Those who know me personally may have noticed “hey, where did Carly go on Facebook?” (or no one noticed and I am incredibly self-involved to think that anyone would care that I disappeared from the social network). Anyways, I finally took the plunge and deactivated my account. This isn’t the first time that I’ve deleted Facebook, and I don’t find it as difficult as many think it would be. I took a hiatus last year for a few months, and it was incredibly refreshing. To be honest, I reopened my account during one particularly boring lecture, and I was sucked into the vortex once again.
I’ve been considering deactivating again for months for reasons to be discussed below, but this video was the icing on the cake (thanks to my friend Shayla for showing me). I’m never one to freak out about conspiracies or believe everything that a YouTuber or public figure says, but the points made in this video make you think. I personally started to question the power of technology and how the heart of social media has changed in my lifetime.
I wanted to make a comment on social media in general and my personal reasons for deleting Facebook. Why bother? There are a ton of reasons that I’m over Facebook. First off, I’ve had my account since 8th grade (that’s 8 years ago, folks). Once I found a link that allows you to calculate how many days you’ve wasted on Facebook since the creation of your account. I am embarrassed by how much time I’ve wasted staring at my newsfeed, and honestly I was probably being generous with my comments of “well I don’t spend THAT much time on Facebook…” In actuality, Facebook is always there. Whether it be the app on my phone that is only a click away, or the tab that has been permanently open on my browser for years, there is no escaping Zuckerberg’s pull.
Next question, why Facebook and not Instagram, Twitter, etc? It’s simple: I’m a social media addict. You can’t expect me to go cold turkey, can you? And I wouldn’t want to. I love social media. I love (alright, and hate) what it has the power to do, and I am fascinated by what goes on with people I know and care about. However, Facebook is my biggest time waster of them all. Instagram and Twitter are black holes too, don’t get me wrong; but in my eyes, they have limits. I eventually catch up to tweets or photos that I’ve already seen, and get bored of searching for new content. On Facebook, there is always something new to look at. Always a new person to creep or a new album to like. I go on Facebook with the innocent desire to shoot a message to a friend, and the next thing I know it’s three hours later and I’m lurking my friend’s high school teacher’s dog. You laugh, but you know it’s true.
Social media in general is notorious for bringing out a desire for validation. The desire for hundreds of likes is an ever present demon lurking over me every time I post. I think a lot of people have this subconscious (or not so subconscious) craving for attention, and I kind of hate how social media enhances those desires.
Last but not least (the reasons are endless), I am terrified of what Facebook does to my soul. During my hours of scrolling through people’s accounts, I experience incredible roller coasters of emotions. Whether it be seeing photos of friends doing things I wish I was doing, people I’m not entirely fond of, or ex-loves simply existing, I hate the feelings that come over me. It is human nature to feel jealousy and annoyance, but I hate that a social media site can bring that out in me. I can’t be bothered with anything less than positivity.
I am committed to focusing my energy on those that I love and those that love me back. I want to focus on work, friends, exercise, blogging, creativity and living life…and, okay, maybe some Instagram thrown in there as well. ♡
What are your thoughts on Facebook and how it has evolved?