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MisterP
Engagement Orchard
May 2, 2025
Solved

Self-care tips for social media professionals?

  • May 2, 2025
  • 14 replies
  • 392 views

The discussion is active and ongoing about the pros and cons about social media’s impact on various demographics. There’s so many stories about how to manage time, and energy and focus if you’re a social media end user, but how do you manage as a social media pro? There’s a risk of burnout. work/life balance, device or content fatigue  I feel more stories, tips, and best practices could be shared!

I like to device detox from time to time, for set times when I’m “touching grass,” focusing on other hobbies or pursuits. (I try to minimize using smartphones to check accounts at 3AM, but there are times when that’s not so easy). Making time to read a good book or even an audio book forces me to slow down at times, which is grounding.

How do you reset and wind down?

    Best answer by kate.meyers emery

    Love this topic and so glad we’re talking about it! Here’s what I do to protect my mental health (as someone who is an in-house social media manager, but a team of one). 

    1. Trading monitoring duties: when times are tough and we get a lot of rough comments/tags, we trade off who is monitoring. I’m the only person with social media explicitly in my job description, but the whole comms team helps when needed. 
    2. Only monitor during working hours: there are no expectations to watch social outside 8 am to 5 pm; partially its due to the work we do which is not saving lives (which most brands aren’t) and its partially due to treating community management like customer service which often has clear hours. 
    3. Separate work phone: I got an unlocked Google Pixel 7 that runs on WiFi only; a much easier argument to make than trying to get a phone with a monthly plan. It means when I’m off hours or on vacation I can leave the phone home, tucked away in my office. 
    4. No personal social media outside working hours: I only do a small amount of social media for myself (mainly LinkedIn) on breaks, and try to avoid it otherwise. I even have an app blocker on my phone so I can’t open them on browsers. Not everyone needs to be that extreme, but it is what works for me. I find I’m able to stay on top of trends and what’s happening just fine during work hours. 

    14 replies

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    kate.meyers emery
    kate.meyers emery
    Insight Ivy
    May 7, 2025

    This can be applied to almost any field but a great supervisor I had a few years back encouraged me to keep a “kudos” folder. Any time I get positive feedback in writing, I screenshot it and save it to the kudos folder for a future tough day at the office. It’s a great reminder that the odd mistake does not outweigh the value of my work. The contents also ended up being very useful for my latest job search, haha.

    Image of a Mac Finder interface with a folder titled “Kudos”

     

    I started doing this last year as well, and it is such a great reminder! I toss screenshots of great comments, emails that highlight my work, slack message kudos, conference talk banner images, and anything else that shows that my work is having an impact. 

    It’s also super useful for year end reviews!

    brelynn.hess
    brelynn.hess
    Tagged Tendril
    May 27, 2025

    One of the best things I’ve done is implement a no social media rule when I’m on vacation. This gives me a true break, resets my brain, and helps me be more present while I’m traveling and with family.

    Of course, I do a lot of work to prepare the accounts I manage and my team before I’m out so everything is taken care of. But as soon as I log off of work for time off, I delete all of the social media apps on my phone. 

    brelynn.hess
    brelynn.hess
    Tagged Tendril
    May 27, 2025

    Love this topic and so glad we’re talking about it! Here’s what I do to protect my mental health (as someone who is an in-house social media manager, but a team of one). 

    1. Trading monitoring duties: when times are tough and we get a lot of rough comments/tags, we trade off who is monitoring. I’m the only person with social media explicitly in my job description, but the whole comms team helps when needed. 
    2. Only monitor during working hours: there are no expectations to watch social outside 8 am to 5 pm; partially its due to the work we do which is not saving lives (which most brands aren’t) and its partially due to treating community management like customer service which often has clear hours. 
    3. Separate work phone: I got an unlocked Google Pixel 7 that runs on WiFi only; a much easier argument to make than trying to get a phone with a monthly plan. It means when I’m off hours or on vacation I can leave the phone home, tucked away in my office. 
    4. No personal social media outside working hours: I only do a small amount of social media for myself (mainly LinkedIn) on breaks, and try to avoid it otherwise. I even have an app blocker on my phone so I can’t open them on browsers. Not everyone needs to be that extreme, but it is what works for me. I find I’m able to stay on top of trends and what’s happening just fine during work hours. 

    These are fantastic practices! Treating community management like customer service and having a separate work phone are game changers.

    M
    MisterPAuthor
    Engagement Orchard
    May 27, 2025

    Some great ideas and feedback in this thread. Thank you for so much helpful, insightful engagement!

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