Be Relevant, Be Professional...

Are two of the most beneficial pearls of wisdom anyone embarking into the professional world should string on their learning necklace. Katherine Bradford, Vice President of NOVO1 and SMU advisory board member, stressed with caution, "Be repetitive, be consistent, and be relevant." According to her, twittering play-by-plays such as meal times, daily errand updates, and useless thoughts are a few of the many things that should not appear in your digital footprint. If your future employer were to look you up on any social media site including Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn, they most definitely don't want to find a list of things you ate for breakfast with uploaded photos to accompany them... unless of course you are applying to work in the culinary arts.

Bradford lives a cautious digital life, applying the golden rule by asking herself if she'd want her friends, her future employers and then her mother to see her posts if they Googled her. She says, "If you even think it's inappropriate, take it down." Something I think has become more obvious over the years of developing social media that Bradford stressed, is the rule that "when you are communicating with someone in the business world, remember your English classes and use them." Often employers are contacted with emails that included phrases like "lol" and smiley faces. Even the most forgiving employers have a difficult time ignoring those faux pas.

One challenge that our generation faces is the fact that our original use of social media sites varies greatly from what the professional world expects of us. The transition from informal contact between friends to a professional networking tool often presents a gray area, however according to Bradford, the importance of maintaining your digital footprint trumps the want to share embarrassing pictures with friends.