Stay Professional

It is way too easy to share information about yourself. Between Twitter, blogs, Facebook (perhaps MySpace), and message boards, people can learn pretty much anything about you. And if you're not careful, people will learn way too much.

This is by no means a new subject to talk about. However, it is still one that needs to be considered. At first, I saw people being disturbingly familiar or coldly professional. Half the people were writing things on a public forum to their close personal friends and not realizing that anybody can see it. The other half of these people never talked about anything but official aspects of their professional lives.

Nowadays, those two stereotypes have softened, but are still there. Some people use their twitter for inside jokes; others only use it to link to things they've read or seen. Although this may be better, it isn't good enough.

If you are a professional, loosen up. Share something personal, even if it is a random musing. People don't want to listen to a person talking about their work all the time. Humanize yourself and you will find that more people will care about you and what you have to say.

If you are already loosened up, consider not being so loose. Everybody loves a friendly, outgoing person, but there is such a thing as too much. Dave Kellett has made the comment that when he writes about himself online, he uses the Party Dave persona. This is the Dave that you would meet if you were at a party. He'll tell you a story, tell you a joke. He could be meaningful or silly, but it's all within a boundary. Nothing gets too personal, too depressing, too crude, nor does he get too stiff or professional.

When you write about yourself, don't fake it. If you aren't acting like yourself, people will know you're being phoney. You should always write honestly and from the heart. Just remember who could be reading your words (everybody).