Don’t get me wrong, I love all things social media. I mean come on, I talk about it for a living. I love that it keeps me connected with family, friends and colleagues and allows me to get to know people I otherwise would not have the chance to. I love how easy it is for me to stay informed on current issues and things that I care about. I love it so much that I talk about it for a living and for several years have yet to go a day without checking in on said networks.
Lately I have found myself questioning my relationship with one social network in particular: Facebook. My relationship with Facebook started in 2005 which means that I’ve known this particular network longer than I have known my husband. Luckily, I joined on my way out of college so there doesn’t seem to be too many incriminating photos of me that exist (or at least that I know of).
Let’s get into the meat of why I am even writing this post. To be completely honest, I started it a couple months ago after finding myself completely annoyed at what my “friends” were sharing on Facebook. If you took at look at the edit history, you would seriously question my ability to publish a post. Thanks to a healthy argument I had with Kevin McKeown about this lovely social network, I was alerted to the following video, Everything You Wish You Could Say to Your Facebook Friends (via Mashable) which in all honesty pretty much sums up the “hate” part of my relationship with the book.
It was also this particular disagreement that gave me what I needed to finish this post. Since then, he’s been on a mission to share just about every negative piece he could find and Facebook didn’t help their case with the recent buzz about the mood manipulation study. Between the continued frustration I have with idiotic status updates, ridiculous photos and flat out bragging and the anti-Facebook stuff Kevin sends my way, you are probably thinking I am getting ready to say I am done with the whole darn thing. Well, the truth is, I have concluded that at the end of the day, I still mostly enjoy being a part of Facebook.
I started to dissect the people that drive me insane…you know the ones who post with no regard about how their audience might perceive their post? I remembered that I am not perfect and I am sure there are things that I do that people gawk at. These people would drive me crazy whether we were on or offline and at the end of the day, am I strong and smart enough to realize that I can block them out. Why should I let some random advertisements and constant posts about why “breast is best” destroy my day? (Disclaimer: I am not against breastfeeding, I breastfed my daughter but I do appreciate that every situation and every mother faces their own parenting challenges, this included. I personally do not care to be reminded of the struggles I’ve faced). This topic alone should be its own post but I will save that for another time.
When I moved away from my family from Chicago to Seattle six years ago, Facebook gave us a platform to stay connected 24/7 and to share the adventures my husband and I embarked on. I truly believe it made us closer. Now that I am back in Chicago, it is like we have not missed a beat. I’ve also become part of several groups which have given me new connections and brought information my way I might not have otherwise come across. “To each their own” is a motto I try to live by and it’s not always easy. I’m human, I slip up but why should I join the masses and disregard Facebook just because “that’s what everyone else is doing?” I’ve decided that instead of letting the negatives get to me, I am going to focus on all the positives being part of this network has brought me.
As a wrap up, I will leave you with a nice and easy post by Diane Gottsman titled 6 Tips for Proper Social Media Etiquette in the New Year. My favorite is the last tip and one I need to remember, “It’s not all about you!”
I’m curious to hear others opinions, thoughts, comments on how you view Facebook.
Image courtesy of Mediaispower.com