How to Become a Creative Genius by Using Only Two Platforms and Boosting Your Creativity
You’ve probably heard it a million times: if you want to succeed online, you must be everywhere. You must create a profile on every platform and post nonstop until you get traction.
But what if I told you that’s not true?
What if I told you that being on too many platforms can actually hurt your creativity, productivity, and happiness?
That’s what I discovered after I deleted most of my social profiles six months ago.
In this article, I’ll share with you why I decided to quit social media and how it has helped me focus on the platforms that work for me.
Why I quit social media
It all started in October 2022, when Elon Musk caused a massive uproar on Twitter with his controversial tweets. I was following the drama closely and realized how much time and energy I wasted on this platform.
I decided to delete Twitter from my phone. And while I was at it, I also logged out of Instagram and Facebook and deleted those. I had wanted to remove these distractions from my life for a while, and thanks to Elon’s shenanigans, I got the push to do so.
At first, I felt a bit anxious. What if I missed out on something important? What if people forgot about me? What if my business suffered?
But as the days passed, I noticed something unique: I didn’t miss having social profiles.
Not from a personal perspective. Without Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and so on, I had more time, energy, and deeper connections with my friends, and most importantly, I had more time to read and write more.
And not from a professional perspective, either. I didn’t miss out on business opportunities. I didn’t miss out on communicating with my readers.
As far as I could tell, I didn’t miss out at all.
That realization inspired me to write this article. Today, the prevailing advice is to create a profile everywhere and post nonstop until you get traction. But in my experience, that’s terrible advice. Here’s why.
The truth about social media
There are three main reasons why being on too many platforms is a mistake that someone else has persuaded you to make:
- The people giving you that advice are gurus who want to bring you to their platform because that’s how they make money.
- (Most) platforms take time and don’t give you anything back.
- Your skills and interests make you a bad fit for 99% of platforms and an excellent fit for 1%.
Let me explain each point in more detail.
The people giving you that advice are gurus who want to bring you to their platform. Two years ago, I created a Pinterest account. Why? Because a likable Pinterest influencer persuaded me that that’s where all the money and views were.
She said: “Pinterest is my FAVORITE way to direct more traffic to your website…and that means more page views, sales, and $! Through this course, I want you to refine your Pinterest strategy and give you the start you need to grow your business!”
I thought: “I’d love more page views, sales, and $!” So I signed up for her free email list and took her course on getting started with Pinterest.
Ultimately, I made two pins, got mediocre traffic, and bounced.
The same thing happened to me with Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, and probably several other social media platforms that aren’t even around anymore.
These influencers were vested in convincing me theirs was the right platform to make it big. It’s not malicious — they’re just biased.
They wanted me to feel that I needed to learn how to use and be on their platform because that’s how they got me to sign up for their list, check out their free course, get value, and ultimately buy their paid course. Our best interests don’t always align for that reason.
So when you hear promises about a platform, take a moment to reflect: is it a platform you like and enjoy? In that case, feel free to take advantage of the resource.
But it might just be a biased creator trying to make you feel FOMO even though, deep down, you know it’s not a platform that will work for you.
You should narrow down your platforms because the people who persuaded you to expand in the first place can’t know your situation, talents, or story.
Every platform takes time from you.
Instagram was a different story. I persevered on Instagram for a long, long time.
I followed all the “rules.” I posted regularly, religiously used every new feature IG rolled out (who remembers IGTV?), and always asked readers to comment, scroll, like, whatever.
I got 2k followers! And… nothing else. I don’t want to think about how much time and energy I wasted trying to stay “on top” of Instagram. And for what? I got a handful of email subscribers (hi if that’s you!) and some likes. No clients found me through IG. I never got sponsors.
My time on Twitter at least provided entertainment but no business opportunities or growth. None of the other platforms ever panned out for me. My two most (and only) successful platforms have been blogging and YouTube.
