Basics

It's not All Or Nothing!

Still shot from Airplane! (1980); two men in white collared shirts with ties, one on the left is sniffing from a glue canister while saying Looks like I picked the Wrong Week to Quit Sniffing Glue
Don't go hard or go home. Airplane! (1980)

The biggest mistake I see people make when they first start Opting Out is to assume that it has to be all or nothing. They have to stop using EVERYTHING Big Tech related, right away, or they are not living their values.

I can't think of a worse way to effect change!

Yes, the issue is urgent. Yes, it is important to take action.

But doing it all at once, and going hard, just means you are bound to fail. Bound to relapse, rebound, or go back to the Big Tech companies that make it easy for you.

It reminds me of this famous scene from the movie, Airplane! Over a series of scenes, a visual gag develops where one of the advisors in the control tower admits he picked the wrong week to quit smoking ... and drinking... and amphetamines ... and sniffing glue!

Well of course he did. Because you can't do it all at once.  And complete abstinence from everything will only bring you running back to the fold, complaining that it was too hard to leave.

Going all or nothing, all at once, is a great way to rip off a bandaid. It is a horrible way to change your habits.

You need time to get comfortable in a new groove, to adjust to a major change in your lifestyle. 

You need time to figure out what works for you, to adjust, to bring over your relationships, to spin up new accounts.

You need to go slowly. One step at a time. 

I wrote the Cybercleanse initiaally over 21 consecutive days. But you don't need to do it all at once.

Work your way through the Cybercleanse one day at a time, maybe once a week or once a month.

Pick one system you're going to change up. Make a plan to leave. Try out some alternatives. Settle down with a new service before you try something else.

Try out my techniques like Render to Caesar or Data Balkanization, which give you more options.

Read through my Top Ten questions about Opting Out to make sure you choose a strong way forward.

Changing all your habits at once is a great way to ensure that nothing sticks.

Proceeding with care is a great way to make sure we can start living according to our values today, while increasing the surface area of our actions one step at a time.