We love it.  And we hate it.  Social media helps us connect with others, grow our platforms, share about our books, and promote our blogs … but it also drains us and can leave us feeling exhausted and discouraged. But what if I told you it doesn’t have to be that way?  You can learn to let social media work for you and stop feeling like you work for social media. Here are four simple tips for avoiding that overwhelming dread relating to social media.

Invest in the social media that works best for you.  {Don’t try to do it all!}

“The bottom line is, the biggest hurdle for a community manager, social media strategist, or any person who tries to leverage their online presence in any way or for any reason is that there’s too much to keep track of and too little time.”

– from Priorities: Curing Social Media Overload on The Future Buzz

Identify what type of information you want to share with others.

In 10 types of social media updates Michael Hyatt offers suggested types of updates and examples of each from Twitter stream. Perhaps your stress is caused, in part, from not knowing what to post and wondering if you are doing it right.

Eliminate the “push” notifications or even unplug.

In 13 Tools to Tame Social Media Overload, four of the thirteen suggestions related to these two ideas. This article also includes a few apps you can use to help with working more productively and eliminating the distraction social media can become.

Use lists and groups.

This is the first thing I recommend to any of my social media clients. In Unplugging in 2013? Less Drastic Resolutions and Solutions for Social Media Overload on Social Media Today, using lists and groups is offered as a valuable tool for diminishing the overload we can feel relating to social media.

We’d love to know your best tip for avoiding social media overload.  Share with us in the comments.