I have written before about the conservative effect of social platforms – the increasing concern about what other people think about what you write – worrying if “they” will like it.

Over the years I have been described as being brave for what I write about, and commended for my honesty, but I too feel cautious and constrained. In fact these comments have made me realise how much more worried other people are about what people think about them.

But this is how social conditioning works, it’s how tribalism emerges, how polarisation of views happens – and as with everything else the internet accelerates this. We are under increasing algorithmic pressure to fit in.

Worrying too much about whether other people share or like your posts starts to steer what you dare to share. If we are not careful it will start to steer what we dare to think.