Do you ever wonder..........
When you post things on this network or any network, do you realize you are making a very public statement? Many of you use your full name and post the company. I know for a fact that if HR picks you out for an interview, someone is going Google your name before you make it into the front door. If you are lucky and have a common name like John Smith, then it may harder find you but if you have a more unique name, you are much easier to find and they will see what your public face is.
Companies can & do get a strong impression of you because of what you are saying in the cyber world. It doesn't matter if you have a PhD, are the perfect candidate, have good looks, and are within the hiring range, if you are negative, whiny, cannot "speak" proper English, posted pictures of you out with the gang or drunk, have a lot of misspellings, or are just plain obnoxious, they are not going to hire you.
An example: I have just finished reading a message about a man who didn't get the job because he was black. He made it through the interview process, drug screening, etc. and has an offer letter but all of a sudden the company is offering him a different job. Why? Who really knows? Maybe his drug screen showed some prescription medication he was taking and the company doesn't want to put him into the position they were hiring him for. Maybe he posted something negative to his Facebook page. He honestly believes it is because he is black. The replies to his post are what really got to me. It is amazing some of the things people said and very sad how they said it. (No, I'm not going to link his post for obvious reasons.)
Whether you are a student(1), a seasoned professional, or somewhere in between, watch what you say and post online. It can and will come back to haunt you.
- They can look farther back than you think. So, if you have Facebook, Instagram, etc. watch what you post.
This is definitely important to keep in mind, Terry - that's why it's always best to make sure you double-check what you said before you post!
I think managers are too sensitive, maybe he felt that way, it does happen, age discrimination, race discrimination, etc. If someone google your name and don't like what you say about certain subjects, I think that is petty, and it has nothing to do with how you behave or if you can do the job. HR are people too, and I'm sure they do things that's not right in there personal life too, you should never not hire someone because of what the feel about certain situations, especially on discriminations basis...I know It happens. and it's unprofessional on there part.