bloom-scrolling isn't about being ignorant of what's going on in the world, or putting our heads in the sand completely - it's more about proactively choosing what we give our attention to and finding a healthy balance. There is a lot of good in our world if we seek it out, there's a lot of good online if we keep intentionally clicking on and following those who share it; we just need to curate a filter that is authentic to our values and feeds our soul.
WHAT ABOUT YOU?
Are you a doomer or a bloomer? I don't know about you, but I'd much rather see art, positivity, joy, and all that nurtures my belief that "these are the good days" that we're living right here, right now.
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I love this!
ReplyDeleteMe too Jo - it just hit me between the eyes and is exactly what I do whenever I can - unfollow, scroll on by, and share the happy stuff :)
DeleteWow! this is really a nice term for a healthy habit. Your post sort of reaffirms my belief that it's not social media that is bad, it's the way we use it which is good or bad. Bloom scrolling is a conscious attempt to make social media work well for us.
ReplyDeleteHi Pradeep - you're so right about the good and bad being dependent on us. I get so tired of people shouting their opinions or being dogmatic about stuff they don't really understand. I also think social media should be a happy place and not somewhere to bang your political drum. Give me joy any day and I'll add it to my algorithm. :)
DeleteHow refreshing to know that we can have more control over what we are seeing on social media! I’ve been feeling really drained lately when I view my Facebook and Instagram feeds. I’ve considered giving them up completely, but there are accounts and friends I enjoy hearing about. I think I’ll start to consciously consider everything I click on and linger over going forward. I may even declutter both accounts and unfollow anyone who makes my heart sink rather than bring joy into my daily life. Chrissie x
ReplyDeleteHi Chrissie - I think being a little proactive is definitely the key. I've been telling my mum that the more she clicks on certain posts, and the more time she spends watching "medical" videos, the more of that stuff she'll get and the more misinformation she'll see that she gets influenced by. I now just scroll past stuff that doesn't interest me or is negative or provoking - it's not worth engaging with. Give me pretty and happy and nice and I'm content. :)
DeleteI love this! There are so many other problems with social media, but if we ignore that, this is a great approach to use it for something good. I especially like the tips from Lucy Bloom. I closed all my accounts except Facebook but was inspired lately to perhaps use it again. We saw a YouTube video with an entertaining youtuber who in this video talked about what he had done to grow his channel (a topic we're not particularly interested in but we love this youtuber!) and he mentioned something in terms of "even if nobody cares about your content to begin with, at least you contribute to something human-made in a sea of AI-generated stuff". Now I don't know if I would want to touch something like Instagram again but he made an excellent point and if I'd feel I should have an account for business reasons, that would be a great purpose.
ReplyDeleteHi Susanne - I tried IG for a few months while our daughter and SIL were travelling - and I really didn't enjoy it. I'm not interested in other people's overly curated lives. I like happy and spontaneous and personal stuff - not the shiny or AI generated stuff that's everywhere now. I keep my FB for the occasional friend or family update - and I follow some lovely positive quote type pages, but no IG and no Tiktok for me.
DeleteI do like the idea that we can pick and choose and unfollow - sometimes we forget that and just get annoyed. Now I take the initiative and it's two strikes any they're out! :)
We are definitely on the same page. Just two days ago, I deleted/unsubscribed to much content that I found to be negative or anxiety provoking. I am glad that I am not the only one who has been thinking this way.
ReplyDeleteHi April - I've unfollowed a lot of stuff that pops up in my feed and causes me upset (small or large). I also don't follow anything political or the "righteously indignant" - I just don't think social media is the place for ranting. I want to open my feed and see joy and positivity to balance all the stuff in the news. I want to leave uplifted rather than dragged down - and it's good to know that we can instigate some of that by what we choose to look at and linger over. Welcome to the bloomscrolling club! <3
DeleteThis was excellent. I just did it. Thank you! A great way to start the week.
ReplyDeleteIt's lovely isn't it Joely - I like that I can intentionally have some say in what I see instead of allowing the algorithms to decide what they want to bombard me with. I'm getting very good at "not interested" and scrolling by. Now I'm also lingering on the good stuff to freshen my feed. :)
DeleteLove this and am happy to know that I already do this. A big part of my bloomscrolling is musical.
