How to Avoid Annoying People on Facebook and Looking Like an Idiot

These days most people have a Facebook account. Not having one may even get you shocked looks from people. What most people don't have is proper Facebook etiquette. Don't be the person who annoys everyone; consider this guide.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Common Sense

1. Stop taking quizzes, just stop, especially if you are over 16 years old. Most people maintain a Facebook account to reconnect or stay connected with friends. That is to say, to receive updates on things that matter such as major life events, profound opinions or views, hobbies, parties etc. They do not however want to know when you'll die, what movie star you resemble the most, who you were in your past life, or what animal is your closest relative. They already know that you'll die at some point in the future, what movie star you resemble the most and that humans and apes share a common ancestor. Anyone can create an application or quiz on Facebook. Realize that you just wasted your time taking a quiz some lonely sucker put together. Do you really need to take a quiz to find out how good of a date you are, which Harry Potter or Sex and the City character you are etc.? I think not.

2. For crying out loud, how many people do you really think care about what you made for dinner, that you're off to vacuum, suffering from PMS or that your kid took such a huge dump the stench killed your poodle? Actually, do mention the latter if it happens. Give your status updates some thought. Refrain from making yourself look lonely and pathetic by letting everyone know you've vowed to change your life, are seeking applications from eligible bachelors who believe in marriage and so on. You've got more friends on Facebook than you do in real life, but most of your Facebook friends are acquaintances at best, do you really want all of them to know every little banal, plebeian, unflattering detail about you?

3. Think about what you write on someone else's wall. Will your comment offend people or embarrass you or your friend? Reign in your tongue and don't publically talk about anything personal. If you want to air your dirty laundry by all means go ahead, but think twice before you publically air other people's dirty laundry.

4. Don't be a friend collector. Don't send people a friend request unless you know them. Understand this; FACEBOOK IS NOT A DATING SITE. Try Match.com or eHarmony if you are looking for love. Better yet, put on your Sunday best, shut down your computer and get out of the house. If you think you know someone and want to add them as a friend, send them a note first and verify whether or not you actually know them before sending them a friend request.

5. Don't send people gifts. Do you really think they care to receive virtual gifts? If you want to send me a gift, ask for my physical address and I'll be more than happy to receive a nice gift card, or even cash from you. Don't send people drinks. Call them and meet up for drinks instead. In other words, don't forward any junk to your friends. Don't ask them to join random groups or causes they could care less about. Or causes you could care less about for that matter, but that you've joined so as not to offend anyone.

6. Did you know that major concerns have emerged regarding the use of Facebook as a means of surveillance and data mining? Or that it used to be impossible to permanently delete your account and that Facebook's privacy agreement used to reserve the right to sell user's data to private companies, stating: "We may share your information with third parties, including responsible companies with which we have a relationship." What for you may be wondering? We live in a consumer society where everything is for sale, and consumer data is routinely collected for the purposes of targeted advertising and future profit.

7. In conclusion, keep your Facebook account clean. If you cringe at the thought of your boss, coworkers, kids or parents seeing it, reconsider what information about yourself you choose to make public. Now I'm off to take a closer look at my account.

Resources

• Facebook May be Past its Prime... Sweet Relief!