This post is about my experience when participating in social media. Almost every day for the past ten to fifteen years, I have been on one or more social media site. At the very least, I check my Facebook and my Instagram in the morning before I even get out of bed. Now, it is debatable if this is a healthy habit or not but regardless of that, I enjoy it and have no intention of giving it up.
Over the years, I have learned a lot about portraying myself online and while, when I was 13, I didn't really think about what I would potentially think about the images that I posted in the future, nowadays I am all too aware of how I present myself and what I actually want others to see. This is partly because I have looked back at some previous posts of mine and felt an instant rush of regret and the urge to delete but the awareness also comes also from teachers and other advisors stressing the fact that potential employers will take a look at what one posts online.
Lately, I haven't been participating a lot on any Network and only post the occasional Instagram story but I did spend a lot of time in the last few weeks going through everything that is on my Facebook and my Instagram and deleting anything unflattering. Being on my way to graduating with a Bachelor's degree, I feel that now I have to get serious and in the spirit of that, I recently set up a LinkedIn profile and deleted my twitter from when I was 15. But while polishing up my feeds, I noticed that I if I deleted everything potentially harmful, I would cut out most of my personality. So in the end, I decided on a healthy mix of professional and relatable, deleted the pictures of me drinking anything more than a beer or two but kept some unique gems like a photo of me and my friends that shows us (sober) at a festival in heavy rain, sporting trashbags as raincoats (see below).
Overall, I came to the conclusion that there is no correct way of participating in social media and that everything one puts up online can be interpreted good or bad. For example, some people I know don't use any social media at all and think that even being on them is a bad thing, while I, on the other hand, can't understand how one would not want to be a part of it. So I guess it is fair to say that everyone should evaluate their content on what is right for them and what is realistic for the lifestyle and the profession that they are a part of.
Over the years, I have learned a lot about portraying myself online and while, when I was 13, I didn't really think about what I would potentially think about the images that I posted in the future, nowadays I am all too aware of how I present myself and what I actually want others to see. This is partly because I have looked back at some previous posts of mine and felt an instant rush of regret and the urge to delete but the awareness also comes also from teachers and other advisors stressing the fact that potential employers will take a look at what one posts online.
Lately, I haven't been participating a lot on any Network and only post the occasional Instagram story but I did spend a lot of time in the last few weeks going through everything that is on my Facebook and my Instagram and deleting anything unflattering. Being on my way to graduating with a Bachelor's degree, I feel that now I have to get serious and in the spirit of that, I recently set up a LinkedIn profile and deleted my twitter from when I was 15. But while polishing up my feeds, I noticed that I if I deleted everything potentially harmful, I would cut out most of my personality. So in the end, I decided on a healthy mix of professional and relatable, deleted the pictures of me drinking anything more than a beer or two but kept some unique gems like a photo of me and my friends that shows us (sober) at a festival in heavy rain, sporting trashbags as raincoats (see below).
Overall, I came to the conclusion that there is no correct way of participating in social media and that everything one puts up online can be interpreted good or bad. For example, some people I know don't use any social media at all and think that even being on them is a bad thing, while I, on the other hand, can't understand how one would not want to be a part of it. So I guess it is fair to say that everyone should evaluate their content on what is right for them and what is realistic for the lifestyle and the profession that they are a part of.
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