Earlier this week I shed light on a very real sickness that many people (and some of you) are suffering from called Pinterest Paralysis. It’s a chronic condition but not incurable.
A couple of my friends have recently sworn off Pinterest. They left because of how it makes them feel and the pressure it places on them to have a “picture perfect life”. So they just quit.
I get it.
And 100% support their choice to stop using Pinterest altogether. But what if there was another option to avoid the endless pinning and comparing and feeling badly about ourselves?
What if there was a better way to use Pinterest?
One that left us feeling inspired and organized instead of discouraged and confused (and wondering where the heck the last 30 minutes of our life just went).
THERE IS A BETTER WAY…ACTUALLY THERE ARE FIVE
Today I’m sharing 5 healthy ways to use Pinterest and I’ll follow it up with three simple tricks to make Pinterest less of a time suck and more of a springboard to progress.
Today I’m sharing 5 healthy ways to use Pinterest and I’ll follow it up with three simple tricks to make Pinterest less of a time suck and more of a springboard to progress.
Quitting Pinterest isn’t an option for me because I use it daily in my work. Also, I love it for personal reasons. Now, I don’t want you to think I’m bashing Pinterest one post and then singing its praises the next.
That would make me emotionally unstable, right?
Which I’m totally not…unless I’m hungry.
Big “Aha” moment ahead–> Pinterest is dangerous for our confidence and productivity when used with the wrong mindset or habits. It’s an incredibly helpful tool when we have clarity of purpose and a set of personal guidelines.
Sound strict and boring? It’s not. I promise.
HEALTHY WAYS TO USE PINTEREST
1. As a Search EngineNotice I did not say a “browse & repin engine”. When I wanted to make a fabric mobile for my client Chrissy’s nursery, I used the search bar in Pinterest to see what other DIY fabric mobiles looked like.
I went to Pinterest with a clear idea of what I was looking for. My goal was to research and see if someone else had figured out a brilliant shortcut to save me time or money.
For this type of thing, Google can turn up all sorts of crazy images. I’ve found that Pinterest is a better place to find higher quality content faster for most things home or craft related.
2. As an Organizational ToolPinterest is like a creative Type A person’s dream. (Ahem…guilty.)
It gives you the ability to bookmark websites with images, group them into categories, and then leave yourself comments. This is super helpful and can save you tons of time. I have secret boards for each of the following:
A. Books I Want to Read(Friends would always tell me about a great book they read, and my mental note system would fail to help when I wanted to remember it. Now when someone tells me a book title I look it up immediately and pin the URL using my Pinterest app on my phone.)
B. Vacation
(Before a trip, I’ll research shops and restaurants I want to visit in the area. It’s handy to have everything right on my phone via the Pinterest app.)
C. Meal Plans(I will pin 10-15 seasonal dinner recipes onto this board. That way when I’m creating my grocery list for the week, I can just check this board and pick from options I chose earlier.)
B. Vacation
(Before a trip, I’ll research shops and restaurants I want to visit in the area. It’s handy to have everything right on my phone via the Pinterest app.)
C. Meal Plans(I will pin 10-15 seasonal dinner recipes onto this board. That way when I’m creating my grocery list for the week, I can just check this board and pick from options I chose earlier.)
3. As a Tool for Collaboration
When I helped plan my friend Stacie’s baby shower, two other friends and I used a secret Pinterest board to pin and discuss everything from the theme to the invites to the recipe for punch. Since we were all busy with different schedules, this allowed us to have an ongoing conversation without having to constantly be meeting in person or group texting.
When I helped plan my friend Stacie’s baby shower, two other friends and I used a secret Pinterest board to pin and discuss everything from the theme to the invites to the recipe for punch. Since we were all busy with different schedules, this allowed us to have an ongoing conversation without having to constantly be meeting in person or group texting.
I use secret boards to communicate with and get feedback from my clients about their project from the inspiration stage all the way to the final “Shopping List”. My two most used tools for project management in my design business are Pinterest and Google Docs. In a visual industry, there is no other medium that makes it easier to communicate aesthetics and share resources better than Pinterest.
4. As a Personal Style Board
Being exposed to lots of new ideas is not always a bad thing…this is one way to help you figure out your likes and dislikes and target things you’d like to incorporate in your style somehow. It’s usually a low-risk way to experiment with new ideas. BUT there is some danger here…
Being exposed to lots of new ideas is not always a bad thing…this is one way to help you figure out your likes and dislikes and target things you’d like to incorporate in your style somehow. It’s usually a low-risk way to experiment with new ideas. BUT there is some danger here…
WARNING: Exploring your personal style can be a slippery slope to the comparison trap. Make sure that when you are hunting for rooms or things that feel like “you”, you are starting from a place of confidence and curiosity. The second you start to feel “less than”, you’ve had enough. Shut that laptop and come back to it later.
5. As a To Do List
Raise your hand if you’ve pinned something saying, “Oh, I’ll totally do that!”. And then completely forget about it. (Repeat 37 times.)
Raise your hand if you’ve pinned something saying, “Oh, I’ll totally do that!”. And then completely forget about it. (Repeat 37 times.)
Two hands raised over here.
I’ve got a cure to help you actually be productive. Create one board title “To Do” (or “To Cook”) and then only add ideas or images that you actually see yourself doing. Simple, right?
If you know you’ll never take time to learn how to crochet that coffee mug cozy, then don’t pin it! In fact I would only allow 6-8 pins at a time on this board. (Too many pins become white noise or overwhelming, and you’re likely to avoid or ignore them.)
This is important…Once you attempt or complete something from this list, delete the pin or move it to a new board titled “I Did This!” or “Go me- I Own Pinterest!” or something of that nature. Having a board like this is the equivalent of crossing an item off your pen and paper to-do list.
We all know how good that makes us feel.
