Why I Closed My Social Media Accounts

I had 1,252 Twitter followers and 1,056 Facebook “friends” when I killed my accounts.

In the past I’ve been an avid promoter of social media. It’s been a great way for me to drive traffic to my websites.

I’ve been drawn to it as an influence platform — an easy and effective way to spread important ideas.

Here’s why I’m done with social media (and see if any of these reasons resonate with you as regards your mission):

There’s Influence, & There’s Influence

I do believe I had influence via social media.

But it was surface-level influence at best. It may have gotten a few people to read and consider things they otherwise wouldn’t have.

But I highly doubt it did anything to really transform minds and hearts for good.

Which impacts you more: An article you skim from a Facebook link — no matter how important the content — or a profound and moving book you really take the time to digest?

My time and mission are better served and my influence will be deeper by writing mind-bending content, rather than throwing up Facebook links or tweeting 140 characters.

The time I spent on social media will now be spent writing blog articles and books.

If my content is good enough, if it really touches hearts, then it will be found and spread by the right people.

If you have to vigorously self-promote to be found, you ought to spend more time and effort on what you’re creating, rather than promoting it.

World-class products, ideas, and content get found and spread organically — with or without the creator.

Question for you: What serves your mission better — Facebooking, or creating, innovating, and leading?

Social media may play an active role in your mission, and you’re the only one who can answer that.

I’m Tired of Wading Through Frivolous Junk

Can important ideas be spread via social media? Obviously.

But is that what social media is actually used for? Rarely.

I don’t care how much I like you, it just isn’t that important to me to know what you ate for lunch or what you’re watching on TV tonight.

Social media is bursting at the seams with information — and the vast majority of it is trivial, frivolous fluff of no consequence to anyone.

Try this experiment: Don’t log on to any of your social media accounts for a month. Then log in, scroll through the past month’s posts, and see if you really missed anything.

I guarantee it will be an enlightening experience.

I want to spend my time thinking about, creating, and discussing important ideas with earnest, dedicated people, not wasting my life away on self-centered, inconsequential chatting.

Join the Conversation?

All the buzz from social media hacks has been about “joining the conversation.”

Why no mention of being the one that starts the conversation?

Do you want to be an initiator on the edges, or a follower of crowds?

Do you want to primarily be an idea producer, or an idea debater?

The Emperor’s New Clothes

Social media “gurus” and “experts,” which strangely have appeared in droves out of the woodwork like Texas cockroaches during a drought, are adamant that every business should be actively engaged in social media marketing.

As a marketing consultant for years, I’ve worked with a wide variety of businesses, most of whom are aggressive with their social media efforts.

Not a single one of them has demonstrated results worth writing home about.

In almost every business case I’ve ever experienced, they would be far better off spending their time, money, and effort in other marketing channels.

I do believe social media can be an effective tool for the right businesses.

But for most businesses, the social media phenomenon is little more than a case of the emperor’s new clothes.

Don’t Use Social Media as a Crutch

Social media has enjoyed a meteoric rise because makes so much sense to be able to connect with the people closest to us, and find and befriend like-minded people across the globe.

But for the mission-driven, it can become a crutch — an excuse to waste time, rather than doing the hard work of producing and creating.

I’m not telling you to close your accounts.

But I am inviting you to question if it’s the best use of your time and if it’s the best way to fulfill your mission.

Recommended Reading:

• Do the Work by Steven Pressfield
• The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
• John Mayer, “Manage the Temptation to Publish Yourself”