By: Matt See
Online Career Tips Staff
With over 600 million active users, Facebook has quickly become the fastest growing social interaction and networking tool the world has ever seen.
Take a look at your personal Facebook profile. Surely it includes a plethora of friends and colleagues from your past and present. This is what makes Facebook great, right?
Well with that kind of reach, Facebook can be a valuable tool but also, a dangerous one if you are not careful how you utilize it or forget who your friends are.
[There’s No Such Thing as Anonymity in Social Media]
Whether you are looking for a new opportunity or happy in your current position remember this one key statement, Facebook can help you get hired…or fired!
Steer clear of the following five Facebook faux-pas to ensure you don’t fall victim, they might cost you a great opportunity.
- Complaining About Your Current Job– Ok, so we have all done this in the past. Something happens at work and you are so frustrated, you head straight to Facebook to vent. You fire off a status update that complains about either you blabbering boss or your co-worker who yaks on the phone all day and always shows up late. This is a double edged sword. If you are looking for a new career, this is not the type of employee you want to portray yourself as. If you have your boss as a friend on Facebook and he or she sees your post complaining about them or a co-worker, you may end up on the street. Simple, think before you post.
- Don’t Post Your Inappropriate Pictures to Your Profile – This really should be Facebook 101, but if you spent the weekend out with your buddies and a friend snaps a picture of you downing a bottle of wine it might not be the best thing to post to your profile and tag yourself. I know everyone likes to have a good time, and people in business do partake in alcohol, but it really doesn’t portray the model employee that you hope your prospective new employer sees when finding your profile after a simple Google search.
- Use Your Head When Posting A Status – So this may go hand and hand with number one but it still deserves its own slot. Bored at work on a Friday? Don’t post about it! Going to take a “mental health day†to hang out with the fellas? Don’t call in sick and then post that you are heading to the ballgame while skipping out on work. It may all seem like common sense, but we become so comfortable with Facebook that a lot of times many post without thinking.
- Only Post Factual Information In Your Info Section – This one is simple. Don’t try to build internet muscles by posting information in your info section that is not true. If the information in there does not match up with your Resume’ when a prospective employer goes searching, you could find yourself missing out on a great opportunity, fast.
Didn’t Your Mother Ever Tell You? – Remember when your parents would tell you that you are just as guilty as your friends are? Well this goes for Facebook as well. Don’t let your friends post lewd comments on your Facebook wall or tag you in inappropriate photos. You are guilty by association. An employer will see these comments, and even though it may be someone that you never talk to that wrote something bad on your wall, you will be associated with that comment.
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