Why Unfollowing Someone Is Sometimes Required

Are you committing a crime against social media unfollowing people? Absolutely, definitely, certainly, positively, irrefutably (I've now run out of synonyms for absolutely) NOT.


Sometimes the urge to hit the unfollow button is required. You may have followed this person with the best intentions, back when you thought they would be someone who could inspire you, a friend you thought you would be online besties with forever or just someone you know and loved. Let me tell you guys who are sitting there thinking that would never unfollow anyone on social media - your time will come to unfollow someone, believe me.  

Why Unfollowing Someone Is Sometimes Required

These days, from my perspective, I could never justify following somebody just for the sake of it. If I feel this person or group of people no longer inspire me, or the person/group have lost my respect for a certain reason, then I will hit the unfollow button, no questions asked.


I am someone who is all for social media platforms being a happy, aspiring and positive place to scroll through, not a negative, pessimistic and uninspiring one. Why would you though? Seriously? Social media then becomes deathly dull and unbearable, possibly to the point that it has a bearing effect on your mental health and wellbeing.


Each social media platform that I have an account with will have specific reasons for why I would unfollow someone. What I mean by this is that I will unfollow someone on Instagram who doesn't inspire me creativity-wise, is negative, is discriminatory in any form or is just inactive on their account. I will unfollow someone on Twitter who is negative, discriminatory, is bullying other users or who is just a tw*t. I will unfriend someone on Facebook who is being nasty to others or, again, is just a tw*t. 



There is always a good reason to unfollow someone when you need to, it's all about what you are willing to tolerate, but please, don't tolerate it because you think you'd be an evil person for doing the supposedly unthinkable malicious task of hitting the unfollow button. Don't ever feel guilty for doing it. I shouldn't really tell you how to feel, nobody should I ever do that. But all I'll say is -


"They're your social media feeds, make them a happy place. Not a sad one"


However, I do appreciate that there is a certain obligation to follow people like family, friends and your favourite celebrity because you love them so much. You wouldn't be in their good books if you unfollowed them because their baby photos or their lovey-dovey photos of their new relationship were clogging up your timelines. As a little reminder though *whispers* - Instagram has a mute button if the idea of unfollowing is not deemed a good one. Problem solved, no need to unfollow those cherished ones.

Why Unfollowing Someone Is Sometimes Required


For this post though, I kind of want to focus more on those people you've never met in real life or don't have any intention to. I've followed people on social media for one reason or another, then unfollowed a while afterwards because they're feed doesn't tickle my fancy or they no longer inspire me with my creativity. Like I said, I'm an advocate for making our own social media feeds are happy place to be a part of. Also, somebody who inspired you before may not inspire you now, and that's ok. Inspirations change over time, like the wrinkles on your face or the colour of your hair. It doesn't make you a bad person unfollowing someone, in fact - it can be a good thing. 


Think of it this way, the other person would rather have people following them who want to follow them than people who follow them just for the sake of it. We create content almost every day to keep our audience and followers drawn in, I would hate to think that people are following me just because. I may have just warranted an unfollowing spree or two on my own channels now after saying that. Oops. 

Why Unfollowing Someone Is Sometimes Required


Unfollowing someone is not a vindictive act, and it should never be seen that way. Like I said previously, things change over time and as we grow, different people will inspire us to those who inspired us years ago. The people I dislike who unfollow are those who follow/unfollow. That's a trend that should be in the bin by now - along with them. There's just no need for it in this day and age. 


Everyone will have their reasons for unfollowing someone, don't berate them for it, understand they're doing it for the right reasons.
53 comments
  1. I totally get this. Sometimes there is someone that I want to follow but don't necessarily want to see their story - I just want to like see how they're getting on (if that makes any sense). I've muted a couple of peoples stories which helps x

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    1. I think the Mute button on Stories is a great option if you don't want to follow their Stories but just that person's feed Caroline x

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  2. I completely agree with this! I always feel bad for doing it, mostly if they are people I know,so muting them is a better answer! Though as you said, growing and changing you shouldn't feel guilty about unfollowing x

