Last year I begrudgingly shut down my Facebook account. I was a little surprised and overwhelmed by how many people wanted to be my “friend.” I realize that as the founder of the only venture capital firm in Idaho, that clearly had more to do with the position than the person. I soon had a Facebook relationship with many folks that I didn’t know very well. Like most folks, I created a Facebook account to take advantage of what I perceive to be the real value of Facebook, staying closer with good friends and family who I don’t get to spend as much time visiting with as I’d like.
Given that I say “no” to 99 out of 100 entrepreneurs who come to our firm for capital, I was reticent to reject “friend” requests from people who wanted to connect with me on Facebook. Bluntly, I grew uncomfortable with so many people having access to my personal life that I decided rather than “un-friend” so many people (gosh, what a terrible description) that I’d just shut the whole thing down.
Unfortunately, if there’s one thing I’ve learned from spending the last 15 years with a front row seat to innovation, it’s that if you don’t get on the train it’s going to leave without you and it’s become clear that Facebook is here to stay. I feel left out of part of my friends lives that I want to stay close with and I want to be a part of that. So last night I created my Facebook (2.0) page. I’m going to slowly re-connect (on FB) with the friends and family that I have a close and emotional relationship with and I plan on keeping my Facebook circle to those that I’m closest with.
I’m sensitive to the fact that it may be insulting if I don’t accept an invitation from you to connect on Facebook but between this blog, my Twitter account and my somewhat public life, I feel like folks have enough opportunity to interact with me if they want to. For those in Boise, I’ll continue to support Dawson Taylor (The best coffee shop in town) and share a cup of joe with anyone who wants to meet with me, just call Denise and ask her to get on my Friday morning coffee schedule . Thanks in advance to those that see me back on Facebook and respect my desire to keep that private.
this is why i love the privacy settings. my fan page (it appears) is public, but my social facebook page is exclusive to friends and family. My fans benefit from Real Estate news and Boulder Interest. That's why they are there; to gleen from information that I hear on the street and get educated. I also like to promote them. I view FB like a telephone. Its there for my convenience and I choose to answer or not. PRIVACY SETTINGS
good thoughts jennifer. i guess i view this blog as a proxy for the FB "fan page". if i've got something interesting to share about venture capital or the region, i put it here. the fan page is definitely a great solution if you don't have a blog.
by the way, i just learned that boulder recently became only the 3rd "platinum" bike friendly city in the country. one more reason that outside of boise, boulder's my favorite place in the country, congrats!
My 21 & 19 year old daughters are aghast with the thought of someone over 30 having a facebook account. I tried to tell them that the fastest growing demographic is women between 30 and 45. They wish we'd find our "own place".
Don't despair Ken, I'm quite sure that they're already working on their own place!
Agreed Gerry, I think there's a natural tendency as our generation gets older to hold on to our private lives. Today's generation is so used to having a broad and deep public profile. It's going to be fun to see how us geezers choose to go…