Everyone you've ever met has interviewed you, or at least done a preliminary evaluation of you, and now...maybe so have people whom you've never met! Like it or not, plenty of them are prepared to make decisions about who they think you are, and without the benefit of face-to-face interaction, based solely on your social media footprint.
It used to be that we relied on paparazzi and purchased publications to see photos of people we recognized (usually celebrities) doing questionable things or caught in questionable situations. Now, we just log into any number of free accounts to see what people we recognize (usually NOT celebrities) are having for breakfast or how they spent their evenings, weekends or vacations; either in text or photos or both, if you add a caption to your photos.
That's the new way of life thanks largely to social media and its networking power. What isn't new is that you still never get a second chance to make a good first impression. So before you ask why your employees are staring at you, or hit 'send' on that resume submission for that perfect job, or approach your current supervisor/employer for a promotion, first ask yourself if there is anything on your Facebook, Google+, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Snapchat, etc. pages that could be misinterpreted or misconstrued and potentially cost you personal credibility , an interview, a job offer or a promotion.
The power of these social networking sites can definitely work for you but, as with most things, they also have an equal and potentially negative affect. Your friends and family are looking at your profile but, so are your employees, co-workers, maybe your boss as well as prospective employers. There's absolutely nothing wrong, in my opinion, about sharing photos or experiences you've had with the appropriate audience, but do set your privacy filters accordingly.
The humor points you may lose with your 'friends' and family, by exercising good judgement and NOT posting that photo to the whole world, or by having that un-expressed 140 character limit thought, may help promote, advance and enhance your personal brand.
We're considerably past 1984 but I assure you people are definitely watching how you go about claiming your 15 minutes...vinny
The opinions expressed above are exclusively my own, and are in no way representative of any employer past or present
