Quitting social media without losing your friends
Most of us don’t want to leave our friends. We want to leave the feed. The trouble is that the feed is where some of those friends still turn up, so leaving it feels like losing them too.
What the feed was doing for you
For me it was one job. It was the only place I heard from certain people. I moved to Colorado, my friends stayed in Florida, and the feed was how I kept up. Then it stopped showing me them and started showing me people who are very good at being on camera.
That’s the part worth replacing. Not the scrolling. The hearing from people you care about.
What to replace it with
Something that doesn’t try to keep you. A group chat helps until nobody starts it. Calling works, when anyone remembers to.
Looped is my answer to it. Two questions a week go to everyone you’re connected to, Sunday and Wednesday at 8 AM Eastern. You answer before you see anyone else’s. Then the answers open all at once, and you find out what your people are reading, cooking and swearing by.
There’s nothing to scroll in between. No followers, no algorithm, nothing sponsored. By default it’s one email a week, Sunday morning. It has no reason to want more of your time.
Do you have to delete everything?
I didn’t. I still have every app. What I changed was where I go to hear from my friends. If you want to delete the accounts too, go for it. Looped works either way.
Getting in
Looped is invite-only. Every member gets ten invites, so the fastest way in is a friend who’s already on it. If that’s not you yet, the waitlist is one field, and we write to you once when a spot opens.
Joel Pettigrew
No invite? The waitlist is one field. When a spot opens, we write to you once.
What people ask about quitting
- How do I quit social media without losing touch with people?
- Replace the one thing the feed was doing for you. For me that was hearing from friends I don't text every week. Pick something that does that job on purpose. Mine is Looped: two questions a week, answered by the people I'd otherwise lose track of.
- Is Looped social media?
- Sort of, without the parts people are trying to leave. There's no feed, no follower count and no algorithm deciding what you see. It's two questions a week and your friends' answers, and your answers only go to people you're connected to.
- How much time does it take?
- About as long as it takes to answer one question, twice a week. When the next one drops, the answers open all at once and you see what everyone said. There's no feed pulling you back in between, and nothing to scroll while you wait.