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    1. Muting is a great alternative to unfollowing Cristina, especially if you're someone who feels guilty for unfollowing! x

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  3. A big yes to this post! Unfollowing people is completely normal and definitely shouldn't be something to feel bad about. I think especially since I've had a blog for so many years I've found that I've followed certain accounts since I first started up my blog - which now are either inactive, completely different to what they were originally or just no longer inspire me x

    https://www.femaleoriginal.com

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    1. Absolutely Faye, there is no need to feel guilty about unfollowing anyone at all! Like you, I have unfollowed accounts that no longer inspire me like they used to and/or are inactive x

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  4. Sometimes I feel bad when I feel like I want to unfollow someone but then I know I need to do it and it will make me feel better once it’s done! X

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    1. There is that sense of guilt in unfollowing someone Aaliyah, but sometimes it does need to be done! x

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  5. I love this post - you've spoken to something that has such a negative stigma attached to it when in fact that is not always the case. Also I never knew about the mute button in Instagram so that was a wonderful tidbit I learned from this. I agree that we need to think about what we want to see on our feeds and what makes sense for us to review and re-evaluate. Thanks for this post!

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    1. Thank you lovely! Yeah there is a mute button, use it to your heart's content now!

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  6. I still kinda feel bad unfollowing people I followed at the beginning of my blogging/socials journey. I appreciate the small act of support they lent me in following me at the start, but I never speak to them and their content isn't something I'm actively consuming or enjoying. I've learned to be a lot freer with that unfollow button, and it really is quite nice! x

    brineandbooks.com

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    1. I can understand that Macey, there is a sense of loyalty there x

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  7. I didn’t like to unfollow people and now I understand I have the right especially if the person is being negative, abusive or talks about marginalised groups in an inappropriate way. Thank you for this post.

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    1. Absolutely Lauren, it's good to unfollow someone who is being negative or abusive towards others!

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  8. I don't unfollow a lot of people but I know I should. Some people can be very negative and I don't like to see those posts, but I can't always bring myself to unfollowing as many of those people helped me at some point. This was a great read :) x

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    1. I can understand where you come from, but sometimes unfollowing will be the best thing, especially if they're posting negativity! x

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  9. I completely get what you're saying, I've recently done a huge unfollow spree and I feel so much better for it and my Instagram feed is finally something that inspires me instead of getting me down like it used to.

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    1. I'm glad that you feel so much better for unfollowing Bethany!

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  10. Its so necessary to unfollow people sometimes, just as you yourself change, other people change too and if your not still aligned then why would you stay following them? Just for the sake of it? Its definitely something I've been working on recently, curating my social media to fit who I am now, not who I was when first joined! Milli x - http://millidavison.co.uk/

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    1. I agree Milli, people and things change over time and what inspired you before won't inspire you now. It's good to change things up! x

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  11. I absolutely love this post. I totally agree with everything you've said. My feed is curated by me, I will pick and choose who I want to follow and I won't be made to feel bad!

    Rosie

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    1. Thank you Rosie! That's great that you have curated your feed to who you want to follow and you should never be made to feel bad about that!

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  12. Couldn't agree more, my love. I find it essential to only follow people who light up my life or inspire me in some way.

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    1. It's so important to follow others who inspire us!

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  13. I feel like there's this stigma around unfollowing influencers because it seems like an insult, but I think it's totally ok to just not vibe with someone's content.. and if it doesn't inspire you, make you happy or educate you, why would you follow them?

    Katie | katieemmabeauty.com

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    1. There is a stigma, but I think it's important to remember that not everybody's content will be everyone's cup of tea! x

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  14. Yes it depends I do not follow anyone very often. The one thing that I will unfollow is if they are posting 5- 8 times a days that is just too much, though not a fan of IG anyway. Then there is the whole follow unfollow trick which of course is so based on IG and its stupid algorithm did I mention I was not a fan?

    Allie of
    www.allienyc.com

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    1. Umm, I think you're giving off that vibe yes! Haha!

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  15. Yes to this post. I think its so important to make sure our feeds are making us happy and not dragging us down. I try to look on my social media as an extension of myself and so if someone is posting things that are negative or I really don't agree with them, I'll unfollow them.

