Ok, so we made it through the holiday office parties, although we still have New Year’s Eve celebrations around the corner. You have likely been reminded lately that holiday office parties are not the time to let your hair down. We have all heard far too many horror stories about workers who had too much to drink and made complete fools of them selves. While hitting on the boss’s wife, performing a strip tease act, or dancing on the table are obvious career derailers, there are some perhaps less obvious maneuvers that can prove damaging to your professional image as well. While it is true what you do on your time is your business, it is also true that “off-the-clock” activities can still damage your professional image.
Let’s face it. We live in an age of instant messaging and social media. With membership over 45 million representing 150 different industries, LinkedIn is widely accepted as the modern professional networking tool of choice. The average age of LinkedIn members is 41. Over 80% are college graduates and approximately 49% are business decision makers. Most users understand that their LinkedIn profile and communications should be polished and professional. What is often surprising to our career strategists, however, is that job seekers and working professionals give little or no consideration to the image they are promoting on their Facebook accounts. There are approximately 321.1 million Facebook users. Trust me, employers and prospective employers are looking you up! Your image is just a click away…for all of posterity, so give some thought to that before you upload compromising photographs or post crude comments. Sign up for our free e-newsletter with the latest career trends and tips at www.envisionevolution.org
Jennifer Vogel is managing partner of Envision Evolution Group, a career management practice in Atlanta, Georgia. Jennifer is a certified professional resume writer and career coach. She has a master’s in Human Resources Management and a Bachelor of Science in psychology with 20+ years of experience in résumé writing. Her professional certifications include: CPRW – certified professional resume writer, PHR – professional in human resources, PMP – project management professional, and Six Sigma. You may reach Jennifer through e-mail at jvogel@envisionevolution.org or visit www.envisionevolution.org. Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/career-management-articles/can-your-facebook-posts-damage-your-professional-image-1645885.html
