Should You Add Your Work Friends On Facebook?
[Photo: axeetech]
Facebook is 12 years old. That’s 12 years in which to make many mistakes. If you signed up for an account in your teens, chances are the evolution of your wall is akin to an embarrassing journal. That’s to be expected; you were not the self-aware adult you are now.
Adding a work friend on Facebook is like handing them the key to your diary. Unless you’re prepared to go back and do some editing you might want to think twice about sending or accepting friend requests.
Emphasis on ‘friend’
Facebook is predominantly about sharing intimate information about yourself with your friends. Do you really want your workmates to know what you’re up to in your spare time? You might get along swimmingly with them at the office, you may have been out for lunch or after work drinks but are they really your friends?
Would you genuinely hang out with them if you weren’t forced together in a work environment? If the answer is yes then go for it. If not, you could be making a rod for your own back.
Your emo past may come back to haunt you
Perhaps you’re the kind of person that doesn’t really bother Facestalking others, you’ve got better things to do than mine the depths of someone else’s embarrassing past.
But not all Facebook users are made equal. Kelly from HR has way too much time on her hands. Kelly from HR wants to know everything about you she’s going to file your emo pics from the early noughties in her special lock up HR draw and secretly judge you forever. Kelly needs to get a life.
Careful what you say
If you’re going to add a colleague you may have to start censoring those close to the bone updates your mates find hilarious or think twice about sharing stories of boozy adventures. You might not get that promotion if your boss assumes you’re a racist alcoholic.
The domino effect
If you add one you add them all. Giving Kelly the keys to your emo past means sooner or later you’re going to start cropping up in the “people you may know” section. Before you know it that weird mouth-breather from IT and Olivia the office over-sharer are requesting you up. How long can you ignore them before it becomes offensive?
Big brother’s watching
It goes without saying if you’re partial to the odd skive, Facebook and work can be a treacherous mix. A sudden bout of food poisoning that suspiciously coincides with a photo of you and your mates enjoying brunch is gonna get right back to Kelly.
The only way to be sure your Facebook antics don’t sully your work reputation is to avoid adding colleagues in the first place. After all, why should you edit your history or micro manage your present for fear of the way you may be perceived? What you do in your own time is none of their business but adding them kind of makes it so. Surely it’s best just to keep work and pleasure separate?
Of course, if you’re worried about causing offence there’s always the option to put colleagues on a restricted list and decide what information they can access but there’s no way you should feel obliged.
If you have to connect with work mates on social media, Twitter is always a good shout. The platform is less personal and professionally it’s a much safer option.
What are your thoughts on the area? Tweet us at @YahooStyleUK.
