Professional and Personal Social Media Guides

Social media can be a fun way to stay in touch with family, friends, and others. It can also be a great way to learn and interact with the internet. However, there can be downsides to social media if you’re not careful. What you do online can affect your employment in many ways. Remember that your employer (HR, supervisor, and/or coworkers) may see what you share online. What you post can “live forever” on the internet once it’s posted.

Your personal social media profile and your professional profile often affect each other. Engaging in positive habits on the internet is a good practice. Below is a list of helpful social media guidelines.

SOCIAL MEDIA GUIDELINES:

• Be familiar with privacy settings. Consider setting your social media accounts to private.
• Employers often have social media policies. Review and utilize their specific guidelines, as they should help you prevent potential problems.
• Personal and professional accounts should be separate.
• Be positive, optimistic, and inclusive. It is best not to put others down in a public forum.
• Check punctuation, spelling, and word choice before posting. Remember, words matter.
• It is best not to post or comment on social media during work hours. Refer to your employer’s policy regarding social media.
• Do not post negative commentary about your work, the company, co-workers, etc.
• Do not post confidential or untrue information about the company or your job. Again, refer to your employer’s social media policy.
• Do not post your opinions as facts. State that your opinion is indeed an opinion.
• Fact check before posting!
• Do not overshare or post private and identifying information.
• Be careful regarding what pages/accounts, posts that you like, follow, and “friend.”
• Limit what you post when you’re home from work sick. If you are truly ill, you should not post about “fun” things you are doing that day.
• Do not use company equipment for personal use. For example, do not use social media on your work computer if it is not work-related.
• Do not post offensive statements or slurs about race, religion, sexual orientation, gender, etc.
• Keep online information current.
• Pause before you post! Do not post when angry.
• Always remember that your “personal brand” and your “professional brand” are connected!