We should either stop using it, or at the very least own up to what it is we're [trying to] talk about: http://consc.net/papers/facing.html
Furthermore, it seems only to exist or pinpoint when you're communicating with another person. In total solitude, boundaries between your self-image and the other(s) just don't hold up, and the whole thing becomes almost meaningless.
Edit: the concept of time seems to be connected to it as well, but i really need to read this paper first now, i think :)