1. Crafting an Online Persona Defining who you are, in an anonymous, online world
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3. “ Well we all have a face that we hide away forever, and we take them out and show ourselves when everyone has gone. Some are satin, some are steel, some are silk, and some are leather. They’re the faces of a stranger, but we love to try them on”
I’ve noticed that some people, even people of my own generation, are reluctant to use the many online social networking sites, because they are afraid of having all of their information available to the public. Specifically, I know what they’re afraid of, oh yes I do. They’re afraid of this:
The embarrassing Facebook picture. We’ve all been there, right? So this is why you should never, ever put pictures of yourself online. You should never … [Video Craig Interrupts] I hate to admit it, but I’m right. There are ways to represent yourself online that aren’t necessarily detrimental to your image.
A wise philosopher once said … [quote] And it’s true. This is something we all know how to do. We all have different faces, different personas that we use, depending on our audience. I’m always Craig Anderson. What you see is what you get.
But I’m a different Craig Anderson when I’m with my co-workers …
… and a different Craig Anderson at the family BBQ …
… which is a different Craig Anderson when I’m hanging out with my nerdy friends. This extends to the various social media that I inhabit.
I’m a different person when I’m on Facebook, or Twitter, or on my Blog. I’m usually a little more candid on Facebook, because not everyone knows my Facebook profile. I give my twitter address out a little more freely, so I’m more professional there. Let’s see some other things you can do to guard your image.
Every time I look at JP’s profile, I think: How prescient of his mother to give him the first name: “Librarian”. It’s almost like she knew, isn’t it? Creepy!
On a slightly more controversial note, there’s the very anonymous “Annoyed Librarian”, who might even be in this very room! Creepy!
So how do you keep your social networks private? Well, if you’re on Facebook, there’s an awesome article about ways to filter your Facebook information.
In last month’s American Libraries, the ever-lovely Meredith Farkas has an article about “branding” yourself. Creating a virtual brand that’s still representative of you without being .. Necessarily … you.
One important site that you should check is failbooking.com. This gives a number of examples (many of them NSFW) of people who share just a little too much on Facebook. It demonstrates what NOT to say in social media. What else can harm our online image?
If you’re Salma Hayek, you can probably get away with posting a picture of you smoking a fat cigar. If you’re Michael Phelps, you probably shouldn’t post a picture of yourself smoking a bong.
If you’re a fan of Emilie Autumn, people might think you’re strange, but if you’re a fan of Prussian Blue, they’ll think you’re a Neo-Nazi. (because you probably are)
Here we see Frankie, Bing, and Her Royal highness Princess Grace of Monaco sipping cocktails in 1956. Is that detrimental to their image? Do people think LESS of them because they’re [gasp] drinking?
Then why was there such a commotion over THIS cover? What kind of image do you want to convey? I leave that up to you. Be mindful of who you are, and you can be anyone you wish to be.