Follow

/ Jeff Cann

When I hit follow, I mean it.

Many WordPress users follow blogs simply to get a follow back. To boost their numbers. I understand this. Because it happens to me so infrequently, getting a follower is like a small hit of crack. A rush.

Topping a milestone, 100, 200, etc, is something more. But I don’t really know what because it’s only happened to me once. A few months ago, I bypassed one hundred followers. And I’m now one away from two hundred.

I won’t trade for follows. I don’t want my reader filled with unreadable content. For the most part, I don’t want to read about travel or makeup or restaurants in a city I’m not planning to visit. I don’t want to read about books I’ll never read. Or movies I’m not going to watch.

I want to read about people. I want to read about goals, dreams, fears, foibles and achievements. I want to read about you. I want to read about real people blossoming and withering. Growing and shriveling. Experiencing life… and death.

I want to read dissent, opinion and point of view. But I don’t want to read about hate. Hate is for Facebook.

Today I unfollowed my first blog. A post offended me. It left me feeling dirty, stained, and wondering why—why would I voluntarily read something that is counter to my beliefs. It didn’t leave me feeling educated. It wasn’t challenging, just mean.

I’m not afraid of ugly. Many of the poets I follow paint a picture of the world that is black and red. Not beautiful, but a slap in the face. Screaming wake up. In their posts there is no hate, just truth.

Hate is for Facebook.

390 thoughts on “Follow”

  1. I get you! I love the article. Sometimes I wonder about what people think about what they post. Why are they so long? Most of the time I can’t understand the poems. Each to his own. RESPECT I browse every blog on Discover and WordPress. If it makes a footprint in my sensibilities and emotions … YOU GOT ME.

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  2. I see your point, I like following blogs by people I’d like in real life, and while I enjoy a good rant, there’s a functional rant and a hate-fueled unhelpful one. nothing wrong with unfollowing sometimes. if only it were so easy in real life. also, I’d argue that *sometimes* we might want to read something on travel or makeup or restaurants, written by a real person with real views, if we’re considering going to that place or buying that thing. there’s a need for all sorts of blogs out there, and that’s why I’m happy that there *are* all sorts of blogs out there.

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      • Thank you for the suggestion Jeff but actually the reason I am here is because I took the Dr. Jordan Peterson self-authoring program which is basically the same thing except that it encompasses one’s entire life and goals in all the different aspects. I intend to go through that course every six months to continue mapping out my direction. I have been recommending it for anyone who is feeling directionless since it does a good job of determining what we really value.

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  5. Hi Jeff

    I reluctantly unfriended someone – a longtime friend – from FB. I have a page there for writing. Then one for family. I don’t mind dissent, disagreement. But when I tried to comment with respect I received back a lot of hateful stuff. Now … my friend and I have always disrespectfully disagreed. No problem. But all of his friends spew some serious stuff … my way. I skipped the posts, and stopped discussing. But, that didn’t help. So it was with great sadness that I unfriended him.

    Social media is a treacherous sea of crazies. For me, I want to it use for author ‘stuff.’ I decline to post politically. Just, too much anger. Don’t want those vibes following me around. I follow many authors. My belief is authors should support authors, and cooks support cooks. I fall into those categories, and even at my … advanced age … I suspect I still have some words to share.

    -C

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  7. I am like you. I don’t always have time to read each post word for word, but I do read enough (at least the first sentence of every paragraph) to decide if it is a subject I want to follow. I am trying to build a network of people who want to help each other, pass along writing tips, and save animals. I want my follows to draw more followers of the same type, not just any follower. When I find one I like I tweet it for the same reason. Thanks for letting us know that we don’t have to trade a follow for a follow if we really don’t like or agree with their format.

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  8. I think I just found a whole new world with your honest article. Thank you. Finding the blogs that I do actively wish to read has not proved easy. I sometimes feel I’m in a bubble.

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  9. i agree. I don’t want to talk about make-up or travel I want to write about myself, my experience, my goals and my desires. Particular brands or dresses you can’t have or afford and reading up for them is truly waste of time. I was so confused that I started blogging to share my experiences and my goals, my motivations, different stories not to share whats new in my wardrobe. Thanks to the keyword follow I came to you. Hitting that follow button to listen new every time from you. Much appreciation for your true honest words…

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  17. Wow, so many likes and comments! I have to say in the past year I have done the same. I went through and cleaned up my reader. If I didn’t have a reading relationship with the writer I unfollowed them. If I didn’t have a relationship but liked their content, I kept them. There are a couple of people that follow my blog, but they post multiple times a day – just a picture or something and it loaded down my feed. So I dropped them too. It was tough – cause it took so long, but I love my reader now. All blogs I want to read. It’s great. Follow inspired me, years later, but I thought about it the whole time.

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