I receive hundreds of emails in a week, most of which get sent straight to the trash heap without much attention paid. That attitude sometimes gets me into trouble, as I have to go back and search for something I should have been paying attention to.
A Canada News Wire post recently caught my attention, however. The headline reads “Social media mistakes that could cost your job.” The article describes the results of asking human resources managers, "In your opinion, what is the most common social media mistake professionals make that reduces their chances of being hired?"
Not surprisingly 62 per cent cited writing negative or inappropriate comments as the prevailing digital blunder.
More interesting for me was the second-ranked response: “Not posting regularly; having incomplete, dated or no social media profiles.”
That set me to wondering, if you don’t participate in social media, do you still exist? Because, I don’t. Participate, that is. I’m an occasional lurker for work purposes, but for the most part social media and I are strangers.
It’s not really a philosophical choice as much as an inability to appreciate the medium. There is so much posted there. How do you pick and choose what to pay attention to? I get the same feeling I get when I am dragged into Costco. Get me out of here. There is too much stuff. I can’t make any decisions in this environment!
During the last federal election I mused I would make a perfect political candidate. There is no way anyone could delve back into my social media history to find something incriminating resulting in my name being scrubbed from the ballot. It’s likely I’d never get elected either, because without a social media presence I, well, wouldn’t really exist.
If I was forced to go job hunting, and my social media presence was a crucial factor, I’d have no chance whatsoever. I’m still a Luddite in my hiring practices, too. I will occasionally ask a co-worker to search for an applicant’s contributions online, but that research doesn’t weigh heavily in my hiring decisions.
It’s my view personnel hiring is more of a craps game than a scientific exercise. Most often I go with my instincts and I haven’t been completely skunked yet.
