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| false | 2023-07-16T16:52:06+02:00 | I'm Back on Mastodon | In this blog post I describe why I decided to get back on Mastodon. |
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May 1, 2023 marked one year since I deleted my Facebook account. That was the last account I had on the Big Tech social media platforms that all compete for our attention and behavioral data (technically I'm still on LinkedIn, although I rarely use it). How has it been? To say it mildly, liberating.
Last summer, after reading Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport (fantastic book by the way, you should give it a read if you haven't), I also deleted my Mastodon account. At the time, I thought to myself that I really only used it as I used to use Facebook, wasting my time, and I probably did. Thinking back, I did really need a break from social media in general in order to get my mind back on track, and I'm glad I made that decision. I was still too used to Facebook and the likes. After deleting everything, I used the extra time I suddenly had to focus on life and finish my bachelor's degree. Now a year later, I decided to join the Fediverse again, so I created a new Mastodon account. I did so for a couple of reasons.
The primary reason is that I felt a bit too disconnected from the online world, and since my career and interests are in IT, that didn't work for me. It is true that the best form of social interaction is outside the screen. But in the modern world we live in, technology can add substantial value to your life, but only if you use it properly. The book Digital Minimalism taught me what "properly" means (again, read it). By not being on any form of social media, I wasn't able to keep track of what the latest trends are and what people are talking about at the moment (in general but mostly regarding IT). But also just when it comes to meeting new people, or maintaining a network, or finding out about events happening near me. By using technology in a way where it enhances my life, instead of the opposite where the technology uses me, I can actually get some value from it. Although I'm back on social media, I believe I have the tools and the knowledge necessary for maintaining a healthy relationship with social media and my usage of it. For this reason, I've also decided that I won't ever support the attention seeking social media platforms, that is social media owned by Big Tech. Because let's face it, we can't really have a healthy relationship with a social media platform if it keeps trying with all its power to get us hooked onto it and get us sucked into its reality, it's simply not possible.
This leads me to my second reason. In order to support the world-wide migration to decentralized alternatives to Big Tech, I need to be on there myself. That's the best way to show my support for the Fediverse. Looking at the recent conflicts with Big Tech platforms, such as the changes in the Reddit API or Elon Musk buying and basically destroying Twitter as we know it, this is the best time to do so. I want to be a bigger part of that movement. Right now is the time where most people are starting to realize, that big centralized platforms maybe aren't the best option out there, and that decentralization is the better way.
So, to summarize, did I regret leaving Mastodon? No, I didn't. But I'm glad that I'm back in the Fediverse, and I'll continue to support the move towards decentralized platforms. I truly believe that this is the right path forward.