I first created my facebook account back in 2004. Facebook was very young. It was limited to certain students attending certain universities. You had to have email verification to prove that you attended that university. Very few people were on it. I was totally strange for switching from Myspace to this “facebook” thing.
Fast forward 6 years. Facebook is no longer this new thing nobody has heard of. Adults, Teenagers, Pre-Teens, Moms, Dads, Grandparents, MANY people are on facebook. Now people don’t have to prove they are part of any particular school, or work group. Heck, you don’t even really have to be a person (mascots such as Herbie Husker have pages).
I always expected it to become more commercial. I was never surprised by advertisements, or other such things. But as time went on I did get annoyed. Most ad-on applications that comes near you or your pictures have the right to take, or use those pictures. While facebook appears to be trying with their privacy issues, they do change how profile settings work. A few times now I’ve had to log in and change settings as they’ve made changes and adjustments. There are just as many false rumors about facebook and privacy as there are true ones, and each time I’d have to put effort into researching and making a choice of what settings to use. It got old. I got tired.
You add to this the fact that my time is limited. I have 2 kids, and I already have a bad addiction to blogging and reading online. I decided it was time to pair down. Make choices. Choose my priorities. I decided to delete my facebook account.
At first I felt this would be hard. How would I keep up with my friends? What would I miss out on? Then I realized that facebook is not REALLY a good way to keep up with people anyway. After reading something on somebodys wall or looking at a photo, I felt like I connected with them… but I did not. I did not see them, I did not talk to them, everything was virtual. While I’m okay with that (heck, I’m a blogger!) I needed to limit it.
I will keep my blog, and I will use twitter to micro-blog. But facebook is now behind me. My “real life” friends and I can call each other, visit each other, or email each other. I will hopefully be less distracted by virtual communication, and spend better quality time with my friends and family. I’m excited! It’s a new chapter for me and my husband (who has deleted his account as well).
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
I was just going to join Facebook! It’s very popular with many of my friends these days, but I’m still learning about the web. Maybe I’ll do more research before I join. Thank you!
The security is not a huge issue if you are willing to keep up with their policies as they change. I’m just lazy, and each time they send me a notice, or I see a rumor, I hate having to research it and decide what to do. I think most people just don’t care. I’m kind of a control freak. I have no issues posting information, I just like to know that I’m controlling it. I don’t want to post something to “friends” then later find it else-wear. I know when I post to my blog it’s everywhere… but I know to post accordingly.
I think the biggest issue for me was the social aspect. I loved having hourly contact with people, especially far away people I don’t see often (if ever), but it was making me feel more “social” than I was. I felt like I spoke with a person, or was keeping up with them… but I was not. I was just some voyeur online =). Anyway, I don’t think there is anything wrong with facebook itself, just more facebook for ME =)
I constantly go back and forth about whether or not I will create a Facebook page for my blog. Sometimes I feel like I’m missing out on free samples I could be getting through Facebook. That’s what lures me. What’s kept me from it is dealing with high school people. I didn’t have a great time in high school and I don’t want to be found, lol! Also, it’s one more thing online I have to keep up with. You know what that’s like. I’m still at a crossroads. I still don’t know what to do.
I’m glad you did the right thing for yourself by deleting your account. It’s great that you have more time for friends and family in person now. That’s what’s important!
Thanks for following me on Twitter. I’ve been enjoying looking around your blog. Your facebook post is very timely I think. I was just at a San Diego Tweetup and one of the women was describing it as you did, but she hadn’t got the nerve to close her account. She was still unsure. I have two teens on facebook and this allows me to see what’s up, plus I do still enjoy checking in with friends and family that way. However I’m really hardly on it anymore (hello Twitter & my new blog), and I’ve been starting to feel like it’s (fb) just one more thing to manage. Thanks for your thoughtful post-it’s given me another perspective to think about.
I currently have an 11 year old stepdaughter. She is not yet on any social networking sites, but once she is I will likely join just to monitor her. I’ve told her I will not write on her wall or do anything to embarrass her, but I will monitor it. I think when that time comes I may create an account with no content just to do such things, so I could see her staying on for those teenagers. I knew if I kept my account I’d still log into it, so knowing I did not have the discipline to erase it I made it go away. Besides, the constantly changing privacy policies were getting annoying!
Victoria, Hope you are able to make the right decision for you! I will miss keeping up with some old friends, but in the end I figure If I don’t email/call/see them, perhaps I’m not really “keeping up” with them anyway… but that’s just me =)
Kudos on deleting your FB account. I hardly ever use it, never log on – but I have found that every once in a blue moon, it’s a good way to connect with people that I would otherwise, be completely out of touch with. Still, I’m all for reducing the “online” thing. I think far too much time is spent in front of the computer, then in the world, enjoying it.