Is Social Media Hurting Your Job Search?

Believe it or not, your Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, or Twitter Account could be interfering with your job search. And you may not even know it.

Social media makes it extremely easy to share every aspect and detail of your life. In a matter of seconds you can share a silly picture or send a 140-character message about your day. Chances are not only are your followers being entertained, but your future employer might be as well.

Quickly reviewing your accounts could give you insight into whether or not social media is ruining your job search.

Are Your Pictures Appropriate?

Scroll through your pictures (recent and old), and you might find some interesting images of your "good ol' college days". Even if you did not post the picture and was simply tagged by a friend, it's linked to your account...which is linked to you. Your social media pictures could be providing future jobs with a not so pretty picture of who you are. Pictures of illegal substances, dangerous behavior, or controversial topics could raise a red flag to a future employer. To be on the safe side, take a screen shot, save the picture to your phone's photo album (as a keepsake), and delete!

Are Your Captions Appropriate?

Slang and profanity might be acceptable around your friends, but I can guarantee your future employer won't be impressed with your "bilingual" skills (French anyone?). The idea is that you want to be able to impress your future employer, not make them gain a horrible perception of who you are based on the captions and messages you post online. Review the captions under your pictures and your public social media messages to make sure they're free of questionable, insulting, or just downright TMI content.

Are There Signs of an Obsession?

Are you posting during all hours of the day and night? Do your posts or responses have time stamps aligned to your work schedule? Your future employer might not be too excited to see that you were heavily active on your social media account during your current work hours. A few posts during the regular work day won't hurt your chances of getting the job you want...but going overboard with 20+ posts during work hours could show signs that you're obsessed. I mean...who wants to hire someone that is more interested in their social media life than in their actual job?

Google Search Yourself

Do a quick Google Search of yourself by typing your first and last name in quotes. More than likely your future employer is going to do the same, so it doesn't hurt to be one step ahead by checking your name out for yourself.

Update Your Privacy Settings

If you've made all of the appropriate adjustments and still feel a bit "weirded out" about your future employer secretly lurking on your social media accounts, it might be time to update your privacy settings. Setting your account to private or only friends and family could minimize the chances of your future employer coming across your page. Keep in mind, you never know who you future hiring manager knows, as long as they know one friend that's following you, they could gain access to your account. It's much easier to just make the changes necessary to ensure you provide the most positive and professional image of yourself.