Could Social Media Ruin Your Career Prospects?

It’s easier than you may think to ruin your career in 140 characters or less, as social media is prevalent in everyday life.

So, if you’re conducting training with us here at Access Training and will soon be seeking a new career listen up! Here are a few things you should consider when it comes to your social media activity whilst job hunting.

Employers Probably Google You

When you write a CV or covering letter you present the best version of yourself. How better for employers to see if this is a true representation than to Google you? If they did this, what would they see?

Ideally, at the top of the list will be news articles or blog posts about an amazing achievement or certification you have achieved, or even your LinkedIn profile. Let’s hope the results page isn’t topped by a link to a Facebook photo of you out on the razz during the working week.

In cases like this, no one will judge you for Googling yourself.

Don’t Talk Too Soon

Think you aced an interview? Well, as the old wives’ tale goes ‘don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched’ and certainly don’t go bragging about how amazing it went online. Not only could this portray you as pompous and over-confident, but it will be highly embarrassing if the interviewer disagrees and ends up hiring someone else.

Even if you’ve been offered a position, it’s best not to brag about your success. A job offer is often confidential and shouldn’t be talked about until you’ve signed on the dotted line. Plus, your new employer may see your status or tweet and decide to retract their offer.

Adjust Your Privacy Settings

If you want to keep your personal life private and wouldn’t like employers to see what you get up to during your spare time, then it’s easy enough to edit the privacy settings on your social media accounts so that your photos and posts can only be seen by those you are linked with.

Don’t Be Invisible

At the same time, you don’t want to be invisible online as this can portray the idea that you are out-of-touch or unprepared to use modern technology or adapt to a very public focused career.

We would recommend editing your preferences so your profile can be found, however, a friend or follow request must be approved before being able to view your content.

Even if you have nothing major to hide and want to leave your settings as they are, we would always recommend curating your posts and ensuring your profile pictures are professional. You never know who may come across your page and a recent tweet slagging off the poor service at a local company or a photo of an embarrassing Halloween costume choice are better off hidden.

Not Quite Ready to Start Your Job Hunt?

If you don’t feel ready to start your job hunt quite yet and would like to study towards further certifications and qualifications first, we can help. Browse our courses and enrol today.