WHILE 97% OF BUSINESS CONTENT IS CREATED WITH LINKEDIN IN MIND IT ISN’T THE SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORK WHERE PEOPLE LIVE ONLINE.

The truth is, you’ll never going to know whether or not the admissions officer reviewing your application is going to check your social media accounts or not.

The latest Kaplan survey found that 66% of admissions professionals polled consider an applicants’ social media FAIR GAME. If they check, (usually Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or YouTube) it’s often to learn more about an applicant that might pique their interest but doesn’t fall into the “Definitely Yes” pile based on their application alone.

YOUR PERSONAL BRAND IS YOUR SOCIAL CURRENCY.

IT’S YOUR UNIQUE VALUE PROPOSITION.

In other words, your personal brand is how you convey to your online audience exactly what you have to offer them and why you’re the best person for the job.

Many teens and young adults view social media as a place to let loose and express themselves. But teenage brains don’t often consider that these actions might have unintended consequences. That said, here are my 8 rules for teens when it comes to free expression online

Secure passwords are vital and if you’re going to “share” those passwords with your devices so you don’t have to re-enter them every time you need to access an account on a trusted device, use a biometric option to do so, like facial identification or fingerprint ID.

Remember that all our passwords are critical pieces of our digital identities and it’s important that we #layerup, which, when it comes to protecting ourselves online means NOT relying on one method to do the trick.

Social media gives us the opportunity to tell the world who we are and show ourselves in the way we want to be seen.

Think about what you post and ask yourself, “what does this photo/text/tweet, etc. say about me?” In the internet age, perception is reality and you aren’t going to get a chance to explain yourself or your post to all the people who see your post. They will never know what you posted was a meant as a joke or a misspelling or auto-correct led to a completely different post than what you originally intended it to be.

Ever wonder why you’re having trouble recruiting the people you really WANT to join your team? Over 65% of companies say that despite attracting candidates for their positions, they don’t end up with GOOD matches.

Perhaps it’s because the people you’re really looking for, aren’t necessarily looking for a new job, so they aren’t checking job sites or meeting with recruiters.

If the people you really WANT to hire aren’t actively looking for a new job, how do you reach them to let them know (1) you’re hiring, and (2) you’re a company worth making a move for?

THE SOLUTION

Develop an Employee Advocacy program and use your best brand ambassadors (your current employees) as “social recruiters” to lure potential candidates that already exist in their personal social media networks.

A graphic representation describing how kids use different social media platforms.

WE’VE ALL HEARD THE ADVICE, WHETHER FROM PARENTS, FRIENDS, FAMILY, COLLEAGUES, OR BOSSES: “DON’T POST ANYTHING INAPPROPRIATE ONLINE”. ONCE YOU’VE SAID THAT, MOST OF US ASSUME THE PERSON WITH WHOM WE’RE SPEAKING, HAS GOTTEN THE MESSAGE, TO BE THOUGHTFUL BEFORE YOU SHARE ONLINE.

INTENTIONAL VAGUENESS

The problem is that the terms “appropriate” and “inappropriate” and intentionally vague – what one person deems appropriate online behavior might be considered inappropriate by another; an idea that was summed-up by Justice Potter Stewart in his concurring opinion written in the 1964 Supreme Court decision for Jacobellis v. Ohio about obscenity where he wrote “I know it when I see it”.

Don't Let Your Online Presence Ruin Your Future

Before social media and the internet became commonplace, it was generally thought that celebrities, musicians and prominent figures were the only ones who needed to protect their image and public perception. However, with billions of people from around the world creating accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, privacy is no longer what it once seemed.

When you post publicly you are not only sharing your life's intimate details with friends, family members and peers, but also the entire world--millions of potential viewers. With the growing trend of students and athletes losing out on college scholarship opportunities along with individuals finding themselves without employment due to social media woes, understanding how to protect your own online presence and digital reputation is a must.

Clean Up Your Online Presence

For many people, when seasons change, our thoughts turn to cleaning up our homes – getting rid of the old stuff and organizing the things we actually need and want. We “lighten our load” and it feels good. “Spring” cleaning allows us to think about taking inventory of our lives and getting rid of anything that isn’t helping us live the life we want live or be the person we want to be. Let's extend our idea of “spring” cleaning to our digital footprint as well.

Did You Hear The One About Teens Spending 9 Hours A Day With Media? Not So Fast…

There was an article that criss-crossed all the major news outlets not too long ago, touting the “new landmark study” illuminating how much time tweens and teens spend with media. To be honest, the reporting and headlines really upset me – but not because I think there is something wrong with how tweens and teens today use media. Rather, the way the study is being presented focuses on shock value as opposed to what the data really tells us. Here are some of my favorite headlines from the news about the same study:

When our kids first enter elementary school, we start to worry a bit less about them hurting themselves every moment and more about others hurting them – whether it’s stranger danger or peer issues. We worry that they have friends that invite them to play, that they have people to sit with at lunch, that no one is bullying them, that they don’t talk to or go with a stranger that might approach them at the park.

In the past few years, those fears have extended beyond just their physical world into the online world as well. The internet has become part of most every child’s life and it’s the rare child that has no experience with it by the time they are 8 years old.

While raising children is the most important job a parent will ever have, your child's school grades are NOT a reflection of you as a parent, they are a reflection of your child.

When I logged into Instagram on the morning of September 25, I was surprised to find out it was #NationalDaughtersDay (and 3 days later, on September 28, I was equally surprised that it was #NationalSonsDay).

I had NO idea.

Why would I? Neither of these are actually national holidays.

Snapchat Posts Don’t Always Disappear

A 14 year old’s Snapchat story post that she assumed would “disappear” has turned into a referendum on students’ rights to free speech under the First Amendment when they aren’t physically at school.