New to Social Media? Be Careful What You Say and Post – Tips to Smart Networking
By now you have set up your social media profile, included a dynamite photo of yourself, and have even added a few friends to the mix. What’s next? Now it is time to start updating your profile and adding content. Before you start blabbering on about the hard day you have had at work or how moronic your boss is, think about the consequences. Here are some tips to avoid social media mistakes that could kill your career or business.
The first rule of social media is: Don’t post anything you wouldn’t want your mother to see. That is pretty self explanatory. Google has a long memory. If you are unsure about posting it, don’t do it. People have been fired for what they posted on their social media sites. Be careful of what you post and what you allow others to post.
The second rule of social networking is: Don’t post anything you don’t want your boss to see. Just because you have your profile marked as “private” don’t assume that the stuff you post is actually private. It’s a small world. You don’t know who knows who these days. So if you are actually upset about something that happened at work, it might be more constructive to write that down in a private journal rather than putting it online.
The final piece of advice I have for you regarding online networking is to be prepared to put out fires quickly. Despite all your good efforts, something you say or write could get taken out of context. As soon as you find out about something like that, be prepared. The worst thing you can do is ignore it and assume that it will take care of itself.
Online networking is a great way to meet new people. The Internet is a convenient way to let your friends and family know what you are up to. Be careful of what you post. If you work for a conservative company, you might not want to post the pictures of you consuming “adult beverages” online. Just be smart about what you post. Have fun, but be sure to think twice before you hit that submit button.
