It’s that time when New Year’s resolutions come into play and everyone’s starting to think about how to lose that extra weight, make more money, or generally become a more organized version of themselves. This often doesn’t happen or takes some time for the results to be visible. If you’re interested in relatively fast results for little work, you might want to consider adding a data detox to your list of goals. Personal information is everywhere and doing a data detox helps to start a new year organized, secure and at ease with your computer files or internet activity.
Oftentimes you may experience moments when you visit particular websites that don’t allow you to browse any more unless you submit your email address for subscriptions, etc. Not only that, but you may also be informed that your email list and/or contacts will also be accessed. If these things haven’t been an issue for you, you surely have realized after accessing a website, for example, Amazon or eBay, that right after you log into your Facebook page, you suddenly see an ad for a product that you were just looking at. This is because your data is being saved and repurposed.
There are businesses whose job is to collect your information, and they make money from the gathering and sale of it. Data is collected from everything you do while using the internet; the compiled data is then sold to interested companies that in turn use the data to specifically market their products to you and make more sales. Data detox isn’t only essential for online information. If you’ve recently saved some documents or pictures on your personal computer, tablet or phone, only to realize that the device has now been slowed down, you may need a detox. It will help your computer run faster and increase your efficiency.
Here are a few expert recommendations of steps you can take in order to make your computer and online experience even better.
Make good use of folders on your computer
One of the best things to start with is to assess the files you have on your personal computer, phone or tablet. This would include documents, pictures, videos and anything else that you have saved and may not be using. Save what you need and get rid of the rest. You can then build folders that are organized by areas of your life or areas that pertain to work, etc. Simplify it and choose files you will remember. Organize videos and photos by dates and or names of events.
Delete Apps you don’t usually use
Apps can take up a lot of space on your smartphones and tablets. If you’ve paid for an app, you should try to save a copy on your computer to either iTunes or something similar. Delete Apps that you know you never make use of. By doing this, you gain a significant amount of space on your device and that will aid in it running smoother and faster.
Clean out your email folders
Are you someone who starts drafting emails and then forgets that you were even busy with it? Well, it happens and it’s okay. Delete whatever you left unfinished if you don’t need it anymore and start with a fresh mailbox. Go through some of the others folders you have and see if there’s anything else there that should also be deleted.
You don’t always need to do as they ask
Just because a website asks for your personal information, that doesn’t mean you have to give it to them. If it’s something you were not interested in, in the first place, why would you submit your information? You will possibly end up with more junk email than you had before.
Don’t forget
Patience is needed when carrying out such a task, especially if you’re not a tech savvy person. Look up word combinations like: cleaning your computer, data detox, protect my personal data, amongst others. Be careful when it comes to your online activity; remember there are some things that can’t be permanently deleted from the Internet. YouTube is your friend.
Seek help
If all else fails, consult an expert on how you can minimize your online footprint.
We spend a majority of our time surfing the web for whatever reasons we may have. But in addition to scanning through your favourite gossip and information sites to make sure you stay up to date with the latest happenings or trends, you should look into a data detox. This isn’t a necessary action, but it may be a smarter approach to ensuring or at least minimizing the chance of exposing yourself to hackers, avoiding information you don’t want getting into the wrong hands or even slowing down your personal computer. Help yourself achieve more peace of mind this year and clear out that unnecessary info.
