Facebook: Cancer of Our Generation

It’s already 9 am and I started reviewing my notifications. Birthdays, anniversary moments, and “like” on a post I copied from a TED talk. It feels like a routine, I glimpse over the news feed to check if there’s anything new. I am not looking for something particular, just browsing for sake of browsing. As I scroll through the feed, I feel various emotions, most of which are filled with either envy, jealousy, and sometimes sympathy. Rarely, I feel joy for my friends that I haven’t been in touch since years.

I use Facebook to stalk people. I use it to checkout my friend’s photos and feel somewhat connected with them. Even though, I am not connected. Facebook ensures that I feel connected.

As I go through rest of my daily grind working at a high tech startup, I open Facebook again. This time, I am not looking for new things, I am spending time looking at my profile, making sure I am portrayed as who I wish to be. I watch some TED or inspirational videos, and post it for share.

My audience is my 415 connected friends, who will see my post as part of their daily routine. Just like me, they will feel various emotions and react to a similar way that I did. Studies show we spend about an hour each day on Facebook. Which is, 365 hours per year, equivalent to about 15 full days. Every day, we are giving up one hour a day to something that doesn’t even makes us happy. The perception of “connected” feeling is a nothing but a false sense of connectivity. As much as we feel a connection, we know deep down inside that same connection is making us more isolated. The same routine that is meant for us to stay connected pushes us further from necessary social interaction. Time is ticking, and each “moment” you spend on Facebook is not what it seems to be. Life goes on, as people say, Facebook has become the cancer of our lives. It by design cripples our social interaction, fosters jealousy and envy, and creates harm rather than good. If we spent an hour a day, sending direct text messages, writing emails, calling them over the phone, let your friends know that they matter, we will be rewarded with sincerity and genuine friendships. If we spend each day we’ve lost on Facebook and take the time to meet new people, we will be rewarded with a greater sense of connectivity than we thought was possible. What would you do with the days?