IDS: a reflection

This past week has taught me a lot about online identity – the management, the lasting effect, the benefits and drawbacks of online identity. But what stands out to me is the importance of having an online professional identity. Whilst this is not a requirement for all, on reflection, I feel that this topic has made it a requirement for me. This is how:

Learning from others

Created by Anna Filipek (2018) on Piktochart

Chloe made me realize just how important it is to have a professional online identity, by exemplifying her Facebook use:

 “For example, I found it easier to contact participants for my dissertation over social media due to the instant messaging. Managers for my job also often contact myself and my colleagues over Facebook and we are all added to a Facebook group where we can pick up shifts!” (Chloe’s comment, 2018)

Additionally, she shared an interesting article with me through which I learned more about the benefits of using Facebook in the workplace (SynergyCreative, 2017).

This is what I learned about the benefits of having a professional online profile:

Created by Anna Filipek (2018) on Canva

As George (2016) suggests, many companies have now implemented social media policies into employee handbooks. This highlights for me, that continuously managing social media profiles is just as important.

Conveniently for the application of this topic to the real world, this week Presenter Maya Jama’s offensive tweets from 2012 resurfaced, potentially resulting in loss of job opportunities for her in future (Freedman, 2018). This showcases the ever-lasting effects of posts, and that social media never forgives.

In contrast to my original blog post, Jama’s story demonstrates that even experienced digital users are at risk.

I’ve thought of 3 main tips for digital users to avoid such risks – ID’S (short for identities!):

Created by Anna Filipek (2018) on Canva

Evaluating progress

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO WATCH FULL ANIMOTO VIDEO! Created by Anna Filipek (2018) on Animoto

To conclude

It has been really useful to reflect on my progress and learning so far, as sadly, the next blog post for this module will be my last. But I will definitely try to blog about other topics – I can’t let the skills I have gained through this module go to waste. 

I look forward to what my final reflection will bring…

Word count: 295

Comments

1. My comment on Chloe’s blog post
2. My comment on Sinead’s blog post

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References

Freedman, J. (2018) Maya Jama apologises after offensive tweet resurfaces – weeks after being announced as face of Maybelline every colour range. OK! Available at: https://www.ok.co.uk/celebrity-news/1355666/maya-jama-issues-apology-dark-skinned-bs-racist-tweet-stormzy-radio-1-maybelline-fit-me-diversity [Accessed 27 April 2018].

George, J. (2016) Maintaining Personal vs. Professional Identity on Social Media. Linkedin. Available at: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/maintaining-personal-vs-professional-identity-social-jaevon/ [Accessed 28 April 2018].

Salm, L. (2017) 70% of employers are snooping candidates’ social media profiles. Careerbuilder. Available at: https://www.careerbuilder.com/advice/social-media-survey-2017 [Accessed 28 April 2018].

SynergyCreative (2017) The Top 6 Benefits of Facebook’s Workplace ESN. Synergy. Available at: http://www.synergycreative.co.uk/latest-articles/the-top-6-benefits-of-facebook-s-workplace-esn. [Accessed 29 April 2018].

 

 

Are you having an online identity crisis?

Ever since internet access has been facilitating the formations of our online identities, it’s become difficult to maintain a clear distinction between the personal/private and the public (Preston, 2014). This is evidenced by the increasing amount of individuals losing their jobs due to regrettable posts (Warren, 2011).

Created by Anna Filipek (2018) on Canva

 

 

Types of online identities

PLEASE VIEW THE PIKTOCHART PRESENTATION HERE! (Anna Filipek, 2018)

PROS&CONS of different online identities

Created by Anna Filipek (2018) on Canva

When considering such advantages&disadvantages, it’s necessary to contextualize them around internet use. Linking to White (2008)‘s theory of digital residents/visitors discussed throughout the intro topic, a digital visitor’s main internet use, for instance, may be booking a flight. Thus it’s unnecessary for them to have multiple online identities. It is this question of what a user does online that determines the usefulness of having multiple identities.

Considering myself as a digital resident, for the purpose of this module I created a new Twitter account, thus demonstrating multiple identities:

Screenshot of Anna Filipek’s Twitter accounts (2018)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whilst this takes up more of my time, it enabled me to set personal and academic boundaries which I feel more comfortable with.

When considering the benefits&drawbacks of online identities, it can be a good idea to reflect on the online identities of people you know. For example, does it bother you that they have multiple profiles? That way, you can acknowledge how others’ might see your online presence, thus getting a different perspective on the advantages&disadvantages of different online identity types.

What to do if you have a digital identity crisis?

Having multiple online identities myself, I recognize that it can be difficult to keep on track, and easy to fall into an online identity crisis. So below I’ve compiled some tips on how to fall out of it, and manage your online presence effectively:

Video created by Anna Filipek (2018) on Biteable

To conclude

In an ever-growing online world, it’s important to evaluate the benefits&drawbacks of online identities in order to establish a feasible approach for yourself. Whichever identity type you go for, it’s vital to have an awareness of the implications of posting online, no matter the context – considering people even lose their jobs over one silly post!

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Word count: 311

References

Beale, S. (2014)  The Online Identity Crisis. Wired. [online]. Available at: https://www.wired.com/insights/2014/11/the-online-identity-crisis/ [Accessed 20 April 2018].

FutureLearn, (2018). Learning in the Network Age. University of Southampton. Available at: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/learning-network-age/ [Accessed 20 April 2018].

Gani, A. (2016) Internet trolling: quarter of teenagers suffered online abuse last year. The Guardian. [online]. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/feb/09/internet-trolling-teenagers-online-abuse-hate-cyberbullying [Accessed 19 April 2018].

Heussner, M.K. (2012) The Internet Identity Crisis. Adweek. Available at: http://www.adweek.com/digital/internet-identity-crisis-137991/ [Accessed 20 April 2018].

Krotoski, A. (2012) Online identity: is authenticity or anonymity more important? The Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2012/apr/19/online-identity-authenticity-anonymity [Accessed 20 April 2018].

Preston, A. (2014). The death of privacy. The Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/03/internet-death-privacy-google-facebook-alex-preston [Accessed 20 April 2018].

Van Dijck, J. (2013) ‘You have one identity’: performing the self on Facebook and LinkedIn’, Media Culture and Society. Available at: http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0163443712468605 [Accessed 20 April 2018].

Warren, C. (2011) 10 People Who Lost Jobs Over Social Media Mistakes. Mashable. Available at: https://mashable.com/2011/06/16/weinergate-social-media-job-loss/#Z8gmWWiZAaqx [Accessed 20 April 2018].

White, D. (2008). Not ‘Natives’ & ‘Immigrants’ but ‘Visitors’ & ‘Residents’. [Blog] TALL blog Online education with the University of Oxford. Available at: http://tallblog.conted.ox.ac.uk/index.php/2008/07/23/not-natives-immigrants-but-visitors-residents/ [Accessed 20 April 2018].

Young, R. (2017) Your Online Identity: Your Strongest Brand or Worst Nightmare? Huffington Post [online]. Available at: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/ruth-young/your-online-identity-your_b_9994346.html [Accessed 20 April 2018].