Last Updated on July 12, 2024 by Bright Past
Your online reputation can make or break your career progress. It all depends on the image you create around you. Being present online doesn’t only mean popularity but also responsibility. Sometimes, people judge us by what we publish on social media, how we behave online, and how we communicate with others.
It’s not a secret that sometimes recruiters and potential employers may check on a person’s social profiles, to assess their online presence. So, deciding what kind of impression to leave is up to you. Here’s how your online reputation affects your career growth and progress.
Positive Effects
Being present online may bring many benefits, especially if you don’t get in online fights, don’t bully other people, and use appropriate language. As a result, you’re building:
- Professional Image: Showcase your skills and accomplishments through platforms like LinkedIn. Check on the Facebook photos and remove the questionable ones. Become attractive to the professionals from your niche and maintain a great image.
- Networking Opportunities: Engage with professional connections regularly. Join groups and forums and discuss specific matters. This will open doors to many new professional opportunities.
- Thought Leadership: Sharing valuable and industry-related content makes you appear more professional. Showcase your knowledge and expertise, and position yourself as a leader in your niche.
- Personal Branding: How you act online takes a large part of personal branding. Watch your language, offer your portfolio, and be open to discussing various topics to enhance your professional and personal image.
- Showing Kindness: Kind people have a professional advantage, appearing friendlier and more open to discussing various matters. Surely, your new employer and coworkers can see that online and get a positive impression.
All these effects make you a valuable community member, increasing the chances of being seen, contacted, and eventually hired in a great position.
Negative Effects
Sometimes, we get too comfortable online, forgetting that the internet records it all. While entertainment comes naturally, we must be careful of the following:
- Inappropriate Content: Being loud on some topics is beneficial, but make sure it doesn’t affect your professional image. Anyway, insults, filthy language, and rudeness can harm your reputation.
- Privacy Concerns: People tend to overshare on social media. Potential employers may see that as unreliability, as they appreciate privacy. So, don’t overshare and protect your private life.
- Old Posts: Digging deeper into your old social media posts can negatively impact your professional growth. Even though that content doesn’t reflect your current views and behavior, it still affects the way people see you and judge you based on that.
- Unprofessional Behavior: Online conflicts, rants, and negative comments indeed affect your reputation. Potential employers can spot some comments or posts and get a completely wrong image of you. So, grow up and ditch the online conflicts, as they aren’t good for you.
- Expressing Rudeness: Rude people don’t get too far with their careers. If you’re rude online, the potential employer and HR department may conclude you’re that way in private. Don’t be rude online, and maintain a positive image around you.
Negative online reputation indeed affects the way others perceive us. Ensure you think before posting anything, as it reflects on you professionally.
Manage Your Online Reputation
While we can’t change who we are, we can surely manage our past online behavior successfully. Check your social profiles and try to delete everything that may negatively affect your online reputation. Manage the past reputation, but be careful what you post from now on.
Contact us so we can plan your online reputation management and improve your professional image. In the meantime, adjust the privacy settings on your profiles, be mindful when posting new content, and engage positively to boost your online reputation.