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    1. Absolutely Kelly, it's important that our feeds are happy places and ones that don't drag us down!

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  16. It is so healthy to unfollow from time to time!

    Danielle | thereluctantblogger.co.uk

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  17. I make my timeline as healthy as possible. If I feel the need to unfollow, I just do without hesitation. Other times, if the person means so much to me but their content doesn’t cut it for me, I just mute. I think muting is better

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    1. I'm glad to hear that you make your timeline as healthy as possible lovely! Muting is a good option to have!

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  18. I totally agree with this. Sometimes it is very necessary to unfollow someone for your own well being!

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  19. I'm with you 100%. In the early days of my blog/ social media I used to think I had to follow everyone back or couldn't unfollow people just for the sake of being nice but that went out of the window a while ago now. Every now and then I have a little flick through and usually end up unfollowing someone who I never engage with or don't love their feed, or unfollow people if they're doing/ promoting something I definitely can't support. It may as well be a happy place with things/ faces we want to see x

    Sophie
    www.glowsteady.co.uk

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    1. I was the same Sophie, I felt like I needed to follow people who followed me back out of niceness and I felt obliged to do that! I unfollow people every week nearly so I can just have a clear out of the inactive accounts! x

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  20. Agreed! As a person who is easily influenced, I NEED to keep my social media following with the best intentions! I want to build a community so they are following me just to unfollow then I'd rather not have them at all! xx

    Lynn | https://www.lynnmumbingmejia.com

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    1. Absolutely Lynn, you've got to make your social media feeds a happy place for yourself! xx

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  21. Yesssss to this! At the end of the day, we all have our reasons and it's our social media so we should be able to curate it how we want to! x

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    1. Absolutely Lisa, we all have our reasons for unfollowing people sometimes! x

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  22. Yes yes and YES!! To all of this. If I am using social media, I am doing it because I want it to be a fun and positive experience.

    I cleared out so many people/news outlets etc over lockdown and it really changed the game for me!

    Great post Lucy x

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    1. I'm glad you had an unfollowing spree and that you are enjoying social media Claire! x

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  23. Thanks for sharing, I have unfollowed a couple people on social media and there blogs for there nasty comments that they have said, which was uncalled for, also celebs that I lost interest in but then I find new ones to follow! I think unfollowing people on some social media is allright if you don't have the same intrests anymore, but some is really hurtful as you have known for them since childhood

    Nic | Nic's Adventures & Bakes

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    1. There's never any need for anyone to make nasty comments so I'm happy to hear that you unfollowed those people Nic x

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  24. Loved reading this Lucy. Now I’m going to have a little clear out on who isn’t inspiring my on Instagram! I do feel this way about feeling guilty unfollowing people, but that’s where the mute button is VERY handy. Thanks for sharing x

    Isobel x

    www.fashionistachic.co.uk

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    1. Thank you Isobel! The mute button can be very handy can't it?! x

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  25. Yes to this post! It's so healthy to unfollow the people that aren't bringing you positivity and joy - thanks for normalising this x

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    1. Absolutely Della, there's no need to follow people who don't bring us positivity and joy! x

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  26. Hi Lucy.

    Love the Thesaurus beginning - a post that is entertaining and educational ;)

    I completely agree with your sentiment here. Its like the Rules section for a forum that I moderate on - it just says 'Don't be a dick!'. I think that about sums it up.

    That said, from memory I think there is only one person that I have un-followed. That was somebody on Twitter that posted promotional posts so often, and in such great volumes, some days that I had to spend 5 minutes scrolling before I found any other posts! Not cool. :)

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    1. Thank you Richie!
      I love that rule for a forum that you moderate, that's how it should be!
      It's good promoting posts, but it's important not to spam others feed with them!

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  27. Fantastic blog post. I'm 100% with you on this one also like I say to other people it's your social media account so if you want to unfollow then do it. I've just been going through all my social media accounts and I've unfollowed loads of people and that is for so many reasons. Fantastic blog again as always keep ✨

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