While having an on-line profile is all the rage and everyone has an e-mail account, the details of this information could be more important to your professional image than you realize…

(While this is based on a true story, the names and details have been changed. The actual family and Nanny were not associated with Town & Country Resources.)

Allyssa thought she'd found her dream Nanny job. In her first meeting with the family there was an immediate connection and sense of comfort. The three workdays she did as a trial time went perfectly. The salary was great, it was a 15-minute commute from her house and the five-year-old boy shared her love of soccer.

The family also thought they’d found their dream Nanny and were just pulling together the details of the offer when they decided to do a little internet searching on her. Sure enough, they found a MySpace account open to the public. Not only did she talk in detail about the crazy all-night parties on a recent trip to Mexico with her friends, but also talked at length about the family she used to work for and specifically about the list of things that bugged her about the job.

For the family, it was a rude awakening. They were shocked by the information regarding her personal life. The lack of overall good judgment and discretion related to her previous employers’ privacy was inexcusable. They now knew two things, that Allyssa wasn’t getting the job offer and that their Nanny search would continue, as would their internet research.

You might think you’re okay because you don’t happen to have a MySpace profile, but don’t forget about the rest of your public image.

Is your e-mail address suggestive or otherwise unprofessional?
Does your voice mail greeting have music or anything other than a brief, professional and short voice message?
If you do have a profile on MySpace or Facebook, make it private by requiring pre-approved viewers to log in.

Especially when you are searching for a job, take the time to make sure your public image is something you’re proud of. You never know who will be checking into this information and it could cost you a job.


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