> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.futuristiclawyer.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # What Happened After I Quit Social Media - URL: https://www.futuristiclawyer.com/what-happened-after-i-quit-social-media/ - Published: 2026-08-18T04:30:49.000Z - Updated: 2026-08-18T04:30:49.000Z - Author: Tobias Mark Jensen - Tags: How to quit social media Let me release the tension right away by answering the post title: Nothing. Nothing happened. But that’s pretty remarkable, right? Over so many years, different people have told me to be on different platforms. “Everyone is on Snapchat nowadays. That is how the new generation communicates” “If you are looking for a job, you *have* to be on LinkedIn” “For anyone interested in AI policy, there is no way around X” “You cannot really be a crypto enthusiast without being on Telegram and Discord” “If it’s not on Instagram, did it even happen?” “TikTok is actually the best way to stay up to date with breaking news” “If you are not on Facebook, how will you know what is going on with your family and friends?” I listened to people who told me these things and I’ve had accounts on all of these services. Now, I have accounts on none of them. It didn’t happen overnight, but was a gradual process. I was never a big user of Telegram, Discord or Snapchat in the first place. After Elon Musk took over Twitter, I ditched my account. TikTok, I found was dangerously addictive, so I had to get off it. My accounts on Facebook and Instagram were dormant for a long time even though I checked them several times a week. About six months ago, I thought I would deactivate them just to see what would happen. Nothing happened, and I haven’t felt compelled to reactivate them since, probably never will. Then, just last week, I took a big step and hibernated my account on LinkedIn. LinkedIn is without a doubt the platform I have been most active on over the years. I have a lot of followers on LinkedIn and it has genuinely brought value to my life by opening new doors and opportunities. However, over the last two-three years’ time, my LinkedIn posts have generated little traction and the platform has not led to any career-changing opportunities - despite the ridiculous amount of work I have put into it. And even though I like the polite and professional tone on LinkedIn, there are too many “hot takes”, too much work slop, hysteria, and exaggerations of unremarkable stuff that irritate me. So now I have ditched LinkedIn too and don't know whether I will return. For the time being I am off social media which makes me a statistical outlier. I can report that absolutely nothing materially in my life has changed - in the exact same sense as nothing in my life changed after I quit smoking. The arguments for quitting social media are straightforward and uncontroversial: better sleep, you will become much less distracted, less overstimulated, more present in daily life and with the people who matter to you, regain the ability to focus on a difficult task for long periods of time without interruption, feel less anxious, feel more enjoyment about basic things, have more time available, have an easier time connecting with people in real life, and so on and so forth. Still, many people won’t be able to quit, and indeed, I am not sure quitting social media is for everyone. Some people are much better at managing the time and energy they spend on social media than I am. I can’t manage it. In the same way as I am unable to enjoy 2-5 cigarettes a day; whenever I buy a package, I smoke that package ASAP. The major downside of quitting social media, may be that you start to live under a rock, disconnected and alienated from people and the wider world. That was my concern. But I have concluded that it’s a good thing. Living without the dopamine hits from social media frees up time and space so I can focus on things I enjoy, things I want to improve on, things I want to excel at, without constantly having to concern myself with other people’s thoughts and opinions and emotions. Personally, I always thought being on social media was kind of lame and embarrassing. Like in high school, when most of my classmates were on Facebook and some of them pushed me to open an account. It didn’t feel natural to share my personal thoughts and photos with strangers, or mapping out all my social connections. “What is the point and who really benefits from this?” I thought. Over time though, I became desensitized and occasionally hunted likes, posted cringe photos, and got into pointless discussions, like everyone else was apparently, enthusiastically, and very publicly doing. Still, being on social media never felt quite right. LinkedIn is the only social media platform I have been posting regularly on for years and to be honest I always felt like a clown whenever I did - and most of the time I was treated with dead silence in return. There is just something about social media as a concept that I find inherently cringe. Social media and the wider attention economy turn everything it touches into inauthenticity quicker than King Midas’ touch. Have any great speakers or genuine thought leaders throughout history said “like and subscribe” or interrupted their messages halfway through for a quick commercial break? I don’t think so. Finally, yes, I am aware of a big hypocrisy here. I am complaining about people making a big deal out of themselves on the socials, and here I am, making a big deal out of my decision to quit social media. The truth is I am a drama queen, but I would much rather channel it into meaningful writing about things other than myself, than wasting so much time with algorithmic entertainment. The extensive research I did for my book “[Death To Algorithms](https://www.death2algorithms.com/?ref=futuristiclawyer.com)” has strongly colored my perception of social media. I don’t know if I am ahead of my time or deluded. Either way, I strongly feel life would be better if everyone stopped connecting through enshittified platforms that essentially couldn’t care less about any of us. So what's the takeaway message? Not that everyone should check out of social media. But it is worth reflecting about how much time we spend on social media, what we get in return, and whether these hours would be better spend elsewhere. In my experience the fear of missing out is a withdrawal symptom.