Social networking is an art. I'll say it again, social networking is an art, on par with the art of dinner conversation. Social media is not some magical Houdini, ready to find you a job at your earliest command. It's more like a marriage, where years of commitment and trust build the foundation for your relationship, but one night of unfaithfulness can bring it all tumbling down.
Developing your presence online is in effect marketing yourself to future employers (this is not news in our class). It takes years to build up a readership that respects and follows your comments and posts, but beware one mess up or poorly worded facebook status could leave a rather unfavorable but nevertheless indelible impression on a future colleague of your chosen industry.
I've learnt this from personal experience, after a few poorly chosen "facebook arguments". Arguments in general rarely produce anything substantive, since arguments usually involve 2 or more people already stubbornly set in their beliefs. Arguments online are downright useless, and yet it is so easy (almost like an online siren call) to get sucked into a political debate on your facebook status.
I've had some pretty ugly arguments online with other progressive activists online that I regret, largely because I either currently or will soon be working with them as a colleague. I've also had some amazing discussions and colleagues who have approached me in real life letting me know how much they love my updates and article links.
Botton line is, social networking is a tool, and you can use it to either cut the fruits off a tree or to cut your own hand.
Monday, March 29, 2010
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I have seen some heated disputes play out online, and it shows how easy it is to forget that it is a person on the other end of the conversation. I have seen those same types of discussion play out in person, and they are always more civil.
ReplyDeleteTrue, i think it is important to keep in mind, especially on the internet, that nothing is private. We have seen time and time again that privacy i relative to the website you are involving yourself in. Therefore, if you don't want anyone to know, or you are worried that certain information could jeopardize your credibility, DO NOT post it on the web.
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