Steven Silvers, on his blog "Scatterbox", writes about how employers frequenly google job candidates as part of the screening process. Millennials, who grew up using social media before they can write cursive, should think twice about posting their innermost thoughts, feelings and pictures from last week's party. Silver writes,
"For nearly the last decade my personal thoughts and feelings have been registered on the internet," an intern candidate wrote to me recently. "I have to wonder, do I need to start avoiding message boards I've posted on for years for the sake of an organization I'll belong to?"
It depends on the content and context, of course. But what he and his generation are coming to realize is that their use of the Internet to socialize and explore their innermost selves has created a transparent, permanent record by which complete strangers are making decisions about their future"
I've been googling candidates to learn about their digital reputations for years. Ten years ago, I did a search on a potential candidate. Her personal web site appeared on the first page. One click and I saw that she posted pictures of her latest sonogram. She was pregnant and wanted to share her new joy with her family (and apparently everyone else, includng potential employers). I ended up interviewing her and hiring her - she was a great addition to the team. But the lesson was clear - everything you post, and posted about you, frames the first impression you make to potenial employers and clients.
Read Silver's post here.
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