Could Facebook and Twitter sabotage your career? Could your reliance on these and all the other social media sites you use affect your performance at work? Could social media completely wreck your work life?
Maybe!
For the sake of your work life, you might want to reconsider your relationship with social media. While it can be useful – you can market your brand on Facebook and make valuable contacts on LinkedIn – you might be close to jeopardizing your workday and your career if you don’t limit your time online.
Here are the reasons why.
#1: Social media can taint your reputation
Think about the controversy-baiting tweets you have posted on Twitter. Consider the pictures you have uploaded onto your Facebook page from the nights out you have with your friends. And bring to mind those embarrassing photos your mates have tagged you in on Facebook and Instagram. If your boss were to see these, or if future employees were to discover such posts after doing a Google search of your name, you might suffer the consequences.
You might face the sack if your boss decided your posts not only tainted your reputation but the companies too. And if you were looking for work, your posts could render you unemployable! So, think twice before posting something potentially harmful online, as it will be there for all to see. Protect yourself by tightening your privacy settings on the social media sites you use, and follow this link to change Instagram username to hide your real name when being tagged. Your reputation depends upon it!
#2: Social media can damage your productivity
Social media can be addictive, so while you might not intend to spend long on Facebook, etc., you might lose all sense of time when you get into the habit of liking people’s posts, commenting on their pics, and uploading your personal photos. The upshot of all this is a drop in your productivity, and you might fail to hit the deadlines and other targets that your employee has set you. Say goodbye to that promotion! Be sensible then, and relegate your time on social media to your break times or your hours at home. You might never get any work done if you don’t.
#3: Social media can instigate bullying
If you were to express your views about your colleagues online, you could be accused of bullying. You might also be accused of bullying if you responded to a colleagues social media post or picture in a derogatory way. You could become the victim of bullying too, especially if a colleague used one of your social media posts against you. So, be careful about what you post. Firstly, don’t attack or make fun of a colleague on social media. You might lose your job if you do, as well as your reputation for being a good person. And as we suggested before, tighten up your privacy on the social media sites you use, as any nasty colleagues in your workplace will have less ammunition to use against you.
So, think twice before posting something online. And reflect on what you are doing before sitting down at your workstation with your Facebook page open. Social media can be useful, but it can prove damaging too, so don’t do something that you might regret later!
The Bitter Lemon 