Ever heard of holding the upper hand? Your social media page is your employer’s upper hand.

And that is precisely why the increase in the presence of social media, coupled with easier and more
widely spread access to Internet, has made job searching more and more difficult for students, who
feel the need to let the world know every detail of their lives—both good and bad.

The vast variety of platforms gives you a healthy choice of which format to publicize your poor
decisions in (picture, video, tweet, status, etc.) and almost encourages you to let all your “friends”
know way too much about your personal life.

There are so many social media sites—Facebook, Twitter, Vine, Snapchat, Pinterest, Google Plus,
Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Foursquare, blogs, and, shockingly, the list goes on. When looking for
a job, expect your potential employer to at the very lease Google your name, but most likely, they’ll
take a quick look on your verified accounts to see what you’re actually like as a person as opposed to
who you may claim to be on a resume.

What they find might be very interesting (in a bad way), and you could be passed up for an amazing
dream job not because you weren’t qualified, but because you proudly expose too much of yourself—
both virtues and vices—online.

And for what purpose? What drives people to divulge their dark secrets hidden behind a computer
screen when they certainly wouldn’t do so face-to-face? (Be warned: your identity does not change
when you step away from the keyboard). And what about the Internet says, “Go ahead and break all
rules of social interaction?” After all, when you pass by someone you know on campus and they ask,
“How are you?” you know they don’t really care to know the answer. The correct and socially
acceptable response would be, “I’m fine, how are you?” to which you will receive the same socially
appropriate response.

If you follow the in-person rules online, you’re bound to make better decisions as to what you share,
and you’re less likely to embarrass yourself or jeopardize your career.

So, fellow Lakers, a word of caution. Once you put something online, it’s there forever. No matter what
your privacy settings are, employers can find out what you’re doing in your free time or what you’re
saying about their company. If you can’t hold back, then just delete all your social media accounts
right now. You’ll be doing yourself a huge favor.

P.S. No one cares that you’re about to make a sandwich!

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