I couldn't tell you exactly how much time I spend per day on social media. By the time the next morning rolls around, I barely even remember what I looked at. (Except for the cat content—that's always noteworthy.) I do know that in 2024, I'd like to spend less time mindlessly scrolling and more on fulfilling pursuits.

Experts say there's good reason to set such a goal. Excessive social-media use is linked with loneliness, depression, poor self-esteem, and lower life satisfaction. There's no one-size-fits-all way to reset your relationship with social media, but I plan to test out these strategies:

• Craft a mission statement. Write down the ways you want to use social media—and the ways you refuse to—and put it in a highly visible spot. One expert told me she phrased hers like this: “I use social media to connect with others, to learn new things daily, to scrapbook my life, and to express myself creatively. I do not use social media as a replacement for IRL."

• Set specific time boundaries. I'm a rule-oriented person, so I like the idea of allowing myself one hour per day to scroll. You could also pencil in three 20-minute sessions to check your favorite apps.

• Create friction. It might seem ironic to enlist technology to help you spend less time on, well, technology, but a variety of tools can deter you from habitually opening social media. One program requires users to complete a centering activity, like taking a deep breath, before logging into an app; another displays a clock measuring total usage time.

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