Ever since instant messaging was invented, group chats have become an important function. Everyone needs at least one unless you’re living in a cave. Group chats solve the need for more than two people to communicate. This would be a great feature if people have self-discipline.
But most people don’t.
I have numerous group chats across various IM apps. For example, I have nearly 50 groups for work and socializing. Could have been even more with my insatiable need for social interaction. It is no doubt that group chats are an unintended drain on my time and attention. Everyone has a scarcity brain. Sometimes I group chat during breaks at work, but it reduces the efficience of productivity. It even harmed my relationship with my partner, causing them immense sadness and leaving me with regrets.
So I started quitting a lot of groups that I didn’t really need. This had two benefits: it better protected my time and attention, it took up less space on my phone. If anyone needs to reach me, they could just text or call. Nothing was ever particularly urgent.
After a few years of quitting, I feel my mind is cleaner as well as my phone. The earth remains the same whether join those groups or not (for the most part). But the difference is still in my thinking and life, because I still can feel the huge change after quitting.
I’m wondering what made you decide to write the article in English.
Because I intend to practice my English skills, specifically expressing myself in another language. Language shapes the way we think.
Nice try !!!
So will you use AI to check what you writ before you press the send button?
Yes I do, but as an assistant, only for checking typos and grammar correction. I detest letting AI do all the writing.
My WeChat group is nothing without you.
You are the reason this group exists.
Used to be in a fiction writing community and we had a huge official QQ group and some smaller groups that people created for different purposes. It did not only drain energy but also caused countless childish argument that happens monthly or biweekly.
So we shut it down, switched to Discord, which is a way better solution than IM apps. It has servers and channels and sub-channels. People don’t just dump shit in one single chat.
Still costs a lot of attention though. Your way of quitting is better but finding a better app works too. It also divides purposes: QQ for school, WeChat for real-life friends, and Discord for entertainment, the less important kind.
You’re so right about the childish argument part. Those blackholes do nothing but make people feel angry and anxious.
Discord is such a great service. I join several channels for Obsidian, TiddlyWiki, Quartz, AI-generated images, etc. And it funtions quite well in web app. The sub-channel feature is amazing. It somehow reminds me of the good old IRC chats.
I’ve longed to use apps for different purposes for a long time, but unfortunately it seems impossible for me.
确实不必要群 不看的群，直接退出。节省时间。