As I spend more and more of my free time posting information about myself to various social media outlets, I’ve begun to realize, as I’m sure most of you have, that privacy is quickly becoming a rare commodity.
I’ve always considered myself an extremely private person. At least with those I don’t know well. I’m an open book to my friends and family. But I’ve always been slow to let new people in.
As social media sites began to catch on several years ago, I joined Friendster. And then MySpace. Not because I savored the idea of sharing tiny bits of personal information with complete strangers, but because I’m a people-watcher. A voyeur, if you will. A student of human behavior.
But I soon realized that you can only snoop around under the radar for so long. Eventually, you’ll be discovered by your seventh-grade science lab partner, and now you’ve been outed to your entire middle school class. It’s a slippery slope.
More than once, my instincts told me to erase all of my social media accounts and never look back. But, in order to continue my amateur psychological/sociological/anthropological studies, I didn’t delete. In fact, I added. A LinkedIn account. And then Facebook.
I began to grow more comfortable with the idea of using these sites as a tool to connect and reconnect. But, as a current job seeker, I began, a few months ago, to reconsider whether it was a good idea to have all the details of my life out there for a potential employer to see. With each status update and photo upload, I wondered what they would think.
But I soon realized I had nothing to hide. I’m a human being. So are you. So are they.
That’s when the entire scenario flipped in my mind. I had been submitting countless resumes for jobs that I felt absolutely qualified for, and there was almost complete radio silence from the hiring parties. I did all I could to revamp the resume. Add personality. Make myself standout. Still nothing.
So, I thought, why have I been concerned about what potential employers will make of the little snippets of my character they might access through my online profiles? I should be HOPING they’re checking in on me. I’m proud of who I am. I should be doing all I can to SHOW them who I am.
I’ve since logged on to more social media sites like Typepad, the host of this very blog. And Digg. And, most recently, Twitter.
Not only have I taken the bull by its horns in terms of shaping my own online image, I’m also receiving a valuable – and free – education. I’m plugging myself into amazingly talented thought leaders like Seth Godin and Jonah Lehrer.
And locally, I’m meeting some wonderfully inspiring people here in Chicago. A couple of weeks ago while wandering on Facebook, I came upon Social Media Club Chicago. I reached out to Barbara Rozgonyi, founder of the organization's local chapter, and she invited me to an advisory committee meeting. A few days later, I was ON the advisory committee.
I haven’t submitted a resume in weeks, and I’m thinking I’ll be better off if I never send one out again.
Much of life is about the connections we make. The people we touch. Whether those relationships are sparked online or off is irrelevant. It’s all as real as you make it.
Privacy? Yeah, I still value it greatly. A chapter of a book read while curled up on the couch. A walk in the woods along a meandering creek. A kiss on the forehead. I still have my privacy.
But I also have a lot to share. And to those who are willing to share their thoughts/knowledge/time with me, I’d like to thank you.
Nicely done Daniel. Your style is quite engaging.
Posted by: Rob Mark | February 18, 2009 at 07:21 PM