With the recent algorithm changes at X/Twitter (I'll call it Twitter from now on), it's becoming clear that lists may be best to see the content you actually want to see.
The "Home" feed is full of memes and lifestyle content, which I've never really wanted to see on Twitter.
I follow around 500 users, it's a number I've settled on (your ideal number may be different) to make it easier to actually ready most if not all updates that people I follow post. These are mostly active makers/creators.
There are however more people that I want to see content from, and that is where lists come in.
I try and manage 3 different kinds of lists...
Despite trying to limit the number of followers and keeping the following feed manageable, there are certain people that I want to make a point of reading their content and engaging with. I add these people to these lists. If I'm limited on social media time, I typically start with this list, and work out from there if I still have time.
There are certain niches: Indie Hacking, Laravel or Side project for example that I've been interested in for a long time. There are also people that post mostly on those topics. I create lists of prominent accounts in those niches to keep tabs on what's happening in those topics by perusing the lists.
Some lists are related to my on going projects, especially if I'm curating content for a niche.
When I'm doing a deep dive into something new, like I did with AI, ONCE or SEO, I create a list for anyone that is posting a lot on those topics.
These are typically somewhat temporary lists that I may use for a short time.
I usually seed these lists by making a post asking who I should know who writes about a topic. Rather following more people and diluting my feeds I add them to a new list. After seeing their content in lists for a while I may end up following them too!
Twitter allows you to pin lists, I try and keep this to 5-6, that appear after Home & Following in the main feed navigation section of the website and apps (so I don't have to scroll much).
The Lists feature is otherwise hidden behind too many clicks to use it efficiently, but I'll dig into olds from time to time, so it's great that there isn't a limit (that I've hit yet) on the number of lists you can create.
This helps me stay on top of what people are posting on Twitter. If I do have time, I do dip into the "Home" feed, this is a good way to see what's most popular with the accounts I do follow, even if they haven't posted it.
The new algorithm isn't great, but I do like the exposure to content I'm not directly following to find new people to follow or add to my lists.
