Social Media is Not a Psychiatrist Couch

When will people wake up?

You should NEVER confess to crimes, criminal intent, racism, hatred of a specific person or nationality, or any other unseemly attitudes on social media. Every illegal, dangerous, and stupid thing you say on Twitter, Facebook, blogs, and forums can be found by a current employer, prospective employer, or law enforcement.

I have seen people on social media make hateful statements and even threats of violence and harm made against specific politicians, Canadians, liberals, Tea Party, French, Muslims, blacks, whites, you name it.

I have been interviewing various thought leaders in the social media realm. When I ask why people continue to engage in risky online behavior, I usually get the answer: "They are used to blurting out anything because that's what their friends do. It's second nature."

Is it true that people, especially the younger generation, are conditioned to blurt out anything they feel like saying on social media? Are they posting naked photos, complaining about their employer, saying hateful things, and bragging about crimes or criminal intent on social media -- because they are addicted to social media as some kind of confessional?

Is social media a psychiatrist couch? A shoulder to cry on? A platform for soliciting sympathy? A soapbox upon which to preach hate? Should you say anything you feel like saying, to blow off steam or to let the world know how angry you are? NO.

I've been blogging since 2004, and I was one of the first bloggers to sound the alarm about the dangers of personal blogging. In fact, my post "Dangers of Personal Blogging" is

You can blab too much. You can express too much, and later, you may bitterly regret it.

It's very common to see people "expressing themselves" on Facebook, Twitter, blogs, forums, and other social media. What is being expressed is often the worst part of their nature, a temporary feeling, or a flash of emotion that may make a person appear to be deranged, evil, or perverse.

I'm shocked at how people who condemn white supremacy and racism will think it's fine to talk about how much they hate a particular nationality. Hating an entire race is wrong, but hating an entire nation is okay? What kind of logic is this? It's irrational and may be indicative of deep seated emotional problems.

Oh sure, I bash leadership in general, politicians, trolls, and various corporations that I think are worthy of being criticized. But I will not threaten anyone, express a wish to harm anyone, or say anything that could be misinterpreted as insane. I joke around. I transmit harsh opinions when I deem it important. But there is a line that I will not cross.

"I'd love to (harm, injure, attack, destroy, terrify) a (person, company, store, race, nationality) right now" is stupid talk on social media.

Why does anyone think that expressing the worst aspects of your nature is a good idea on social media?

Employers tend to periodically monitor employee activity online. If you're using your real name, as you should, in social media, your employer can simply Google your name and find all your social media chatter, all your photos and videos, all your podcasts and blog posts.

Don't think that by not revealing what company you work for, you're safe from scrutiny. You can be fired for saying the wrong thing online, and it won't matter that you said it as a private individual during non-work hours.

"I've already blabbed a lot that I regret. What's the point in stopping it? I might as well continue being a big mouth, eh?" WRONG.

Why compound the problem? Why dig your hole even deeper? Why give law enforcement, employers, and identity thieves more information?

Social media is NOT a platform for expressing every ignorant thought and despicable feeling. Once you post something to the internet, it stays there forever. There is no undoing it.

Think before you type something on your keyboard. Pause before clicking Submit. Look before you leap. Use your reason before your blurt out something emotional. Consider possible ramifications of your gushing.

What we have now is Social Media Exhibitionism Syndrome: the compulsive spewing forth of private thoughts and personal issues. You seek approval or sympathy. You hope others will join in with your hostility. You think, in keeping with a weird, masochistic version of "transparency", you are bravely putting your personality on display.

You're being very unwise if you march to the sinister drumbeat of Publicness of Personal Data Online. Learn the meaning of "too much information" and "loose lips sink ships".

If you're employed and you complain about your job, boss, customers, or vendors, on Facebook or Twitter or other social media, you are clueless about how employers use Google to evaluate job applicants and to  find bad apples in their organization.

If you really feel you must record your negative feelings, grab a paper notebook and a pen, and do it old skool. Write it down and show it to some offline friends if it makes you feel better. That way, you can burn your diary later, and nobody will be able to trace your nutty thoughts back to the source.

Be yourself on social media, but be your best self.

READ MORE

Consumer Reports "Social Network Users Post Risky Information"

CSO Data Protection "Social Media Risks"

GigaOm "Biggest Danger on Social Networks Isn't Hackers It's Dumb Employees "

SF Gate "Social Networking Has Hidden Dangers for Teens"

Junta42 "Dangers of Social Media in the Workplace -A Real Life Example"

Mashable "Social Media and Subpoenas: A Broken System That Puts Journalistic Sources at Risk"

PhoneBoy Blog "Dangers of Social Media"

BankRate "3 Financial Dangers of Social Media"