Facebook

Well, lets just cut to the chase. I have some mixed views on Facebook, as I am sure many do as well. But there are many pros and cons to Facebook. This is my take on it.

PROS:

Social Networking:
Just like a sports team, jobs, and other organizations, Facebook allows you to network yourself with people all across the world. You can catch up with an old friend from high school, someone you met at a leadership conference, your current friends, family that you don't see very often, colleagues, etc.

Event Planning:
Lets face it, as much as you don't want to admit it, you wouldn't remember your old high school friends birthday party if it weren't popping up in your news feed saying "GEORGE'S 21ST BIRTHDAY EXTRAVAGANZA!!!!" It comes in very useful when you need to remember dates, or when you need to plan something of your own!

Finding new interests:
Whether it be a new hobby, new friend, etc, you can find just about anything on Facebook, as well as information concerning just about anything.

News/Politics:
With Facebook REALLY starting to take off now, more and more organizations are using it to get there names out there. Whether it be businesses, politicians who want to get there agenda out there, or even news agencies to report on the most up to date information.

Miscellaneous:
There are leaps and bounds more that you can do with Facebook. Its a great way to meet new friends, as well as stay in touch with current ones. Its great to stay in touch with family that you see and don't see a lot as well. It can help you find a job, people with similar interests, etc. Overall, it is a great tool if you have the time to commit to it!

CONS:

Time Commitment:
As I said above, it is a great tool if you have the time to commit to it. However, if you do not have the time to commit to it, it can damage your career, your relationship not only with your significant other, but with your friends and family as well, it can negatively affect your GPA/school work, etc. Facebook is very time consuming and within Facebook's very complex site, there are multitudes of other games and tools that you can use to devour even more of your time. Just like there are alcoholics, and drug addicts, Facebook can be an addiction as well. So use with caution.

Social Networking:
Now, you may be saying to yourself..."I thought he listed that as a positive?" No you haven't drank too much tonight and you are seeing correctly. I listed social networking as both a positive and a negative. Often, Facebook can shed a light on you that you may not necessarily want. For example, if you have a picture of you funneling a beer or doing a keg stand, people may not want to hire you or want to associate themselves with you. Or if you are someone who is always swearing on your statuses it probably doesn't reflect well on your character.

Facebook Can Be "Caddy":
Now everyone has heard the term "Facebook official" (unless your over the age of 40). It seems like everything these days HAVE to be on Facebook. So if you are in a relationship, everyone knows. If you break up, everyone knows and wants to know why. If you are in a fight with someone, everyone knows. People get mad and "de-friend" people. It just can be a caddy and annoying.

Lose Touch With Reality:
With technology at its current state in our society, its easy to remove yourself from the real world and enter the digital world. Especially with the development of cell phones/texting (and now iPads/tablets). its just another way to interact with people without...interacting with people. We are slowly slipping away from talking to people and speaking face-to-face, and to be quite frank, its scary. How often do you text your best friend? How often do you call him/her? You may surprise yourself.




So with all of that being said, I am sure I am missing plenty of different points, but I hit the ones that came to mind. Feel free to discuss! Enjoy :)