Is Facebook Sleezy?
Facebook is meant to be for friends. Right?
It disturbs me how many people trawl through facebook and request 'friendships' with people they have never met or have met for 20 minutes in a bar (and are married or in a relationship). Is Facebook a platform for people to become sleeze bags and try and pick up women/men or is it a platform for friendship. Sure, some people don't have a life and spend every waking hour checking if someone has made a comment on their facebook pages in hope that it will make them feel better than they did the minute before.
According to Psychologytoday.com, so many people spend time on facebook because;
1. They are bored at work
2. They are unhappy with their lovelife
3. There are a narcissist (and/or voyeur)
4. They desire to 'get along' with people
5. Their motive is to 'get ahead'
I think facebook has a place and it is to keep in touch with friends and relatives and to touch base with that person who was your best friend in year 7, but a friend is not someone who you don't invite to your house for dinner or pick up the phone to. A friend is someone you really know, not someone that is a distant acquaintance.
In business there certainly is a place for facebook particularly for consumer based marketing where facebook is fantastic or even for events - but that is NOT on your personal facebook account. It is on a business facebook page that clearly communicates what the objective is for the use of this platform.
More than 100 million users access facebook through their cell phones and those who do, access it double the amount of times as someone who accesses it through a computer. There is a real addiction going on to facebook and without doubt there is and always will be social repercussions.
I personally prefer someone to pick up the phone and call me rather than facebook me a message and face-to-face beats everything hands down for those who I care about.
It disturbs me how many people trawl through facebook and request 'friendships' with people they have never met or have met for 20 minutes in a bar (and are married or in a relationship). Is Facebook a platform for people to become sleeze bags and try and pick up women/men or is it a platform for friendship. Sure, some people don't have a life and spend every waking hour checking if someone has made a comment on their facebook pages in hope that it will make them feel better than they did the minute before.
According to Psychologytoday.com, so many people spend time on facebook because;
1. They are bored at work
2. They are unhappy with their lovelife
3. There are a narcissist (and/or voyeur)
4. They desire to 'get along' with people
5. Their motive is to 'get ahead'
I think facebook has a place and it is to keep in touch with friends and relatives and to touch base with that person who was your best friend in year 7, but a friend is not someone who you don't invite to your house for dinner or pick up the phone to. A friend is someone you really know, not someone that is a distant acquaintance.
In business there certainly is a place for facebook particularly for consumer based marketing where facebook is fantastic or even for events - but that is NOT on your personal facebook account. It is on a business facebook page that clearly communicates what the objective is for the use of this platform.
More than 100 million users access facebook through their cell phones and those who do, access it double the amount of times as someone who accesses it through a computer. There is a real addiction going on to facebook and without doubt there is and always will be social repercussions.
I personally prefer someone to pick up the phone and call me rather than facebook me a message and face-to-face beats everything hands down for those who I care about.
I was once dating a man who constantly checked their facebook account and would prefer to trawl through photographs of women that were 'friends' than have a conversation with me. Needless to say, that relationship is over, but it has led to a distaste in the platform that can be beneficial and enhance your life experiences. Too many people are becoming anti-social and are losing touch with things that really matter because they are addicted to facebook accounts.
In a coffee shop in Atlanta the other day, I saw three people that were obviously studying or doing homework in the coffee shop. Each of them continually checked their facebook accounts. Surely, that must effect their ability to study. Just like when you are at work - if you are spending time checking your facebook account, you are obviously not concentrating on what you are doing and cannot possibly be giving your work 100% of your effort.
How can you tell if you are spending too much time on facebook? Here are some simple ways to see if your habits are in need of change:-
1. You get into arguments because of group titles, posts and comments on facebook
2. You have more than 500 friends
3. You update your status to give 325 people (150 friends, 100 you barely know, 10 you don't care for, 50 random strangers, 5 exs and 5 stalkers) detailed information on where you are at and what you are doing.
4. You message randomly
5. Your suppose to be working
6. You haven't picked up a phone or talked to someone in person for 24 hours
7. You are at a friends place to hang out and you log onto facebook
8. You trawl through people's photos that are not in your top20 friends
9. You mention to friends other people's status and in particular an ex's status on an ongoing basis
10. You say personal things on your facebook account
What are your thoughts? Is Facebook sleezy?
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comments ( 11 )
David
18 May 2012Facebook is definately taking over our lives and for me, not in a good way. Back when i first got an account in early 2008, it was enjoyable going on it. i could chat to friends, discuss topics on groups i have interests in, as well as play some casual games through facebook online. Nowadays you have your newsfeed full of crap, no one talks to you on chat because it's unreliable, there are far to many groups and pages that everyone (myself included) is complelled to like, as well as game requests for something you no longer have time for. At times i ask myself why i use it so often and why do i use it on my phone. My answer would be because im used to it and have got into a bad habbit, or maybe it's just a part of life nowadays.
