Can You Have an Online Presence & Still Have Some Online Privacy?

How do you develop a solid online presence while simultaneously having the ability to enjoy a social media account with friends and maybe even be a little goofy? It is possible, but organizing one’s digital footprints takes organization and attention.

This issue is of paramount importance for people who will be applying for school or jobs in today’s digital world.

To learn more about managing life in the social media world check out an informative New York Times article that describes how a 21st Century individual goes about balancing privacy with a necessary public online presence. Many people worry about how much to share in the digital world and how to separate personal and professional personas. The article, Build an Online Presence Without Giving Up Privacy, explains how a person can go about doing it.

Author Theorin Klosowski writes that it is important for an individual to assign different purposes or roles to social media accounts, deciding how each social media account will be used and how much personal information will be shared. It is possible, he points out, to use one account for a more public and professional persona and another account for more personal interactions (public vs. private). Designating accounts for specific purposes is especially crucial for professionals who are expected to maintain a public presence online.

It’s reputation management 101, and everyone in a family — adults and children — needs to consider how to go about organizing digital life. Naturally, all accounts — should have strong privacy settings, but we all should remember that things we do and say on a personal account can be copied and shared.

Best Quote: Retaining the type of social footprint required for work while still managing personal privacy isn’t easy, nor is it foolproof.

The article appears as a part of a New York Times privacy newsletter that focuses on how to protect personal data.  It’s a lesson that parents should master and then You can sign up to receive this newsletter when you click on the article link above.