Where do you stand when it comes to Facebook birthday messages?
I’ll be honest – I’m not a huge fan.
If the person celebrating a birthday is somebody close, I much prefer to contact them via text or even in person rather than use Facebook (overseas friends and family excepted).
Although then when I jump on Facebook and see all their birthday messages mounting up, I do feel a bit guilty that I haven’t publicly shared a message for the world to see!
I’m certainly not against receiving posts on Facebook when it’s my own birthday, though sometimes I do find it interesting, like when it comes from somebody I haven’t spoke to in ten years 😉 .
A Reminder from Fakebook
What I really hate is how Facebook reminds me that it is somebody’s birthday and would I like to post on their wall? No Facebook, I would not. Because the thing is, if it’s somebody I particularly want to contact about their birthday, I don’t need you to remind me.
It just doesn’t feel genuine if I have to be prompted to send a birthday greeting (no wonder it’s known as “Fakebook”!)
But then I see all the other people leaving birthday love on their Facebook wall so okay, sometimes I cave because what if they notice that I haven’t given them a shout out, maybe their feelings will be hurt and it will ruin their birthday!
After all, it is nice to receive all that love via Facebook when it’s my turn. And if I only get a handful of posts, it does tend to make me feel like a bit of a “Nigel No Friends”. It reminds me of my first year in high school, when I gave a Christmas card to pretty much every girl I knew. It was the “thing” to do. I received dozens in return, which I proudly displayed by hanging over strings attached to my curtain rod. It was a tangible display of my popularity and my self-worth!
Facebook is today’s string of cards on the curtain rod. Seems the teenage girl is still alive and well somewhere inside 😉 .
Clearly I’m overthinking it. I’m damned if I do, and damned if I don’t. It all depends on how I’m feeling that day as to whether I post a birthday message or not!
Where do you stand?!
finally, someone who feels like I do about FB birthday messages! What I do is make my birthday private, so I don’t get messages on my bday unless particular friends have remembered, which is far more meaningful anyway. And I don’t post birthday greetings as a rule, though occasionally I’ll make an exception…
Ah good idea I might do that too!