... we are taking a hiatus from social media. This can be viewed as a taboo move in small business communities. For years, entrepreneurs and solo-entrepreneurs have absorbed messaging that social media is vital for survival. I'm not totally convinced. Here's why I'm trying something new, and how you can stay in touch with me.
3 Reasons I'm Dark on Social Media (for Now)
1. Our People Aren't There... They are Here.
True Story. Social Media is phenomenal. I know a lot of traffic comes from there, and eventually we will re-enter those arenas. However, our best relationships are HERE, and The HeART School. I want to focus our energy on YOU. You deserve it. Don't worry... that doesn't mean you're about to get spammed with more emails. The number of emails will stay the same, but my goal is to increase the quality and meaningfulness of this space.
2. Quiet Time
For better or worse, social media is a loud space. The algorithm rewards shocking, consumerist, and noisy content. Those of you who have been connected to me for awhile, know that this brand aims to be meaningful, but not big for big's sake. Many independent makers notice they fall out of alignment with their true aims on social media. Over the past year, I noticed decisions about direction and content weren't in the spirit of your best interests or my mission. This quiet time will be used to hone better services, classes and energy-focused illustration for YOU.
3. The Algorithm isn't True Community
Many of you may have watched the award winning documentary The Social Dilemma. If you haven't I highly recommend it. I have been thinking about the ways the Social Media Machine watches this community, watches me, and negatively affects my personal relationship to my work, art, and you all. This was one of the foundational reasons I created The HeART School. It is much smaller than Instagram. Right now, there are about 120 artists over there. What we let go of in size however, was gained in spades through authentic community.
There are many reasons I'm excited about this, but the main one is that The HeART School is a completely ad-free, private platform. It doesn't watch/ respond to your psychology with aims to manipulate you. You'll see what I mean if you make a free account and try it out. The space has a gentleness and sincerity that is completely absent on traditional social media channels. If you want to learn more about the space, we wrote about it here.
How to Stay in Touch
If you were primarily connected to me through my Social Media channels, never fear. For now, the best ways to get the same information is through the Museletter and The HeART School.
The Museletter is sent at the beginning of each month. Throughout each month, class mailings are sent to segments of this community as well. If you prefer to keep you inboxes clear, I highly recommend creating a profile in the The HeART School. It has fantastic preference options. Update the settings to see as much or as little as you like, unsubscribe at any time.
We'll be Back!
We are excited to take this sabbatical from social media and return soon! In the meantime, you can also reach out to us directly at admin@borrel.li with any questions or love notes (we really like those.)
Much Love,