How I Flipped Off Social Media (And Why You Should Too)

Links, Algorithms, and the Battle for the Internet's Soul

This week, I got some “feedback” saying my articles are cool, but I use WAY TOO MANY LINKS throughout the text, which is confusing and bad for the reader—so this person was unsubscribing from my newsletter. ??♀?

Yep, I’m the queen of the HYPERLINK, and there are some solid reasons why I load my texts with them. If you’re an "internet user" and work with content, you should start thinking about this too.

I’ll try to explain myself without using a single link in this text.

Which means… if you want to dig deeper into anything I write, check my sources, explore a concept further, or connect some dots—well, you’ll have to do all the research yourself.

The Death of the Hyperlink

Before the internet became synonymous with social media, it was “the world wide web,” an interconnected network of texts and ideas. And what held it all together? The HYPERLINK. Links are part of the very structure of the online world.

Hyperlinks connect. They take you from one place to another. They are also the exact opposite of how the internet works today.

Hyperlinks are dying.

You’ve probably noticed that almost EVERY major social platform today (Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, etc.) makes it painfully difficult to insert a link in your content. First, because everything is video now, and you can’t add a clickable link to a video.

Second, because we live in the Attention Economy: the longer you stay glued to content inside a social platform, the more money they make. There is zero economic incentive for these platforms to make it easier for people to share links—whether it’s for information, sales, communities, whatever.

Technically, you can add links, but your reach will tank. Everybody knows this. If you want to use links, you have to jump through hoops—“link in bio,” drop it in the comments, use automation… It’s exhausting.

Since we spend most of our online time on these social platforms (35% of Americans internet time, for example - i think it's more), we end up trapped inside these increasingly shallow ecosystems.

Our entire experience of consuming ideas and worldviews is limited to what Instagram wants us to see. Did you know TikTok only needs 35 minutes to get you addicted? We’re hostages.

The Consequences: Brain Rot, Polarization, and Lost Control

And what do we get in return? BRAIN ROT. Tech billionaires holding too much power. A polarized, fractured society.

These platforms have become a critical part of the social fabric—but in the worst way possible. We just saw the impact of Zuckerberg’s statements last month, right?

We spend almost 40% of our time on social media, and they connect us to… nothing. We’ve never been this disconnected, with an epidemic of loneliness on top of it all.

Social Media Is Broken

I think the social media model has failed, it's broken. It’s bad for users and creators. It’s time for the creator economy to wake up: you can’t build your entire career and business on these platforms without a Plan B.

Every day, I get desperate DMs from creators begging me to help them recover their Instagram accounts—deleted with no explanation. The fact that TikTok was almost banned in the U.S. only proves how fragile this system is.

My Alternative: Owning My Space

That’s why I’m now on Substack (which isn’t perfect either, but at least it’s better).

• OK! This is the only link I'm gonna share here >> https://povcreatoreconomy.substack.com/

Social media is just my marketing channel now. My real home is wherever I own the list of my newsletter subscribers—the people I can talk to directly, without an algorithm acting as a gatekeeper.

The texts I write aren’t just content; they’re conversation starters. They spark exchange, reflection, and even annoying feedback that makes me rethink my motivations and beliefs. They lead to new discussions—like this one.

When I think about how the hyperlink is the essence of the internet, and how these connections between ideas and thoughts are vital to our existence as thinking beings, I realize that my decision to be here on this platform—and to use a million links in my texts—is an important one.

It's 2025, you know?

With everything happening in the world today—social media’s insane influence over politics, the economy, and culture—not reflecting on this is straight-up dangerous.

At this point, using hyperlinks is an act of resistance. With every hyperlink, I feel like I’m flipping off Musk, Zuck, and this whole soul-sucking ecosystem.

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