It’s easy to think that it won’t take much time or energy to post on these platforms, isn’t it? How long does it take to write a tweet? But this is a fallacy for two reasons:
- It’s never just one tweet. It takes time, consistency, and effort to keep up with platforms. Look at successful Twitterers, Instagrammers, etc. How many posts have they made? I bet it’s in the 100s or 1000s.
- You don’t just spend time, and you lose it. Time is a zero-sum game. Every minute I spent on Instagram, choosing a picture, filtering it, writing a caption, scheduling it out in advance? It’s a minute I wasn’t spending on writing or filming.
Think of the opportunity cost. You should narrow your platforms because you can only keep up with up to two.
Your skills and interests make you a bad fit for 99% of platforms, and a great fit for 1%
I have the benefit of hindsight, of course, but if I had to predict which platforms would be successful for me actively, I would have chosen YouTube and blogging regardless.
Why? Because:
• I like and am good at writing.
• I like and am good at being on camera.
• I like and am good at explaining complex things in a simple way.
All those factors make me a good fit for writing a blog and YouTube. They make me a bad fit for Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn.
• I am not good at thinking of pithy things to share with others (Twitter).
• I am not good at LinkedIn.
• I am not good at editing images (Instagram and Pinterest).
• I am not good at staying on top of trending things (TikTok).
I now challenge you to think about what you’re good at and what makes you happy. I bet you probably already know where your strengths and interests lie.
Ultimately, the combo of skills + platform format determines your success, not the platform itself.
You should go for platforms that let you showcase those strengths instead of thinking that the platform decides your success.
I fell into the trap of believing that good results would compensate for lack of talent or interest. I thought if I got traffic on Pinterest, I would be motivated to keep going, even though I didn’t spend much time there or enjoy using it.
It wasn’t true. I got 400 views on a pin and 10 on a second pin, and then I stopped using Pinterest. I couldn’t bring myself to care. Maybe if I’d been very successful from the beginning, I could have — but then I would have lacked the energy to bring the consistency you need to succeed. It’s a chicken and egg situation.
You should narrow your platforms because you won’t be a good fit for more than a couple.
What should you do instead?
Being present on +2 platforms in any meaningful way is a mistake someone else has persuaded you to make. It doesn’t make sense because a) it sucks your time, and b) you’re not a good fit for most platforms, thanks to your existing skills and interests.
A lot about success and how to be successful online. There’s this idea that all you need is consistency. (I’ve written about how that’s not the case). There’s another idea that you only need to be an early adopter. I used to rue the day in 2019 when I thought about making a TikTok account but didn’t. (I’ve also debunked that idea here.) Then some claim it’s all luck.
It’s not down to consistency. It’s not down to luck. It’s not down to being early, so you don’t need to compete.
Those all help, of course, but what makes a difference? Focus and intention.
Want to be successful online? Delete your Instagram, Pinterest, Youtube, TikTok profiles, or whichever you find drains your energy without giving back. Unsubscribe from whichever gurus keep giving you advice that isn’t working for you. (I won’t be offended if that’s me! I support your journey, with or without me!)
Focus on the platforms that work for you. I’d start with just two. And pick them with intention.
• Do you have the skills to stand out and succeed?
• Do you enjoy spending time (REALLY enjoy, not just find yourself scrolling because you’re addicted) on the platform regardless?
• Do you think you'd still want to post there if you weren’t successful even after being consistent?
You need yeses to each question for that platform to be worth it.
I challenge you to pick TWO platforms. Make sure they meet the criteria I listed above. Commit to them. Focus on them. Go all in on your strengths. Stop chasing the dream of other platforms.
And delete the rest.
(Or you can go for the less dramatic alternative and log out.)
I promise — you’ll miss out on much less than you fear.
If you enjoyed this article, please share it with your network and let me know what you think in the comments. Have you tried quitting social media? How did it affect your creativity and productivity? What are your favorite platforms and why? I’d love to hear from you.
