Introducing Connection Quality
Not all connections are created equal, and that’s why we are introducing Connection Quality. Learn more about our updates to the way you log connections with your people.
This November Fabriq launched some major updates in the way you can track connections with your people! The biggest? Connection Quality!
“Quality—you know what it is, yet you don’t know what it is. But that’s self-contradictory. But some things are better than others, that is, they have more quality. But when you try to say what the quality is, apart from the things that have it, it all goes poof! There’s nothing to talk about. But if you can’t say what Quality is, how do you know what it is, or how do you know that it even exists? If no one knows what it is, then for all practical purposes it doesn’t exist at all. But for all practical purposes it really does exist.” – Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
Why We Built It
“Connection” and “Quality” are two of the most difficult concepts for humans to understand on their own — let alone when we try to tie them together — and yet, intuitively, we know that not all connections are created equal.
A simple text isn’t a call, a call isn’t a video chat, and — while it’s sometimes the best we can hope for with our loved ones that are long-distance — a video chat isn’t the same as a great dinner or week-long visit. Perhaps this week you feel great about a simple text message to your friend letting them know they’re on your mind. Perhaps next month you really won’t settle for anything less than a three-hour dinner date. Only you can decide what is or isn’t a connection, and whether it satisfies your intentions with your people.
While our phones are always getting smarter with the information we let them manage, we must be mindful of the decisions and responsibilities we offload to them, and which we keep for ourselves. Additionally, social media “feeds” often make all the decisions about whether you’ve seen “enough” of your family and friends this week, but on Fabriq, the decision to reset your Touch-Base Timer by tracking a connection will always be a subjective and personal one.
After all, Fabriq isn’t here to simply increase the volume of texts you send or calls you make, we’re here to help you make regular, meaningful connections and develop healthy Social Wellness habits along the way.
Adding someone to Fabriq is, at its core, a way of setting an intention, and an expression of how much you care — one we hope your people recognize. (You should tell them!) Personally, my deepest intention for building and using Fabriq was to get some help restoring relationships I’d, unfortunately, let go “cold” over the last 10 years.
For each of the people you decide to put in your limited Fabriq slots, you may have an intention to restore, accelerate, or simply maintain a relationship that matters to you. Whichever it is, indicating the quality of your connections provides the next layer of awareness you can use to reflect on and then act on your intentions in new and better ways.
How It Works
Log a connection with quality:
Tap on someone in your circles and drag the thumbs-up button to the right. Let go on the first, second, or third space to indicate whether the connection was “Okay,” “Good,” or “Great!”
Add a note?
Did they mention anything important coming up in their lives? Did you learn something new about them? You’ll notice that you’re encouraged to take a note (or two) when you track a connection with quality.
We know you don’t always have notes in mind when you open Fabriq to track a connection, but trust us: you’ll immediately feel some magic created by this small opportunity to reflect. You’ll realize, more often than you expect, that you did hear something worth jotting down. It might change the way you listen in conversations, even make you a more “present” person.
Adding notes, ultimately, will give you the super-human ability to recall important details in your people’s lives and show up for them when it counts. They’ll feel seen and heard, and you’ll feel great about it.
Want to move quickly?
While we encourage you to take a moment to reflect when you can, we know you’re busy and have also included a way to move quickly when you track connections and reset your Touch-Base Timers. Just tap on one of your people and then tap on the thumbs-up button without sliding: Boom! Connection made and on with your day 🙂
Then What?
Once you’ve tracked plenty of connections with quality, Fabriq will make that information useful to you in a few different ways:
- Your “Connection Story” email (and an upcoming in-app version) will give you insights about the quality of your connections over time with individuals and groups (“Family” or “Inner Circle,” for example).
- You’ll be able to see a history of connections for each of your people, which will include when you connected, the notes and reminders you’ve added, and the quality of each connection. You’ll even see your overall connection quality as you’ve tracked it over time.
- You’ll get more personalized nudges (notifications) that will take into consideration the apparent health of your relationship, determined by the quality you’ve been tracking with them and other factors.
- Eventually, we’ll blend all of this together to share insights with you about your overall social wellness as-indicated by the frequency and quality of the connections with all of your people, their relationship to you, and the closeness and importance of those relationships as indicated by their circle.
We’re excited to show you these features (and much more around Notes, Details, and Reminders, too!) so if you’re interested in a sneak peek or want to provide feedback directly to our design team, product team, and founders, click here to schedule a video call.
We can’t wait to hear from you!
Adam Taylor
Co-Founder, Fabriq
About Fabriq
Build Better Social Habits
Fulfilling relationships are scientifically proven to keep you happy and healthy — boosting your immunity and longevity. When you prioritize the people that matter most, even when life gets full, you naturally show up better for them and yourself.
Science-backed and the first of its kind, Fabriq is designed to improve your social health and make building better social habits easy, so you can focus on what (and who) really matters.
Recent Articles
Understanding Social Support Benefits: Strangers vs. Friends & Family
Think about all of the people you know in your life. Of these people, is there someone you feel like you can talk to or confide in? What about when you’re experiencing something difficult in your life and need advice, do you have someone you can reach out to?
The Health Science of Connection
Think about all of the people you know in your life. Of these people, is there someone you feel like you can talk to or confide in? What about when you’re experiencing something difficult in your life and need advice, do you have someone you can reach out to?
How Play & Games Are Crucial to Strengthening Human Connection
Think about all of the people you know in your life. Of these people, is there someone you feel like you can talk to or confide in? What about when you’re experiencing something difficult in your life and need advice, do you have someone you can reach out to?
