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Remember: Facebook is Addictive By Design

How much control do you really have over how much you use Facebook?

If a group of a thousand brilliant scientists designed a product that was famously highly addictive - would you feel comfortable using it every day? Would you want your child to use it?

The Facebook Company employees thousands of brilliant engineers whose full-time job is to make the Facebook Product highly addictive. The more addictive their product is, the more people will use it, and the more money The Facebook Company (and its employees) will make.

It is designed by thousands of brilliant people to be addictive. And the more you and your friends and family use it, the more The Facebook Company knows about you, and thus the more addictive it becomes - for you. This is by design, because Facebook uses this knowledge to make it more addictive for you personally. Facebook engineers record every click you make and every word you write and use advanced algorithms and genius scientists to figure out how to make you come back for more.

All this is obvious, because that is Facebook’s business model. Facebook does not like to highlight this, but it does not dispute it. Facebook’s engineers track every move you make, to track how addicted you are, and make you use Facebook as much as possible.

Using Facebook does not make you happy, because Facebook is not designed to make you happy. Facebook is designed to be addictive.

Don’t be addicted to Facebook. Browsing Facebook will not necessarily make you happy. You might have noticed this yourself.

This cannot be stressed enough: using Facebook will not make you happy, because Facebook is not designed to make you happy. Facebook is designed to make you addicted to it, so they can sell you ads.

You may know that some drugs like meth and heroin are very addictive. You should not use meth or heroin even once, because they are extremely addictive substances. Using them even once can get you addicted and literally ruin your life. You should not let your child or loved ones use meth or heroin. Not even once. We don’t know if Facebook is as addictive as meth. But we do know Facebook is literally designed by thousands of brilliant people working together, to use your personal information to make it as addictive as possible. The more of your information you give them, the easier their job becomes and the more addicted you will become. Every click, every word you write, every post you read - is recorded and analyzed, for this purpose.

When you use Facebook, you are pitting your own willpower and brainpower against a joint effort of thousands of brilliant engineers who have worked for years to design a product that is meant to be addictive. A product that is presumably already being used by most people you know. Are you stronger-willed and smarter than the joint effort of all of Facebook’s brilliant employees? Will you be able to resist their strategies? If you’ve ever known someone who was addicted - you know how hard it is to quit.

Ask yourself just how much do you trust your own willpower. Whether you can easily stick to working out, a healthy diet, not smoking or drinking too much. Most people think their willpower is stronger than average: Do you think you are stronger and smarter than Facebook’s team? How about your child?

Recall a time if you have ever been talked into doing something you thought was a bad idea. Consider whether you think you are able to resist Facebook’s 25,000 genius scientists working together to get you addicted.

Using Facebook will not make you happy, because Facebook is not designed to make you happy. Facebook is designed to make you addicted to it, so they can sell ads.

We used to think cigarettes were good for us. They were cool. The cigarette industry was huge. Smoking was cool. We don’t think so any more. One wonders if we will look back and be happy about the years spent addicted to Facebook, and whether we will regret allowing them to get us addicted.

Be strong and take care of yourself. Is Facebook good for us? Can we really quit at any time?

Can you?