Olivia Randolph sits around her family’s coffee table, laughing and playing Monopoly with her sibling in their living room.

Randolph has never had apps like Snapchat or Instagram because her parents did not think it was a good idea. Since her parents do not use social media either, that decision has shaped the way she sees social media, too. 

“When I was younger, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I don’t have social media’, everybody else does except for me,” Randolph said. “But now I kind of appreciate them not letting me have social media.”

Now Randolph doesn’t feel like she’s missing out. Instead of spending time on social media, she reads, listens to music, plays games and spends time with her siblings. She describes her family as a “game family; often playing video games, watching movies and doing things together rather than sitting on their phones.

Without social media, Randolph’s relationship with her phone is different from that of a lot of other teenagers. She mainly uses it for texting, checking her calendar, listening to music, or reading electronic books. Because she is not constantly checking apps or notifications, 

Randolph sometimes forgets where her phone even is.

“I can lose my phone and not even realize it,” Randolph said.

Randolph believes not having social media gives her more time for the things that matter to her. As the oldest of four siblings, she helps with family activities, keeps up with school and spends much of her free time dancing at Northwest. She likes to keep her day organized by setting aside time for homework, free time and other responsibilities.

Although she understands why other teenagers use social media, Randolph said she sees some parts of it as unnecessary and distracting. She said apps like Snapchat can create pressure to keep up with streaks and constant communication, which she does not find meaningful.

“I feel like it’s almost just mindless,” Randolph said. “It’s not really meaningful interactions.”

Randolph thinks social media can pull people away from what is happening in real life. Instead of focusing on schoolwork, hobbies, or family time, she thinks people can easily get caught up in scrolling and lose track of what matters.

“I feel like with social media, you can almost just get sucked in and forget stuff,” Randolph said.

While Randolph said she might use platforms like Facebook or Instagram someday for work, she does not see herself downloading the main social media apps anytime soon. For now, she is perfectly content spending her time logged off.