After having been on Facebook for close to two years, I am deciding to call it quits. In this day and age of social media and internet marketing, this idea probably comes across as a little crazy, especially considering what I do on the internet with this blog and other social media outlets.
You will still be able to get a hold of me via this blog’s contact page, or on Twitter at either @drbharshe or @theatlasoflife. If you want to comment on a blog post, leave a comment on the blog post or start a discussion at The Atlas of Life Forum. For those of you that have my personal email, you can get a hold of me there too. I’ll still be around, just not on Facebook.
I have my reasons for doing this, and they are as follows:
1.) I, like many other people, am guilty of whittling away the hours by sitting in front of Facebook too long. I can’t tell people they need to get up from the computer and move around and exercise if I am not doing so myself.
2.) Because of Facebook, I have come to know a lot more people than I probably would have had I stayed away from it. On the flip side, I have also witnessed and experienced the loss of several relationships BECAUSE of Facebook. You know it’s bad when someone becomes friends with all your Facebook friends to get revenge on you… for whatever reason in their childish mind. Yeah, I thought that was pretty stupid, too.
3.) Facebook is a powerhouse of a website and one of the top sites for social media and networking. But I don’t care. I’ve always thought MySpace was dumb and never got into it. I think I’ve done alright with this blog minus the use of MySpace. Currently, about 68% of this site’s traffic is from new visitors. I’m pretty sure my blog will continue to get this kind traffic, even if I don’t use Facebook anymore.
4.) Of my current 861 friends on Facebook, I have only interacted with maybe a third of these people. I’m not saying the others aren’t worth interacting with. It’s just that Facebook has become this weird place where you can let total strangers into your life just because they have a common interest with you. I guess it’s the same with other social media outlets, just more personal with Facebook.
5.) Facebook has supplanted blog comments. When I share a new blog post on Facebook, that typically gains more comments than the actual blog itself. I don’t want that. I want comments on the blog to be submitted ON the blog. That might seem like a lame pet peeve, but hey, what can I say? Call me lame. LOL!
So there you have it. It’s been nice knowing you Facebook, but now it’s time for me to move on.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
I recently did a big purge of my Facebook accounts… trying to keep it to people I actually know and love. As a stay at home mama- it’s an important place for me to socialize. I also have lost friendships due to sharing controversial articles and engaging in discussion about them… it’s a bummer how people feel they can say ugly things via the internet.
I agree Anna. People are real tough when they hide behind their computer screen. I totally forgot to include that in my list, but thanks for reminding me!
I just thought of 2 more reasons.
6.) I don’t like when people make inappropriate comments or spam my profile wall. It’s rude and unnecessary.
7.) As I said in the previous comment, people tend to get real tough behind their computer screen. Call people out in person, and not so much. I always try and make sure that I don’t say anything on the internet that I wouldn’t say in person.
Facebook can be a playground for the ego.
Way to go Doc! That’s a big step but one I’m sure many would benefit from. While Facebook does have professional advantages that some leverage well, far more use it as a way to inhibit their Major Outcome Activities.
Thanks Dr. Brady! I’ve been done with Facebook for a couple weeks, but decided last night I was going to be done with it for good.
Also, funny this post came out on the day of this news article:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ytech_gadg/20100524/tc_ytech_gadg/ytech_gadg_tc2204
No thank you, Mr. Zuckerberg.
Nevermind. The stand was fun while it lasted.