In this day and age we are in, an individual social media life is almost as important as his/her physical one. Its that space where one shows who he/she is, ones real self, where you show what you stand for and how you connect with the world. Now to sharing ones social media handles with ones employer. It is a difficult one, honestly, things can get tricky especially here in Nigeria where securing a job is hard, now having to do that, it would definitely bring about some headache.
Firstly, I would love to start from the employers perspective of things, by he/she would decide to do that. We live in a time where brands, organizations, companies, and even individuals thrive based on their online presence. An employer might want to know what their employees are doing and posting online, which I want to believe is not just to ensure the image of their organization to remain intact but so as to avoid any future drama. We all know just ine single controversial post can turn down the image of an individual/organization. To be honest, no one actually wants their workplace caught in a scandal because of a Facebook post, a tweet or an Instagram story. So, viewing in it from that point of view kind of makes sense.
Now, come to think of it, ones social meida handle and all is personal. Its a space where you feel free to post memes, catch fun/cruise, share your personal moments and all. I would want to say it wouldn't be that hard if all that is required is just my maybe Facebook username and stuffs, but going deep into requesting for passwords and access to it, that is way too much, am saying it wouldn't have been a hard thing to do if the only thing they could access was your timeline, but what about your messages, that means they literally know everything that happens in ones life, most of us share our secrets to close pals via our social media and then am employer comes to request for your social media handles. Well that would be an invasion of privacy if you ask me, I wouldn't want to day how I would react to such, but theres definitely going to be a way around it, reason being that I created that space for my personal use, to express myself freely and all, well that would be crossing the line for any employer who does that. From what have experienced, someone might just ask to borrow your phone just to view some pictures, you find out later that the person was actually doing something else entirely, maybe going through your messages and all, how do I trust an employer not to start such also, and believe he won't go too deep into my conversation with friends and families.
In a country where we face various challenges ranging from hunger, lack, security, political tensions to mention but a few, social media is our go to platform to express frustration, hopes, and even humor. Some of us use it to vent about the frustrations of daily life, from the constant power cuts to the daily increase in price of goods. Some of us use it to while away our time to kind of get out of the reality things, either by watching funny skits or something of sort, and now to hand over such to ones boss..smiles.
Now, to the question "if it was all that stood between me and my dream job". Well, I would weigh my options carefully. Or I do rather open a new social media account and give that to them. And if that wouldn't work, one time or the other, we have all had to make compromises in life, and maybe this is one of those times where theres the need to swallow my pride and do whats asked. At the end, securing that dream job could be worth a bit of discomfort. Am sure I wouldn't be forced to do that though (handing over my social media handles).
Well, I would want to add that, my or the social media could be vetted through the employer going through my post, timeline, tweets and all, he/she should be able to know the kind of person I am with that, asking for my media handles means he/she wants to cross the line, or am I not thinking right, come to think of it, be my friend on Facebook for instance, you would definitely see my post, timeline, photos, the only thing private to me is my messages and activities, so you can get to know who I am through all those that is available for the public.
Would I be willing to submit my social media if demanded? Honestly, I doubt that, let's just say it depends on the type of work or what is at stake.. . It shouldn’t have to come to that though, but if it does, then it's something to give some thought about.
I am presently on the lookout for a job, and for the sake of that, if opportunities come, with such a demand for my media handles, I might have to adjust. The truth remains that ones social media is "personal", yes, emphasis on" personal ".
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Before providing any access data that exposes our life and privacy, we must calmly consider it and only when we are absolutely sure of our decision should we take the next step.
You nailed it, it is important to weigh your options carefully.
Thanks for stopping by.