Why someone might not have Netflix

A friend of mine has said to me on more than one occasion, “Oh yeah you don’t have Netflix, well there’s this show…”

And I was thinking, why don’t I have Netflix? I mean I’m sure there’s a lot of interesting TV shows, documentaries, and movies my family would enjoy. We used to have it. We enjoyed it.

The day I deleted Netflix (and probably Disney plus) I was realizing:

• Our children ALWAYS want to watch shows during any free period of time (except for one that wants to be outside with friends)

• My wife and I aren’t actually using it very much ourselves to justify the cost

• One of our family values is to read more and let our brains create worlds (albeit a little slower to consume) and this competes directly with that value

My wife and I have tried to instill in our kids the joy of reading, thinking, and playing. And it’s become apparent that TV and video game time is lower on the list of providing benefits in these areas. (Though I’d argue a good strategy heavy RPG hits all three).

We're not complete luddites (though I AM a programmer…maybe I should work towards destroying ChatGPT before it replaces me?!). We have some other streaming services for free or bundled that have decent TV shows/movies from time to time but I personally don't think we need 5 different ones. Basically we’re recreating cable TV with all these al a cart channels and we haven’t had a TV payment for years, why start now?!

Have you cut any popular services because you realized it didn’t fit into your life or values?

-Jesse