A letter from Dear Abby this past week read:
DEAR ABBY: Please warn your readers that their Web pages and blogs could stand in the way of securing a job! Just as employers have learned to read e-mail and blogs, they have learned to screen candidates through their sites.
Many people in their 20s and 30s wrongly believe their creations are entertaining and informative. Employers are not seeking political activists, evangelizers, whiners or tattletales. They do not want to find themselves facing a lawsuit or on the front page of a newspaper because a client, patient or parent of a student discovered a comment written by an employee.
The job market is tight, and job seekers must remember their computer skills can either help them land a position or destroy a job prospect. — CHICAGO EMPLOYER
DEAR EMPLOYER: You have opened up a line of thought I’ll bet a lot of job applicants — and future job applicants — have never considered. Googling a name isn’t difficult, and it could lead to an applicant’s blog. Most bloggers write to be read, and invite people to comment. Thank you for the reminder that those who blog should remember that they are open to public scrutiny, and that if they apply for a job, everything about them will be considered — including their blog. Prospective employers are certainly within their rights to make decisions based upon what they read.
I think that’s really good advice. For instance it would be really inappropriate to print this picture from Greenpeace
especially knowing that it is so inflammatory.
Oh, I also love the line in the letter, “Many people in their 20s and 30s wrongly believe their creations are entertaining and informative.” So is he saying blogs from folks that age are NOT entertaining and/or informative? How about older people? Does he think they more entertaining or that they just don’t blog?
