Lets face it, we are past the days where a good resume alone will land the job. As much as we hate to admit it, employers do take a look at personal social media accounts when considering who they are going to hire. We have entered the era in which our social life, including our job, revolves around social media.
So, don’t be caught posting that picture you don’t exactly remember taking. Or updating your Facebook status when you are sitting in 5 0’clock traffic, because we know there aren’t many positive thoughts running through your head.
Building up who you are as an employee includes branding yourself on social media. Here are some tips to help clean up your personal social media sites for the professional world:
1.Post Positive.
If you had a great day at work, post about it! Posting positive and inspiring thoughts establishes yourself as a person who takes advantage of every opportunity. Avoid bad words on captions, statuses, or comments, because employers find a way to see everything. The key thing to remember when posting on your social media accounts is to not say anything that you wouldn’t want to say to your boss in person.
2.Sharing is Caring.
The key use for Facebook and Twitter these days is sharing articles that you find interesting, funny, or entertaining. However, be careful on exactly what you share. Avoid sharing posting such as “The ten mistakes I have made when drunk” or “Five reasons to quit your job.” Sharing posts such as these sends up a major red flag for employers. They do not want to hire someone who is going to come to work hungover or someone who is constantly complaining about their job.
3.Friend-Zoned.
Becoming friends on a social media site with someone at your workplace can be tricky. Social media is a brief look inside your personal life. Although you may feel like you have nothing to hide on your personal account, be cautious of what your friends post about you.
A tip with becoming friends with coworkers on social media is creating a separate, professional account. If you feel like you cannot separate from those pictures you took freshman year at a place you can’t quite remember, create a separate account. Make sure you separate, professional account, has an accurate image of who you are and establishes your creditability.
4.Error Free.
Make sure that before you post your status, tweet, or comment, that your post is grammatically correct. This is one of the most common mistakes on social media. Employers are not forgiving when they notice people to overlook something so simple. If you want to be taken seriously on social media, talk seriously.
5.Photo Clean-Up.
The most obvious situation of not being professional on your personal social media accounts has to deal with the photos that are found. Prevent posting any photos that may be embarrassing or disrespectful. If photos found on your Facebook are not ‘G’ rated, don’t post them. Make sure that your profile picture on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin accurately depict who are you are. Un-tag yourself from embarssing images that your friends may post of you as well.
The bottom line when it comes to social media is DO NOT POST ANYTHING THAT YOU WOULD NOT WANT YOUR BOSS TO SEE. Weekly, scroll through your profile and see if anything needs to be deleted. As much as we want to post as freely as we did in high school, growing up means establishing creditability, and it starts with your social media accounts.