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« Does Music Mix with the Workplace? | Main | “Note to Self: Update Resume” »

June 13, 2006

Job Hunting? Get Real About Your Virtual Identity

We have a saying in my family -- "light dawns over Marblehead" -- that acknowledges the realization of something pretty basic. It's a blinding flash of the obvious, sort of like Homer Simpson's "D'oh!" (.mp3 audio file)

Apparently, there are some young (and maybe not-so-young) job seekers out there who imagine that what they say or show online only applies to their online lives. Maybe they think what you write in your Facebook comments or display in your flickr photo gallery is similar to what the Las Vegas Visitors Bureau would have you believe about your activities in the City of Lost Wages -- what happens there stays there.

In the era of the Web, that's just not true anymore. Yet the well-educated naifs in this Sunday's New York Times article, "For Some, Online Persona Undermines a Resume," (log in required) are somehow shocked -- shocked! (.WAV audio file) -- to discover that what they purportedly disclose about themselves in the imagined privacy of a MySpace profile could have an impact on their job search. Hello! Wake up!

When it comes to looking for a job, you should understand that employers have a vested interest in learning all they can about prospective candidates. Recruiters and hiring managers are using Web search tools to check up on candidates and items on their resumes such as employer and education references just to see what turns up. This can be a good thing, such as when you search and discover someone who says they wrote a book actually has that book for sale on Amazon.

But consider what an employer might think of your application after reading your blog entry about winning that "Most Inebriated" award from your fraternity buddies or viewing outtakes from your performance in that wet T-shirt contest.

Get real about your virtual identity. What you say or how you present yourself online matters. Here are some tips on how to make your online presence work for you -- not against you:

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Posted by Ryck on June 13, 2006 at 02:34 PM in Job Search , New Media | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBack (1)

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» Interesting Finds: June 13, 2006 PM edition from Jason Haley
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Comments

Does anyone really think the top of my resume says 'Charlie On The Pennsylvania Turnpike"??

C:

Posted by: Charlie on the Pennsylvania Turnpike | Jun 15, 2006 10:45:52 AM

No one thinks you sign your 'special' name to anything that personal. However, all it takes is one link from the special name to a real name to make the case. If you posted anything with your name on it and your 'username' (especially if you are consistant with the username), it isn't that hard to make the link. Similar links can be made by searching 'charlie', your college, and your town, for instance. I've used similar 'out of the box' searches for background work before doing interviews for freelance articles.

I wrote a blog entry on how this affects small business owners, if anyone wants to check it out.

http://www.merchantcircle.com/blogs/Redd.Infinity.2.678-468-2664

Posted by: Nola Redd | Jun 17, 2006 1:40:51 PM

Right on Target!!!

As a recruiter for the past 7+ yrs, I have been continually amazed at what some job seekers will include in their resume and use as contact info, specifically their email addresses. Job seekers should definitely pay heed. IT IS OFTEN NOT HARD TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT YOU THAN YOU MIGHT WANT TO BE KNOWN. Simply put: if you don't want a potential employer, not to mention your mother, father, spouse or pastor, to know something about you, don't put it on the internet. Period.

I often check out candidates' claims of book publishings or online/website design, e-commerce sites, etc.... All it takes is googling your email address in some cases, to come up with comments you may have left on someone's blog or Frappr home page. Then, one thing kind of links to another, and so on. And yes, your employer is probably curious about what image you portray on your "off time". The internet would fall into that category. I'm not against blogs or myspace webpages; but why would you advertise a link between your professional and private life - especially if you're posting personal stories about wild parties or your dating life??

It would be no different than applying for a job in your (small) hometown and everyone knowing that you moonlight as a lingerie model or a bouncer at a "gentleman's club" or have been in the newspaper for participating in a riot - if your behavior does not appeal to what the company likes its corporate image to be, they won't talk to you about a job.

Similarly, when applying for jobs/posting your resume, use a simple, professional email address. You don't have to use your name, but you should use something a little more professional than "beerchugger69@..." - and unfortunately this is not the worst example I've actually seen posted online. Needless to say, I never contacted this candidate. I wonder who did?

Posted by: iLuvRecruiting | Jul 10, 2006 6:57:23 PM

As a recruiter for the past 7+ yrs, I have been continually amazed at what some job seekers will use as contact info, specifically their email addresses. Job seekers should definitely pay heed. IT IS OFTEN NOT HARD TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT YOU THAN YOU MIGHT WANT TO BE KNOWN. Simply put: if you don't want a potential employer, not to mention your mother, father, spouse or pastor, to know something about you, don't put it on the internet. Period.

I often check out candidates' claims of book publishings or online/website design, e-commerce sites, etc.... All it takes is googling your email address in some cases, to come up with comments you may have left on someone's blog or Frappr home page. Then, one thing kind of links to another, and so on. And yes, your employer is probably curious about what image you portray on your "off time". The internet would fall into that category. I'm not against blogs or myspace webpages; but why would you advertise a link between your professional and private life - especially if you're posting personal stories about wild parties or your dating life??

It would be no different than applying for a job in your (small) hometown and everyone knowing that you moonlight as a lingerie model or a bouncer at a "gentleman's club" or have been in the newspaper for participating in a riot - if your behavior does not appeal to what the company likes its corporate image to be, they won't talk to you about a job.

When applying for jobs/posting your resume, use a simple, professional email address. You don't have to use your name, but you should use something a little more professional than "beerchugger69@..." - and unfortunately this is not the worst example I've actually seen posted online. Needless to say, I never contacted this candidate. I wonder who did?

Posted by: iLuvRecruiting | Jul 10, 2006 11:32:33 PM

Wow, I better think of the privacy of my online identity from now..

Posted by: Kim | Aug 7, 2007 6:51:00 AM

Sometimes what you experience can hurt you. Even if they are not true. A friend was accused of a crime, It can be found online. He was innocent and charges dropped, but now does he have to provide full disclosure?? Even though it was false arrest?

Posted by: Brian's Web Graphics | Jan 1, 2008 7:49:49 PM

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