Webupon

Facebook is not just a means of social connection anymore, but a way of life. Everywhere I look, in coffee shops, restaurants, and parks, I see people glued to their computer screens checking the status updates of their four zillion friends. This is particularly prevalent among the youthful crowd. And yet even as part of this group, I have chosen not to partake in the social networking revolution. Why would that be? Let me count the ways.

More Free Time
According to Facebook101.com, the average amount of time users spend per day on Facebook is 19 minutes. While that may not seem like much, keep in mind that spending just half an hour per day on the site is three and a half hours per week. Here is what I can do with that extra time: watch four of my favorite television shows, write five new articles, go to the gym and work out, increase my work productivity for my job, go hang out with friends, the list is endless. Now I don’t think that Facebook is necessarily a complete waste of time, but I do think that time better spent would be living your physical life instead of your cyber one.

Improved People Skills
Because I don’t use Facebook, I am forced to actually talk to people face to face. Furthermore, my relationships are not based on what happens online. The way I treat people and the way I am treated is not by how I “friend” and “un-friend” people. My friendships are cultivated slowly and surely, with much less fickleness than it would be on Facebook. I also speak more articulately and understandably because “my wrds r not wrttn lk dis.”

Keeping My Sanity
Oprah Winfrey is cancelling her show? OMG, look at that cat dressed as a person! What do you mean Kelly’s been hitting on another guy? Did you know that Tom Brady’s IQ is 104? Abstaining from Facebook has saved my brain from information overload, and I am able to keep an attention span that lasts longer than a thirty second “The Office” clip. I’m not constantly clicking from one page to another so that I forget what I was doing in the first place. As a result, I can put my full focus into things that really matter, and I can maintain an organized mind.

Am I losing out on some things by choosing not to use Facebook? Perhaps, I believe that the choice I have made is reaps many rewards. By not being the hamster on the wheel clicking through endless status updates, I can live a richer, simpler life, free from the drama involved with an existence revolving around social networking.