ReplyDeleteThat's lovely Judith - I find that I have a lot of scrapbooking and "journal with me" stuff coming up now and it's very restful to watch. I also like the bright and pretty quotes with positive messages, they never get old for me.
DeleteI've been doing this quite a bit and found a number of sites to follow for daily inspirational meme's or interesting articles. Its odd though that some of the sites I got tired of as info got quite repetitive. I've had a number of friends drop off social media almost completely. But I like the inspirational moments I get in my feed.
ReplyDeleteHi Pat - I'm exactly the same. I don't use IG because I'm not into the "curatedness" of it all - it's just a bit to perfect for me. But I still enjoy my FB feed of happy quotes, pretty pictures, and gentle videos. Like you, I've unfollowed a few that are always reposting the same stuff, or that don't fit my "season" anymore, but I'm very happy not knowinng about the doom and gloom 24/7.
DeleteFabulous ideas Leanne, I love it!!
ReplyDeleteHi Deb - it's just such a feel good and proactive idea - sometimes we forget that we're the boss of our algorithms - they're not the boss of us! :)
DeleteGood to read what's making a difference for you Leanne. I applaud your internet curation.
ReplyDeleteHi Denyse - I think it's up to each of us to understand what our heart and soul needs to feel at peace - and then choose what we allow into our world based on that. I loved this idea of curating the algorithms to feed positivity rather than to stir unrest.
DeleteHi Leanne, You remind me how the concept of doomscrolling and algoriths is a relatively new concept. I prefer “Bloom Scrolling.” I appreciate the mindful break. Ruthlessly unfollow and train the feed resonates with me. I love how your added “nourish.” I am a work in progress, daily, yet I gravitate to the Blooms. Another great post, Leanne. xx Erica
ReplyDeleteHi Erica - I think those of us who want to have a calmer and more peaceful life will definitely gravitate towards the Blooms. The news still finds its way through, and I'm happier taking it in small bites rather than drowning in all the "opinions" and never being sure what's fact and what's not. The internet is a very diverse place indeed, but we get to choose and I choose the happy stuff wherever possible. x
DeleteI love this Leanne, and find that I have been bloom scrolling without even realizing it. I'm now in groups that share cloud pictures and landscapes throughout the world...so many lovely photos. I also interact with sites like Tiny Buddha, which then means I get more encouraging and mindful quotes. I have also unfollowed many people who share too much politics or personal drama. I don't mind people occasionally sharing hard times or upsetting events...that's life...but I don't need to drown myself in it. Now that I've read your post, I will be more intentional about my bloom scrolling. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteHi Christie - I love Tiny Buddah too - so many thoughtful and uplifting quotes and stories that get shared there. I always feel a bit guilty when I unfollow someone, but there's only so many time I'll scroll past the darker stuff before I tell myself I don't need it in my head, and then I hit the unfollow button. I feel like we need as much positivity and creativity in our lives as possible these days, and I'm using bloomscrolling to bring more of it into my world too. :)
DeleteThankful to you for explaining this. I did know that the more I look at certain types of posts the more I would see of that same kind of thing. But for the longest time I didn't realize why there were ads for things I had just been looking at earlier in the day. Poor little naive me!! I thought, 'what a coincidence that there is an ad on my FB for the same dress I was just looking at this morning.' My daughters are both onto all of the social media platforms and send me things from everywhere. I just can't keep up. Nor am I interested in trying to. Should probably dump my current FB account and create one where all I see is beauty and goodness. Thank you for another interesting post.
ReplyDeleteHi Leslie - I'm just being more intentional in curating my online feed. I don't do Instagram because it doesn't bring me joy - I'm not interested in overly manipulated "look at me" stuff, I don't do Tiktok because it's too "razzy", and I keep my FB feed very positive. If politics or ads or drama come up, they get unfollowed very quickly. Give me sunshine and happiness - that's what I go online for, not doom and gloom! I hope you find your happy medium too. x
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