Should I purge my friends list?

In the age of social media, most of us have accumulated large online friends lists on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. As time goes on, you may find yourself connected to people you no longer talk to or care about. This can lead to the question – should I purge my friends list and remove people who are no longer relevant?

The Pros of Purging Your Friends List

Here are some potential benefits of pruning your online friends lists:

• Creates a more curated network – Removing inactive friends leaves you with only current connections you genuinely care about. This makes your news feed and interactions more relevant.
• Provides privacy – By shrinking your friends list, you limit the number of people who can view your posts and information. This gives you more control over your privacy.
• Eliminates clutter – Getting rid of old connections on social platforms can declutter your accounts and make navigating them easier.
• Lets you focus – Having fewer friends can help you better focus on nurturing your closest, most meaningful relationships.

The Cons of Purging Your Friends List

However, there are also some downsides to consider when thinking about purging your friends lists:

• You may unfriend someone you want to reconnect with later. Determining who you may want to connect with again in the future is tricky.
• It can create social awkwardness if the unfriended person notices. Some may wonder why you specifically removed them.
• You’ll have a smaller network. Fewer connections mean fewer perspectives and less social reach when you post.
• You lose passive access to information about unfriended connections’ lives. Even if you don’t interact, their posts can be interesting.

How to Decide If You Should Purge

How do you know if purging your friends list is the right move for you? Here are some key things to consider:

• Last interaction – When did you last interact with the person online or in real life? If it’s been years, they are likely safe to remove.
• Closeness – Are they someone you were once close to but no longer talk to? Former best friends or significant others can typically be unfriended.
• Interest level – How interested are you in this person’s life and updates nowadays? If very little, it may be time to let the connection go.
• List size – Do you have an un wieldy number of friends? 500+ connections may be a red flag to start purging.

How Often Should You Purge?

There’s no definitive rule for how often to remove old connections from social platforms. Here are some guidelines to consider:

• When you first join a new platform, prune more frequently as you add friends.
• Conduct an annual or biannual purge to clear inactives.
• Occasionally purge after major life events – marriage, divorce, moving cities, etc.
• If your network is small to begin with, less frequent purging is needed.

Steps for Purging Your Friends List

Ready to prune your friends list? Here is a step-by-step process:

1. Sort your friends list alphabetically to evaluate connections objectively.
2. Scroll through the list, removing obvious inactives, distant acquaintances, and irrelevant connections.
3. Check recent Hidden/Restricted lists on platforms like Facebook for more candidates for removal.
4. Consider creating a “Close Friends” inner circle to test who interacts with your content.
5. Remove friends who did not engage with your test posts/updates.
6. Write down any friends you hesitated on, and re-evaluate in 3-6 months.
7. Periodically check your audience analytics to identify inactive followers to remove.

Alternative Options to Purging

If you are hesitant about the purge, platforms like Facebook and Instagram provide alternatives like:

• Acquaintances List – Move weaker ties to this secondary list with limited access.
• Restricted List – Prevents someone’s posts from appearing in your news feed.
• Take a Break – Temporarily snooze a friend’s posts for 1-30 days.
• Unfollow – Continue friending but stop seeing their posts in your feed.

Handling Reactions to Being Unfriended

Some people may notice if you unfriend or unfollow them online. Here are some tips if faced with a reaction:

• Be honest – Explain that you are simply purging old connections from social media.
• Suggest moving your connection to another platform like LinkedIn
• Recommend connecting in person over coffee or a phone call to genuinely catch up
• Kindly ask them not to take it personally and reiterate you are trying to curate your feeds.
• Express openness to reconnecting if you begin interacting more substantially again.

Maintaining Purged Friend Lists

Once you complete your friends list purge, staying on top of curation is important. Here are some tips:

• Periodically sort friends alphabetically, by most recent adds, or interaction level to reassess.
• When accepting new friend requests, immediately unfriend someone else to maintain limits.
• Check platform analytics every 1-3 months to identify inactive followers.
• When you naturally stop interacting with someone, unfriend them at that time.
• Set calendar reminders to do an annual “spring cleaning” purge of your social circles.

Conclusion

Purging your friends lists can provide many benefits – more privacy, less clutter, and greater focus on current relationships. But it also requires maintenance. Set reminders, sort and filter your lists strategically, and don’t hesitate to prune regularly. Curating a tighter social circle will lead to more genuine engagement and fulfilling online relationships.