Yes, it's been almost 24 hours since I deactivated my Facebook account. For some reasons, I don't find it useful anymore, aside from the fact that it consumes a lot of your time just by logging in and checking your timeline. I tried to weigh the pros and cons of having a Facebook account and sadly, the cons won for me. The only advantage I come up with is the convenience to communicate with relatives outside Manila. But I thought, if you really matter to them and if they really want to reach out, there's always a mobile phone or email. Aside from iMessage and Facetime, there are also tons of applications for our smart phones that enables us to call or send SMS for FREE. Failure to communicate nowadays is just a lame excuse.
Let me share you a couple of disadvantages and realize it for yourself.
1. Negative status messages. - I've seen so much of this even written in caps lock with inappropriate number of exclamation points. I used to be the emotional person and randomly posts whatever I feel that day, but now, I really don't see the point of doing so. Well maybe it releases the frustration but posting it on your wall and silently hoping that the person you intend to scream at reads your status message is just really crazy. Besides, if you treat that person as your enemy, why have them on your friend's list? That's just a higher level of hypocrisy, don't you think?
2. It triggers envy. - According to the Bible, envy is defined as a feeling of discontent and resentment aroused by another's desirable possessions or qualities, accompanied by a strong desire to have them for oneself. (source: bible.org) I so agree with this and what makes it terrifying is that envy is part of the seven deadly sins. Example, you see the profile of an unfamiliar face who happens to be your long lost classmate and is now doing very well with his or her chosen profession or you see your friend's photo albums who visited so many countries in Europe. Or worse, you see your ex-boyfriend / girlfriend who's now happily married with two kids while you stayed single after ending your relationship with them. Stuff like these triggers envy, wishing that you were in the same shoes. However, if you deny this fact and don't feel unearthly at all, then maybe this is not for you.
3. You sneak at a person's life. - I'll leave this as a statement or a question for yourself.
4. You laugh at somebody else's pictures. - Oh yes I've seen people doing this and laughing out loud just don't satisfy them. They even say nasty things about the person. There were even some who gets my attention just so I could join them laughing. Cruel! To think that the person is supposedly their friend. Tss! How would you feel if you were their object of ridicule?
5. Unethical sharing of photos. - There's this what we call "think before you click". I know we all want to share awareness but we also have to pay respect especially if what we want to share are photos of dead people caused by major catastrophes in the country. You may disagree with me but really, I just meant respect and privacy. Why not share important phone numbers instead or awareness on how to donate? But of course, things like this are uncontrollable so it's better to filter what you want to see on your timeline.
Honestly, I still have a lot of reasons to share but I'd rather eat my chocolate now than stress myself. I'm not a Facebook-hater, alright? Actually, I may reactivate it sooner than I think once I start missing my friends, but for now, I'm very much okay with Twitter and Instagram. This will also give me more time to focus on writing / blogging.
Now I'm wondering, did anyone even notice I'm nowhere seen on Facebook? ^^ Happy weekend y'all!
Much Love,
OneGutsyMom
I agree with your reasons for deciding to deactivate your FB account. For the same reasons, I wanted to deactivate mine too. But when I became a born-again Christian, I saw FB as an avenue for spreading the Word in my own little way, so I decided to stay on. :-)
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