ANTI-META
I decided 2 weeks ago, I was deactivating all of my META accounts, and I weened off like a toddler getting potty trained, slow yet with progress.
Happy New Year! Even though it’s been the longest January of our lives! This new post is right on time if you ask me. I’ve been absent, not on purpose, but intentionally? When I’m not fully feeling like my creative self, when life’s major shifts and dynamics change & the rollercoaster is going too fast-I pause. I know, I know, it’s crazy. I practice what I preach, even to the own detriment of my creative relevance or lack thereof. I kept telling myself these past 6 months, “You are healing, you’re facing hard truths, you’re humbling yourself temporarily so that you can permanently UnFuck yourself.” In short, she’s been going through it! I haven’t graduated 30 Pause yet, my darlings. I just turned 38 this past month, and the increasing awareness that this decade is nearing the end has been a lot to wrap my head around. Primarily because I have so much I want/need to accomplish before I’m 40. I feel like that subject is a whole post within itself, so it goes without saying, I’m back!
I deactivated my Facebook, X & Instagram accounts. There was no big ah-ha moment, or one particular thing that made this decision for me, I woke up one a Tuesday morning and it was my gut feeling that kept saying “Get rid of it, it doesn’t matter, what’s for you will find you, do this in the spirit of self preservation.”
I’ve had Facebook since 2006 and Instagram for since 2014-ish?, and honestly, letting go of them has been a weird kind of grief I didn’t want to admit I was going through. It’s hard to put into words, but I think part of it is that we—the millennials—created this world of social media. We have ownership in this. We decided what was cool, what apps were worth the hype, and how to connect with each other in ways no one had seen before. That’s something to be proud of. We weren’t just users—we were innovators. We brought the tech, built the platforms, and showed the world how to create communities, how to make money, and how to educate in ways that were fresh and real. And yeah, that’s pretty badass. If you were a 90s kid who had to fight with your sibling over how long they could hog the phone line so you could dial up to the internet, hearing that screeching noise that sounded like dying cats just to chat with your friends on AIM, then you get it. You understand the appreciation for where we are now. That moment when logging onto the internet felt like magic. And I love that for my generation. On the flip side, it’s also has brought a lot of unregulated power plays, along with privacy & security issues to the forefront and that’s been the scariest part. I also vainly admit (Leo Rising here) I’m going to miss a solid #OOTD selfie and a cute lil thirst trap! I’ll miss my silly ramblings of my everyday life in my stories. When posting those or whenever I posted a reel or a podcast episode, I received encouragement & engagement which really got me started with getting more partnerships, collaborations with other podcasters, & ambassador deals with brands. I am not an influencer, and I never claimed to be, but it was the Facebook & Instagram communities that gave me the courage to go for it. That goes for starting the Podcast as well as encouraging my writing and unique gifts I offer to the world. Once I started season 3 of the podcast I had way more engagement and I was realizing that I was bringing value to my audience in one way or another. Especially Women and girls who looked up to me and wanted my advice. I enjoyed giving it to them and helping, and that’s what I call a happy accident! And a large reason is because of social media’s (Facebook & IG) encouragement.
On other other hand, I think about all of the time I’m going to give back to myself. Like an immense amount of time! We all do it, we’re all guilty of doom scrolling, or staying up too late in digital dementia. I’m excited for the new sense of creativity this will allow to help shape and form my community even more here on Substack. I’m excited for new followers, and people who really want to add to the 30 Pause conversation! I’m ready for more video content and audio features this platform allows for the podcast & beyond! I look forward to all of these new encounters and opportunities! And I think by the sight of my exclamation points, you may feel my excitement for the new and unknown!
This year my motto is “Stay Focused” stay focused with creating the life I’ve always imagined, stay focused on my goals that’ll allow more security, stay focused on this platform and the podcast that has allowed me to grow in so many ways while healing and helping others along the way, stay focused on what’s most important- family & friends, happiness, art, beauty, creating, community, love, growth- Stay Focused, Heather.
If you’d like to adopt my 2025 motto, you have my full permission. If you’d like to adopt this new anti-Meta era, I not only give you my full permission, but comment on your experience & about what you hope to gain out of it. Now more than ever, it’s time for artists to make their art; in all mediums, to live out loud, and bring all the beauty, love, and creativity this world needs. Do it for yourself, your loved ones, and your community.
Thank you for reading, especially to those who have stuck with me through all of my pauses and rollercoaster rides.
Snoochie Boochies,
Heather