As your alarm goes off each morning, you reach to swipe snooze or off on your cell phone. Let’s be real, there is a high probability that you are using your cell phone as a clock because who uses real clocks anyway. Your cell phone. It’s vital to your life. You cannot function without it. Your cell contains everything you need. Your phone not only wakes you up in the morning but you also have access to an unlimited amount of information. You can access the news, Youtube tutorials and often, most importantly, your friends and family through social media.

Confession: I’m guilty. I use my phone as an alarm every day. On my cell I have Bible Apps and written prayers in Google Drive, but each morning I’m drawn to click one of those social media apps, whether it’s Twitter, Facebook or Instagram. You see, I thought my Google drive devotionals, prayers and Bible apps would serve as a stop gap between me and social media in the mornings but even when I’m done, Twitter, Facebook or Instagram gets clicked on. Heck let’s be real, sometimes I skip the spirituality and head right on over into the social media universe. Am I addicted? Nah I can’t be, I’m a social media guru so I have to check on my accounts – at least that’s what I keep telling myself. The truth is that the internet has brought with it many new things that a huge number of people are now addicted to. There are so many people who would love to learn how to stop porn addiction. Luckily, help with this can be found online.

If you can relate to this morning experience, maybe you have a slight addiction to social media. Your addiction to social media is not on purpose though. Cell phone technology is designed in such a way that you will keep coming back for more. To pull you in, companies are actually studying a psychological process to get us hooked based on a reward system. The system is comprised of 4 steps. These steps are:

1. Trigger
2. Action
3. Reward
4. Investment

This is deeper than just a 4 step process though. The psychology behind these steps is very strategic. Studies have analyzed the dopamine levels in those who are addicted to social media. The increase in the dopamine levels of someone who is addicted to social media, mirror the rise of dopamine in someone who is addicted to a drug. As we seek release from boredom and turn to social media, the reward of a euphoric feeling keeps us coming back to social media.

Tech companies are thriving on this research to keep us leashed to their products. Maybe it’s time for us to do something different. Maybe it’s time to break the social media addiction. This month our focus will be Social Media, including the do’s the don’ts and how to break the habits. Sign up for our Newsletter below to stay up to date.

Want to understand more about habit forming technological products, watch the video below: