A couple of months ago, I read an article about an actor who spent a month and a half in complete solitude, in order to develop the character he was about to perform for a movie. His 6 weeks of intensely dedicated focus really stuck with me for some reason, and I couldn't get it out of my mind.

It made me wonder: "What if I spent 6 weeks in solitude, focused only on a goal that I had in mind?" What could I accomplish?

The more I thought about it, the more I remembered hearing about other famous artists and writers and inventors, who would also spend a lot of time alone, away from the noise of society.

The intention wasn't to be avoidant, but to allow time and space for imagination and creativity to well up from within, without any distraction or influence from the external world.

The idea of this 6 week experiment wouldn't leave me alone, so I knew it was something that I needed to do — at least partially.

I’m not preparing for a part in a movie, or creating a business or anything, but I’d like more mental clarity, I’d like to deepen my connection with my intuition, and to allow my creativity to expand and express itself without any influence from the outside world.

I naturally spend a lot of time alone, and I didn't want to fully cut off connection to others, so instead of complete isolation, I decided to simply stop scrolling and streaming for 6 weeks.

I already avoid the news at all costs, and I stopped using social media 4 years ago (other than Youtube and Pinterest), so those very common hooks were not a problem at all for me.

The problems that I had were mindlessly scrolling through Youtube to watch random videos, or listen to podcasts, just to fill space and time; mindlessly scrolling through Pinterest; and mindlessly watching shows and movies at night, in order to comfort myself.

I’d reached a point where I was feeling really bored by shows and movies, anyway — never really finding anything I wanted to watch, and just putting on something that I didn't hate, or rewatching movies and shows that I loved.

I was also pretty bored by Youtube. I have a couple of channels that I am obsessed with (Jonna Jinton and Mother the Mountain Farm), but other than those, there's not much out there that feeds me. It just helps me pass the time.

And with Pinterest, while I have found a lot of inspiration from the platform (and I've made a lot of my own creations based on that inspiration), for the most part, I was just using it to numb my brain.

Pinterest Inspired Creation:

(Link to its video)

I wasn’t really getting much from all of my scrolling and streaming habits, other than a mushy brain, so I decided that I would go cold turkey and stop all of those things for 6 weeks.

That started this past Sunday, 5 days ago.

So far, it’s been refreshing. I've definitely felt the pull to hop on Youtube and scroll, or grab my phone on the way to the bathroom for a Pinterest fix, but I haven't allowed it. I also wasn't feeling very well yesterday, and I wanted to curl up on the couch and watch a movie, but I rode out the craving and it very quickly passed.

I’m really excited to see where this experiment takes me. It feels like it’s going to be really transformative. I’ll keep you updated along the way and I plan on making a video, once it’s all through.

Six Weeks Without YouTube, Movies, or Scrolling: The Start of My Experiment

Pinterest Inspired Creation:

Kristen Stephen

Six Weeks Without YouTube, Movies, or Scrolling: The Start of My Experiment

Pinterest Inspired Creation:

I Made a Jacket From Thrift Store Finds!

Kristen Stephen