September 3, 2011 To Post Or Not To Post Something?

If you are hesitant... Don't do it.

Facebook, Twitter, Google+, text messages, forum posts is all too easy today. In a few seconds you can for an idea, put some words together and plaster in the public eye forever. The second after you do you realize that maybe I shouldn't have said that. Worse, you do not know the wide reach that your words can have. You assume only your friends will see it or they will be only ones who care. Words are dangerous, your opinions are yours and sometimes are not meant for public consumption. People are free to think anyway they want to about anything, that doesn't mean that you should be letting the rest of the world know about your inner most thoughts.

Social media is one of the most dangerous things in society today when it comes to personal achievement and rating. This post is targeted to the foul mouth, sarcastic, racist teenagers who post things on the Global Internet that should be kept solely between a circle of fiends in person. Once it's out there, it's out there. The danger is not the present but will be years later when the move from immaturity and into adulthood looking for jobs, loans, or fending off troubles. The information that they freely posted will be used against them.

I am Technology Management, I have direct reports, I hire and fire people and with that comes a large responsibility both legally and ethically. Recently I have been attending more conferences and training seminars where we are talking more and more about using public social media as part of a hiring process. A resume is no longer the single source of truth when it comes to an individual. In the past the resume was it. Now, the resume is just a Summary of everything else that is out there. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Blogs if you are out there and in the public realm people are looking at that. If you are the best at what you do, top of the industry, but you have racist, sexually offensive, personal attacking posts out there on your 'personal' sites, companies don't want to hire that no matter how good you are at the business.

Young people today have all this power of instant information yet they have very little training or comprehension of exactly what that means, even adults don't know. Every time I see a news story about a teacher that got fired for posting a picture of herself in a bikini with a beer in her hand or a student expelled for calling the principal an offensive name or a some high profile company firing I just shake my head. All of these actions can be avoided.

Here's the main idea, everyone, everywhere says horrible things about people that work with, their bosses, their teachers, their pupils, their spouses, their exes. That will always go on, it needs to go on it's a healthy thing to vent. BUT, it should happen in your private circles. Out of sight, out of mind. Once you post it publicly, you force the subjects to take action whether they want to or not. It's 100% the posters fault and no one else.

Here are a few simple rules to follow to protect yourself from your own destruction

• Racism, Sexual Comments, Alcoholic Control or Lack Of, Personal Attacks should never be posted, ever. 
• Friends are friends. Do you really have 700 people you can call Friends? Then why do you have that many on Facebook and why do you post things that are really meant for 10 Real Friends? Your boss is not your friend. Your co-workers, most of them, are not your friends. Your teachers, principals, students are not your friends. DO NOT FRIEND THESE PEOPLE ON FACEBOOK! Block your Facebook profile from the public eye, it can be done. Remember who you are friends with. If you post about how much you hate your job and how much you slack off... and you are friends with your boss... I'd fire your butt too.
• All your thoughts are not meant for public consumption - Every single idea you have is not meant for everyone to see. Stop, think it through.
• Don't post drunk.

Here's the #1 rule to help you decide if something should or should not be posted.

If your online profiles are connected to an individual you are about to post something about, ask yourself if you can say that post to their face. If not, don't post it. If you are about to post a picture of you, ask yourself if you can walk up to a total stranger on the street and show them the picture.

With social media comes social responsibility.

End of Line.

@binaryblogger

Posted in: Facebook,Social Media,Twitter