If you were turned down for a job recently, it may be because of your MySpace page. A recent study concludes that “a fourth of human resources decision makers said they had rejected candidates based on personal information found online.“ [Source: CNET News]
Any potential employer can do a quick Google search on your name. Will they like what they find? Try doing a vanity search by typing your name into Google. If you have a common name, try putting your name in quotes (ex. “First Last”) and/or adding some additional details, like the name of your hometown. If you find anything funny/interesting, feel free to share it, but if you find anything potentially damaging to your future or current job, get it changed or removed ASAP!
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Very good point! I was just in a seminar last week on how to work with Generation ‘X’ and ‘Y’ in particular and the presenter said the very same thing. She had been presenting at a large company, and the HR person had told her that they had googled the name of a potential employer but after looking at the person’s MySpace and Facebook posts, decided not to hire them!
This reminds about something my mother used to say…”If you can’t say something nice about someone, don’t say anything at all” I wonder if we need to pass our public posts thru that criteria before we click on Submit?!