Snapchat was created in 2011 when Evan Spiegel and Reggie Brown, who were studying at Stanford University at the time, decided to use Snapchat's first prototype, Picaboo for a class project.
The idea was to 'encourage frivolity and increase the natural flow of interaction.'
Now, over six years later, Snapchat has grown to be one of the largest social media apps available to users today, with over 150 million daily active users.
And I will no longer be one of them.
1. You forget how your friends sound in real life. What's worse? You forget how you sound too.
Now when you send a video on Snapchat, chances are you use some sort of filter to make your voice higher or lower to contribute to the comedic effect you were going for. But sometimes it's all you use with a person. How do you expect them to remember your real voice when all you send them is Snapchat rants in your Chipmunk voice?
2. Snapchat gives you the news.
Now, Snapchat can keep you updated on the world around you by providing you with 'stories' from famous companies like CNN, Buzzfeed, and BBC. And that's a huge problem.
3. Snapchat makes you uglier than you really are.
Snapchat has a variety of filters to play around with. Some are seasonal, some are classics, and some are simply for fun. It's funny how different people's images are on Snapchat over other social media apps like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
4. Snapchat will ruin my social skills.
What some people love about the app is how you don't even have to take a picture of your face to conversate through Snapchat. You can take a picture of a wall, a door, or any other meaningless object and people won't even care. Everyone does it. But now I'm losing the ability to talk to a person face to face. Sometimes I even start talking to the wall next to a person because I forget that Snapchat isn't real life.
5. Snapchat is not giving me the exercise I need.
Instagram makes me go out to snag those high-quality pics. A pumpkin patch. The beach. The city. Facebook finds nearby events for me to attend. Even Pinterest gets me to the kitchen to make my new favorite recipe. Snapchat? You don't even have to leave your room to carry on a conversation through Snapchat. Snapchat is contributing to the of American culture.
6. Snapchat promotes slavery.
We're all slaves to our Snapchat streaks. Sometimes it's hard work - trying to think of something to say to a friend you've lost in real life but haven't lost on Snapchat. Instead of becoming a better indicator of friendship in real life, Snapchat streaks simply add to the increasing prevalence of fake friends and followers for a better image on social media.
So for now, I will be saying goodbye to Snapchat.
Here's to being beautiful again, exercising more, and slipping free of the chains Stanford alums called Snapchat.