ReplyRaihan
02 Mar 2012Facebook has taken over people's lives in one way or another. Positive and also negatively. I know some people who have over 1000+ friends and don't even converse with half of them, and would spend hours in front of the laptop everyday commenting and looking through people's pages and photos. It's a good medium for sharing information with family members and close friends especially when someone is far away, but it's also been scary to know some people are actually stalking as well!
ReplyMiguel Valero
02 Feb 2012I agree with Brendan. At uni, whether its on the laptops, public computers and phones, everyone is on facebook. Ironic to see people in such close vicinity not talking to each other but instead have their faces pasted on their screens.
ReplyI too prefer to talk to someone on the phone rather than facebook. Unfortunately, I am guilty of some of the points listed above. I find this difficult to admit, that facebook has managed to creep into my pysche as a means to remain relevant or 'remembered'. Tis a fine line im struggling to walk and figure out. Despite this, I'm grateful for the true friends that I, 100 percent know will be there regardless. Keep them close people!
Ren
31 Jan 2012I think that Facebook is a great tool to use, if you can understand the distinction between having balance in life.
ReplyTo create a good balance between Facebook usage and your work/personal life, you would need todraw boundaries as to how often you will update and check your facebook page.
Facebook is fun in moderation, to see what people are up to and keep in the loop, and to take a break. Often though, I agree with Mellissah, mobile phone users can lead to addictive Facebook checking more often than necessary.
I'm on the fence with this one, but I definately think that we can take control of our Facebook checking/compulsions, just so long as we can maintain that positive work and personal life balance.
Elsa
23 Jan 2012Facebook is an easy way to keep in touch with friends especially those who are miles away from us. However, I agree that it is a big distraction for everyone as it becomes so popular these days and also a tool to boost our own insecurities when we see from the negative side. In terms of business, we have to realise that this is a low-cost and amazing tool at the same time to take advantages of because of the fact that more than million of users access it everyday and moreover are addicted to it. Spreading the objective of the company across the globe without any cost? Couldnt thank you enough to this technology.
ReplyElsa
23 Jan 2012Facebook is an easy way to keep in touch with friends especially those who are miles away from us. However, I agree that it is a big distraction for everyone as it becomes so popular these days and also a tool to boost our own insecurities when we see from the negative side. In terms of business, we have to realise that this is a low-cost and amazing tool at the same time to take advantages of because of the fact that more than million of users access it everyday and moreover are addicted to it. Spreading the objective of the company across the globe without any cost? Couldnt thank you enough to this technology.
ReplyPaula
23 Jan 2012Facebook has its pros and cons. Too much facebooking can cause us to live more in cyberspace than in the real world. If we minimise our Facebook usage to checking once or twice a day, it ensures it doesn't rule our lifes and we still focus on maintaining our real friendships. In business- Facebook is a great assest with a large audience at your fingertips. It is important though, to know when to stop!
ReplyNevena
20 Jan 2012Totally agree with you. Facebook is should be only for frends.
ReplySophie Maniglier
20 Jan 2012Everything in this Article is true,
ReplyFacebook is like a drug and it's difficult to leave alone. All problems about private life have to be known too. Did you take time to read conditions of use before registering yourself on Facebook? In a few minutes, the user gives up his private life, this private life which everybody tries to protect can be bought by the multinationals which group all the information that you put on Facebook to constitute a complete profile, including your habits, your concerns, your envy, your dreams... I know that and just like everybody I have a Facebook account, I check it all the time... We have to be aware and be careful about it and everything will be okay.
Brendan Moran
20 Jan 2012Through university Facebook was an amazing source of procrastination for everybody, you used to be able to look around the library and you could bet your house on the fact that on somebody's screen you would see the Facebook site. I wonder what it's effects are globally on productivity as a result of Facebook.
ReplyHats off to Facebook for making it seem like such a necessity for everybody and literally spreading across the globe faster than you could say poke.
What on earth is a poke anyway? One of my friends that I went to primary school 'poked' me last week. I found this ridiculous, if you want to get in contact with me then do so, she always was a strange girl mind.
However, I completely agree with this blog. Facebook is for friends but you will always get people that try and boost their own insecurities and egos by adding anyone they have even heard of just to make themselves feel popular. It really is quite sad in a way and Facebook addiction is, believe it or not, a growing problem.
It is important that we are constantly educating children how to protect themselves online as technology and the way we interact with each other evolves.
Andy
19 Jan 2012Amazing article. So insightful!
Reply