If you haven’t already, you may want to start censoring your social media. Recent reports suggest that nearly 3 out of 4 hiring managers check social media profiles regularly in addition to checking your resume.
Old news? Well think again. These recruiters are scrutinizing everything from your use of foul language to your pictures, not to mention your grammar and spelling! It’s hard to imagine that they would judge your personal profile and deem you unworthy because of your spelling! Especially since most people consider their profiles to be a place off the record. Not to mention, bad spelling seems to go hand in hand with social media, especially Twitter with 140 characters or less, it’s difficult not to abbreviate.
If you’re one of those people who likes to express your deepest darkest feelings, or your overt opinions, think before you act. You never know whose going to search you on Facebook or Twitter.
In my opinion, it’s easy enough to control your privacy settings on Facebook and most people by now have figured that out, but Twitter is another story! If you search almost anyone on Twitter their profile shows up with an “About Me,” an avatar, and an option to look at their past tweets.
Talk about nerve wracking! I can look you up and find out what you’ve been tweeting and who you’ve been tweeting to. Imagine all the times you tweeted in anger or in some emotional frenzy… now consider what a potential employer would think after reading those. Not good? Didn’t think so!
Well, unfortunately it gets worse! In the U.S. it is reported that 92% of companies are using social networks to find talent.
Seems ridiculous to judge someone based off of their social media profiles—at first. But if your profile is filled with pictures of you boozing it up and complaining about work or responsibility, can you really blame the recruiters?
Checking profiles is actually quite clever. Avoid the problem before it happens, filter out the unwanted behaviors, and find someone who is smart enough to keep their private life behind closed doors.
In the words of Zack Galifianakis, “you better check yourself before you wreck yourself,” in the case of social media, at least. Don’t assume that the recruiter has better things to do than investigate into your online world. Think before you tweet.
Naveen Sohi
July 31, 2012
