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Yes, you don't watch a lot of television but you're spending too much time in YouTube. This video-sharing website has garnered millions of followers all over the world, for only a very short time. With so many videos to watch you can't help but spend the rest of your day doing nothing else but that.
Now just imagine how it can affect you personally. You can no longer complete your tasks, you spend less time on productive activities, and you may even distance yourself from your loved ones. It's not really surprising that you'll end up suffering from depression and a lot of stress later.
But how do you exactly get rid of YouTube addiction? Here are seven tips:
1. Just block it. If you don't want to watch any YouTube videos, then just block the website from your computer. A lot of websites and plug-ins can already do that for you. Every time you check on YouTube, you'll end up having an error page. Further, to make sure you don't delete the plug-in, you can look for a tool that allows you to add passwords. Have someone set it for you.
2. Spend less time in front of the PC. You won't be tempted to watch YouTube videos if you also spend less time with your PC. Besides it's really not a good idea to spend more than 4 hours in front of your computer. You don't have to cut everything off suddenly. If you spend 8 hours with it, you can reduce it to 6 or 5.
3. Take up a sport. A sport can be a good motivator for you to spend less time with YouTube. In fact, it can increase your self-confidence, plus you're forced to spend more time with your friends and perhaps your family. It also feels so good if you win competitions.
4. Choose a hobby. If you don't like sports, then at least pursue a hobby, and hopefully it doesn't involve computers. If you're a mom, arts and crafts would be perfect. You can share the hobby with your kids. If you're a dad, creating furniture and fixtures may be an exciting hobby, which may even turn into a profitable venture.
5. Go to the outdoors. There are a lot of things you can do outside of your home, but you're missing all of them since you're just there, watching YouTube. Try being in the outdoors at least an hour a day. And if you can afford it, spend a night in the mountains camping or even travel outside the state or outside of the country.
6. Encourage yourself to just do it. Unless you have the will to get rid of your YouTube addiction, you'll never be able to do it. But how? Use subliminal messages. Affirmations have a way of changing your present mind-set from "cannot" to "can." The moment you wake up, say the following lines:
Today, I'll spend more time on things that make me grow.
Today, I will spend more time with friends and family.
Today, I'll relax and spend my day with a lot of quiet and peace.
