Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Is Your Boss a "Friend"?

It's almost impossible to avoid: camera flashes. Whether you approve of it or not, your "caught in the moment" face is suddenly tagged on the ever so popular Facebook for the world and your mother to see.

Even though she may be slightly appalled by the pictures captured of you Saturday night, your mother is someone who will eventually move on. She loves you, so a little tagged photograph won’t hurt a beloved daughter's reputation. But what if your boss sees that picture --- Where do you draw the line on who to accept as a "friend" on Facebook?

Without taking into consideration the privacy settings on Facebook, the world can see what you do at every moment of the day even if you aren't the person to post it. So is this something you want your boss to have access too?

This was a question I had to ask myself the morning I woke up to one new "friend request." Usually it's an exciting notification, but after seeing that it was a request from my boss that excitement suddenly changed to confusion.

Facebook friend reqest.

I saw it as a rude gesture to reject this request, but also as an unprofessional one if I accepted it.

The final decision came a few days later after I noticed that my co-workers were accepting his request; I clicked yes. Yes, I was a follower but I had to see how the others were responding to this “invasion of privacy.”

I realized that if I chose to reject his “friendship” my online persona was still completely accessible to him, and the rest of the world. The internet, specifically Facebook, makes everything you do visible to the rest of humanity through a simple Google search. So before you go posting your wild weekend or venting about your workplace, stop and think. This information will instantly be available to current and future bosses as the internet isn’t known for being modest.

TF

Summary: The internet makes your life visible even if you aren't Facebook Friends.