I have had my Facebook account turned off for about five days now. In that time I've been tweeting, I've signed up for Foursquare (see what I mean about addictive personality?), and I updated my LinkedIn profile. I've also driven to an RV center to do a test-drive of the rig that my husband and I want to purchase. I've done all kinds of housework (purging). I've even made dinner.
But I really do miss my friends. I've had a couple contact me and ask what happened; some knew, and others were informed by a few close friends what's going on. I may - may - decide to log back in this weekend. I have a fantastic girls' weekend planned with some reporters from Ohio and Illinois, and I may need to post pictures, etc.
What I can say is that I was productive - though I didn't have quite the page volume to really say SHUT IT DOWN - and I did find things to distract myself when I needed a work break. I watched a movie with my husband and basically shared time with him that I might have spent listlessly reviewing my Facebook page.
Politics isn't going anywhere, nor is religion. But I have a sense that I'll be revamping my privacy sections a lot in the future. For now, I'll be offline, possibly checking in on Foursquare. And I'll be working on my backlog pages too.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Friday, October 5, 2012
Facebook and Work
I know many of us are now using social networks to keep connected with our family, friends, and colleagues. One of the things I've been learning about myself is that I LOVE to share. After cancer, you tend to really focus on the positives of life and try not to dwell on the negative. For me, I have enjoyed sharing my travels and my foodie adventures, quoting movies with friends and finding out who shares my quirky movie preferences, and even sharing some of my working life with friends and colleagues.
One of the OTHER things I've learned about myself is that I really believe in the old maxim about keeping your opinions about politics and religion private. It's not just that it really is a private thing, though I strongly believe this, it's also that if you are using social media, you never know how your friends will interpret your posts. Some people who may see your posts may have a differing opinion and may decide to take their work elsewhere, may end your friendly relationship. Is it worth it? I don't think so.
Then there's the third thing I've learned. I have an addictive personality. I love being on Facebook. I love seeing what my friends post and learning what's going on in their lives. Most of the time my Facebook page is open in the background and when I get to a break point in my work, I can escape and touch base with my friends.
After a day filled with political commentary that filled my wall, I decided to call a halt to my Facebook usage. I deactivated my account. I did it with little to no warning. It's been about 12 hours or so now, and I miss my friends. But I'm trying to think about the work that I need to get done, the things I can do AWAY from my computer (a bike ride? a deposition assignment? time out with my husband?) and I'm hoping that I can wean myself from my addiction. And get a lot more pages churned out.
One of the OTHER things I've learned about myself is that I really believe in the old maxim about keeping your opinions about politics and religion private. It's not just that it really is a private thing, though I strongly believe this, it's also that if you are using social media, you never know how your friends will interpret your posts. Some people who may see your posts may have a differing opinion and may decide to take their work elsewhere, may end your friendly relationship. Is it worth it? I don't think so.
Then there's the third thing I've learned. I have an addictive personality. I love being on Facebook. I love seeing what my friends post and learning what's going on in their lives. Most of the time my Facebook page is open in the background and when I get to a break point in my work, I can escape and touch base with my friends.
After a day filled with political commentary that filled my wall, I decided to call a halt to my Facebook usage. I deactivated my account. I did it with little to no warning. It's been about 12 hours or so now, and I miss my friends. But I'm trying to think about the work that I need to get done, the things I can do AWAY from my computer (a bike ride? a deposition assignment? time out with my husband?) and I'm hoping that I can wean myself from my addiction. And get a lot more pages churned out.
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