Welcome to YourLight!
Today I’m inviting the first set of pilot users to the app and I’m very excited to hear all of your feedback, but most importantly to find out whether this app helps accomplish the goal that inspired me to build it – to help us stay more connected to each other in the real world.
For me at least, it seems modern life is too planned and curated, and without shared third spaces where we regularly meet, we lose much of the social spontaneity and unstructured time that is the glue that holds people and communities together. And the friction of resolving that is high when we’re no longer just seeing each other as we walk down the street.
So that’s the gap I hope YourLight will fill. A simple signal, like flipping on your porch light, that lets people know you’re available for others to drop by, or to join you at the park, give you a call, or anything else. No pressure of the formality of an invitation, just ambient awareness of what is going on and the fact that you are welcome to join in, within an app that doesn’t ask for your attention when it’s not in service of real-life connection.
And that’s it. For the pilot, my only asks are that you use it naturally, share feedback if anything looks off or can improve, and most importantly, share the moments where real connection happened that you wouldn’t have experienced otherwise.
And a few quick tips as you get started:
Start by adding friends
I've seeded groups of people who already know each other, so you should spot some familiar faces.
Invite your own people
In Profile → "Invite your Friends," you can share codes with anyone you'd like to bring in. Invites are limited and taper down the further you are from the initial invite list to keep the pilot small early on.
Turn on your light
The best way to feel what this is: next time you're around and open to company, flip it on. No plan needed — just a signal that the door's open.
Tune your notifications
By default you'll get a nudge whenever a friend turns on their light. If that's too much, switch to only the friends you follow, in Profile.
Follow the blog
I’ll keep posting here throughout the pilot with updates, tips, stories, reflections on the problem and mission, etc. Feel free to subscribe to these posts directly or there’s a link from the app, as well.
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Thank you for exploring this idea with me!
Brian