Is Facebook killing your vibe?
Let's talk about the most boring conversation in the world. Yep. "Did you see what so and so said on Facebook?" Or it might be, "did you see what so and so said in the comments?" That is actually worse. I want to actually eye roll at you.
I don't though because I'm nice, but I'm eye rolling inside.
Nothing that you have seen on Facebook is worth talking about. Especially the comments.
What? It's juicy gossip! It's the pulse of a community/workplace/school. It's meant to be hashed and rehashed.
Nope. Here's the deal. In ten minutes, one hour, a week, a month... no one is going to care about what someone wrote on Facebook. They just aren't. And if that is the whole of your conversations you are spending too much energy on it. Real life is where it's happening.
So, why bring this up? Because it is 16 days into the new year when I am writing this and I've been in 11 conversations with people where this comes up. I've heard about people getting their feelings hurt over a comment left, a "take down" over someone else's opinion, gossip about a family, an entire thread retold to me and more. And what I walked away from each of these conversations with was that the other person seemed to be giving way too much of themselves to what other people were typing online.
Yes, it's awful to have someone say something mean about you online. If you have the power to delete the comment then delete it and move on. It's also awful to talk about other people who aren't in the room. It's just gossip.
New Rule: In 2020 we will not give more energy to other people's online lives than we give our real life. In other words, we will learn to walk away from the comments and engage in our own life.
How do I do this? I have absolutely everyone hidden on Facebook except my daughter. Everyone else I have to go out and see their profile if I'm interested in their lives. I get that isn't how the platform was meant to be used, but I also don't see the need to be invested with your online life more than I am in your real life. I also don't comment, read or participate in groups that are just venting fests where nothing is actually happening. I'm all about action, but I'm uninterested in solving the worlds problems by sharing my 2 cents on a Facebook post.
The bottom line is that Facebook is for business. They are making money off of every keystroke, like and share you are making. They sell all of that to advertisers. I'm totally not against that. I use it as a business tool everyday for myself, organizations and clients, but my personal life isn't flourishing there and I don't really want it to.
I get that this makes me a boring Debbie Downer in conversations, but I'm living by the adage from Eleanor Roosevelt, "Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people."
Do you need help with this? I'm thinking of doing an online Q&A about managing Facebook for our sanity and to move our lives and businesses forward. If that's something you would be into send me a thumbs up back.
Until then, I look forward to seeing you in real life or over on Instagram which is my actual online happy place.
xo,
Jackie
I'm excited to speak at the Arkansas Festivals and Events conference January 30th and heading to Wisconsin in March to consult with Main Street organizations on their marketing strategy. If your team needs a new strategy or your group/chamber/organization needs a speaker - reach out. I'm booking for 2020 still!
Find Me: JackieWolven.com LinkedIn Instagram Facebook