SOCIAL MEDIA AND YOUR REPUTATION: HOW DAMAGING CAN IT GET?

If you choose to follow the news, the newsprint and the social media especially, you will be misinformed and if you decided not to follow at all, you will be uninformed.

Either way, it is dangerous not to know where to draw the lines. The decisions are squarely and responsibly lies with you.
Information is power and if a tool or access to information is misused, then it is dangerous.

We live in a society where truth does not matter anymore. it is now all about who breaks the news. it is all about the “likes” and the “retweets". This is a real problem and we need to deal with it.

Social media is the power for this generation. It is the fastest means of disseminating information, it is the hub of what I called the idea economy and it is indeed the last hope of common man; it's no longer the judiciary.
It has turned many to great minds. It has made masters in any field, in any vocation and in any sectors for that matter.

A subtle kindness and an innocent contribution had changed the lives of many and even a nation.
Alas! It is fast destroying lives and you better be careful, it could ruin your life in a simple but subtle way as well.
In social media, there is no difference between public and private.

Once upon a time, back in the not too long years, there used to be quite a difference between the things we considered private and those we considered public. And according to the law, privacy is still verily defined as constitutionally protected right. But unfortunately, in the Social Media Era, this difference between public and private is quickly disappearing.

We now live in an online world. It is now assumed that anything you publicly post online could potentially be seen by the world at large. This “world” includes your current friends, your future employers, your past romantic partners, your competitors and even your parent.
Just because you can post something doesn’t mean you should.

Freedom of speech along with privacy is another constitutionally protected right.
This freedom I suppose does not necessarily guarantee freedom of consequence. And this is so real and true from the social media perspective.

Celebrities have lost high-paying endorsements after posting one foolish tweet or retweeting.

Activities like sexting have destroyed relationships and ruined careers.

In light of how fast we can broadcast our messages, and how long those messages can affect our lives, we will need to be more careful in exercising better ethical judgment before clicking “post.”

Your online and offline selves might not be identical, but they’re non-separable.

The reality is, as the difference between public and private, the distance between your offline and online selves is quickly disappearing as well. Unless you take considerable precautions to protect your online identity, your online self is now married to your offline self.

When you post anything online, publicly or privately, you should always be mindful of the kind of online identity you are creating, since it will inadvertently affect your offline possibilities somehow.

Will, what I post cause harm to others?

Whether you post anonymously or not, you somewhat feel protected by the protection the social media platforms create between you and your chosen target.

Consequently, before posting something online, you should routinely ask the question: if I were not protected by this social media, would I post this? Am I simply being cruel or unnecessarily judgmental?

Would I say this to the person’s face if he or she were standing right in front of me?

My submission is, if you truly apply this rule to your online behaviour, the quality of the content would vastly improve and less or no harm will be averted.
Post about others as you would have them post about you.

This is, of course, is the golden rule. By all means, speak your mind, voice your opinions, live by your convictions. But be prepared for people to speak their minds and voice their opinions when it comes to you.

I believe our online conversations would be a lot more productive and a lot more civil by adhering to this hard-to-follow piece of advice.

I believe it is about extending common decency, and ensuring that your online self-behaves just right.

Source:

21st Century Thinkers