Reader,

Social media has been feeling a bit off to me lately. Maybe it’s the algorithm going haywire. Maybe it’s the changing culture of how we now use it. Maybe it’s the constant, constant, influencer-driven platforms demanding plush, pose, and perfection.

I really enjoy my instagram, mostly for the entertainment. I didn’t mind the hours invested as long as the videos were fun. Honestly, I laugh at videos with tears welling in my eyes. But, to be honest, I never leave feeling great about myself and time investment. It feels good to scroll scroll scroll, but it’s all just empty. But I also still want more of it.

The dopamine is cruel.

So, to have more control. I deactivated my Instagram. If you try to find my account, you won’t. It is gone.

I’m going to miss sharing snippets of the book I’m reading, what I’m thinking, or the occasional occurrences in the world that baffles me.

I’m also going to miss staying up to date with the trends from friends and knowing what’s happening in their lives and being able to stay connected.

On second thought, I’m not sure staying up to date with friends’ lives on Insta story was quite useful as well. It created a false sense of being in the loop.

For example, a friend posts about taking her kid to a piano lesson. I like the post, we share a few (unmemorable) DMs, and we get on with our lives. Sometimes, I’m so busy that I even forget to engage it but yet still know all that’s happening in her life.

Writing this now, I realise am much more connected with friends who aren’t on Instagram or don’t share anything at all on the platform. My feeling of being disconnected from them is present and palpable and forces me to reach out to reach out and hear what they’ve been up to.

Social media connections can sometimes create an illusion of closeness and involvement while actually preventing deeper engagement. Perhaps an absence of “loose” updates forces a proper check-in.

My social media activity now is limited to LinkedIn. And more recently, Substack.

LinkedIn because it keeps me connected to industry leaders; and Substack because I’m able to engage long form articles. I probably shouldn’t categorise Substack as social media in this sense because I do also read the New York Times + The Atlantic through apps on my phone, which I follow quite religiously (perks of working in media and development). You might also still find me dabbling on X (although crazy right now) because it’s the platform for getting breaking news.

Instagram has a central place in my journey. My wife was telling me a few days ago how my posts on Instagram were such a good way to see other parts of who I am, even though we met in the world.

I hope to still continue to show up in this way on any digital platform because I think that’s what social media is good for.

It remains a great way to find your people, to unlock new communities, news jobs, friends. But this only happens if we are courageous to share how we think, what we think, and our dreams. This sends out the right signal that draws the right people in.

I’ve met amazing people on instagram, and maybe I’ll be back (I have the option of restoring my account). Or perhaps open a new one to connect with close friends and family.

But for now, I’m abstaining from the drug, the dopamine, the algorithm.

Speak soon,
Henry

​

​