Time Bandit: Farmville

Social Networking games like Farmville, Fishville, and Bejeweled Blitz are total time bandits.  Believe it or not, some people actually pay money to play these games.

One of the most annoying things about Facebook, until recently, was the steady stream of "Wall posts" from friends playing Farmville.  You always knew your friends were a little dense, but now you have real evidence of it.

Billy found a cutsey-wootsey lost calf on his farm?  Will you help him cook it and eat it?

Uh, no.  I have better things to do that play with virtual cows.

Fortunately, Facebook allows you to filter out these messages now, so your "feed" is not clogged with Farmville updates all the time.

You want to play a REALLY COOL ONLINE GAME?  Try these sites!

www.bankofamerica.com

www.etrade.com

www.ameritrade.com

www.eftps.gov

www.turbotax.com

To name a few...

Yes, these are financial sites, where you can play with REAL MONEY and MANAGE YOUR REAL LIFE, not a "virtual farm".

How many Farmville players spend an hour or more every day managing a "Farm" that doesn't exist, but fail to balance their checkbook or manage their personal finances? 

My suspicion is, a LOT.

Virtual games like this consume a lot of time - time that could be better spent on something that really adds to your bottom line.  Some people actually hand over hard-earned cash to "buy" virtual cows or crops or whatever - all to impress others.  It is status-seeking reduced to the virtual level.

The fun thing about playing the BankofAmerica site, as opposed to Farmville, is that the "coins" in my BOA "account" are real.  And when I accumulate more of them, I can actually spend them on things other than virtual cows.

If you are spending an hour a day on Farmville or other online games, first ask yourself how this is affecting your work performance.

Next, ask yourself if you could use that time more productively.  If you are not logging onto your bank account EVERY DAY to check your balance, but logging onto Farmville every day to check your farm, you have your priorities bass-ackward.

Put that Farmville energy to better use.  Managing your taxes, your investment, and your income might not be as colorful as Farmville, but it can be as much fun - moreso because the rewards are tangible!