We are living in the 21st century, everyone knows about the internet and uses it in their everyday lives, we all use social media and other forms of online communication, but sometimes we don’t think about what we post. What we post can affect us in ways that we don’t really think of, but in the future we may find that what we post does have a permanent effect on our life.

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Whenever you share something to the internet, you should always think about what the consequences could be and what others would think about it. When you post something, you might think that only your friends will see it, but if it’s posted publicly (which it usually is), then anyone can view what you post and may criticize it, or perceive your personality based on what you post. You should always think of the future effect of what you do on the internet before you do it, because once it’s in the cloud, you can never delete it. Even if it is deleted from your site, people still take screenshots, so you have to make sure what you post is doesn’t reflect you as a bad person. When you go to apply for a job, or even volunteer work, your employer may search your name up to see your reputation. This is becoming more popular, as technology is becoming a bigger part of our lives and what we post can really have an effect on our opportunities in life. 51-91% of employers search social media to choose their employees, this can be helpful if you are proven to be a good person on your social media, and especially if you do a lit of things related to the job. But this can also be a bad thing, because if your posts show that you are a bad or careless person, employers would want to stay away from you. Remember, whatever you post should reflect that you are a good person to hire, and not a careless slacker or irresponsible person.

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You have complete control to what you post, and you should always remember to keep some key things in mind when you share content. First of all, think twice about whatever you post, don’t post anything that is embarrassing, or could make you seem like a careless person. Although it might seem funny at the time, you may regret posting something that you could be made fun of because. You should always remember that when a post goes up, it never goes down, even if it’s deleted, it can never be deleted from people’s minds. Another tip is to manage who can see what your’re sharing, most social media platforms give an option to share posts with only people you confirm are your friends, this can be helpful if you want to say information that you wouldn’t want just anyone hearing, for example “having a party at Mundy Park at 6!!!” would be something you wouldn’t want everyone to see, because it could attract unwanted people. As well as sharing personal info, you should also avoid saying mean/disrespectful things about people, those kinds of comments are best kept inside your mind, because they might offend people causing you to have a bad reputation. Commenting unkind things will not only make you look like a bad person, it could harm the person you are talking about in a way that you overlooked. Overall, the main rule on any social media platform is to think before you post, and remember it can have an effect on your live and the way people think of you.

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While learning about the impact of my digital footprint, I learned  that you have to be aware about what you post because it can have a tremendous effect on your life. Always make sure that what your saying isn’t harmful to anyone or anything that might harm  yourself. Try posting only positive things about yourself, things that won’t make you look like a bad person to hire, you will need it for the future. Always make sure you know who your’e texting, and you shouldn’t tell them private information through text. When you post something, ask yourself if your’e grandparents would like to see it before you post it, and remember it’s not only your friends that see your posts too. Remember that what you post is like a tattoo, it’s permanent and people will remember it. Everything you say on the internet should be honest and something that is meaningful and not pointless. I want to share the information that I have learned, and if I were to, I’d use QR codes to share this page with everybody. If you do read this, take the time to tell your friends to help them be aware of their digital footprint. If we follow these steps, we would know that what we post can affect us greatly, and that we have to control it. Thank you for taking the time to learn about your digital footprint.

-Zayd

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