Shoot, I don’t know.

But I do know this: it took me way to long to figure out how to opt out of the Open Graph Whatever It’s Called (even though I’m still not sure I should have) and the amount of time it took me to figure out why my profile information had suddenly disappeared tonight (I decided not to connect it with the pages) was ridiculous.

So my theory is this: If you are selling yourself as an easy, convenient way to keep in touch with friends, then your website needs to be EASY to navigate and CONVENIENT to use.

Is it too much to ask to have a super fast way to wish someone a happy birthday via wall post when I forget  A) to go to the store and get an actual card to send via (gasp) snail mail, or B) forget the birthday entirely, until Facebook reminds me?

At least I can take comfort in the fact that our collective annoyance may spark new, innovative alternatives.

It’s not really the privacy thing that bothers me, though. If partner websites want to know that I dig running so they can market their high-tech, brand new and shiny running shoes to me, then I don’t have a real problem with that. Nothing on my profile is really that private. If you’ve known me for a few hours or follow my (totally public) Twitter feed, you already know everything that’s on my Facebook profile.

What’s annoying is the amount of time and energy it takes to find and flip one simple privacy setting. Or the principle of it all – it’s not the lack of privacy, it’s the seemingly unapologetic attitude and disregard for user concern that gets me.

But maybe my annoyance with Facebook just makes me an old curmudgeon?

Included in the post is a video from Sister Salad. It made me laugh out loud:

The video is an important reminder that blog comments are a part of your personal brand, so make sure they represent you in the way you want! And, proofreading is your friend.

New bff.

Photo by my awesome co-worker, Lois.

Now I’m required to care about things like furnaces, water softeners, retaining walls and paint colors. Exciting stuff.

More to come… soon!

1. Your type becomes evident.
I am an INFJ . I walk into a perfectly lovely home that has most of what I’m looking for – a logical buy – but it’ll be a no-go if it doesn’t feel right. I rely on the gut feeling provided by my Intuition preference.  The thought of making an Excel sheet or point system to evaluate different properties  kind of makes me shudder. But my Judgment preference means I also  keep lists of houses on the wish list, the maybe list and the no list because I’m an organizational dork.

2. You should not try to HG-TV your home.
You are not a professional. The home improvements you make will not look as nice as it does on “Designed to Sell“. Borrow some ideas, sure. Take on a DIY project that requires major structural changes? Please don’t, unless you are incredibly handy or work in construction (in which case, please let me know if you are selling your well-maintained and recently updated home).

An important part of being successful is knowing when you can handle a project and when to get help. This still applies to your house.

3. Realtors have no work/life balance.
My realtor is available all the time. It’s really convenient – I get questions answered super fast and showings set up in less than 24 hours. She says the irregular hours work well for her because she can spend time with her daughter when she wants and work when she feels her best. I would not be able to handle that. It is important to know what you’re getting yourself into when you decide to pursue a certain industry. I would not be a good realtor, because I will not return your work-related email at 2am. Sorry, friend. Personal fit with a specific industry is important to consider before pursuing a career.