I like the new Facebook, or at least, what it is about to become. I’m not here to debate the good, the bad, and the confusing — you can already find dozens of posts where you can share your rants or raves.

I’m simply here to share that I like what the new Facebook is hoping to allow us to do as users. I like the question it is posing before humankind more than any other social media platform: Who Are YOU?

The new Timelines (replacing Profiles) allow users to create fluid visual stories about their lives. With the new addition of a large cover photo, and three columns that span more like blog columns, the new Facebook basically gives users mini websites, visual portfolios. You have more control over what shows up in your Timeline, which means more control over the story you tell.

{above: my new Facebook Timeline, with a Cover Photo that was taken and edited by me.
It pretty much sums up who I am… or does it?}

Who are you?

When you look at Facebook and what it has become, it’s the platform most people tend to use to connect with friends and family. Sure, businesses pages are on there, and my friends and I all post work-related updates and promos from time to time on our personal profiles (and now Timelines), but for the most part, my non-scientific experience shows that the majority of people are still on there to make a personal connection. We’re there to relate, to share, to question, to understand one another’s stories.

Think about everything you do on Facebook: when you “like” certain pages, share the movies that you are watching, the food you are cooking, the books you are reading, and the music you are listening to, you are weaving your story to your friends. They are able to piece together the kind of person you are from every move you make on Facebook, and you are always ultimately in control of that story.

As humans, we are born storytellers. We have a need to connect with others through our stories. Soon Facebook will be the place we can do that on a level that surpasses all other platforms. It will be THE hub for social interaction. I am excited to see the roll outs revealed in this year’s f8 conference over the next couple of weeks that will enhance the way we share music, books, movies and more.

And more than ever, Facebook will be the place where who you are is up to you. You can complain about the changes, or the time it takes you to learn how to navigate the new interface – but in the end, you, the user, is always in control of the most important part of the social media puzzle: your story.

Take a look at your Facebook profile or timeline right now. What story does it tell? Is it an accurate representation of who you are? Are pieces of you missing, and if so, why are you holding back? Are you telling a story that is so different from who you really are, and if so, is that who you wish to become?

Who are you?

Think about it. Facebook is asking, and inquiring friends want to know.