stedavies.com - communications consultant

Youngie’s seeking the wisdom of the crowds for an up-and-coming conference he and his colleague, Christie are speaking at. Their talk is titled: Reputation Management for Digital Natives and they’ve tagged me and a few others on the three dos and don’ts of online etiquette we’d recommend for digi natives. Youngie says:

“There has been a lot of talk about young people potentially harming their reputation online – along with many case studies. Digital Natives will be the first generation to live their lives branded by a Google Tattoo. At the same time, I’m a firm believer that there is so much to gain from actively engaging online that you’d be stupid not to, it’s just a matter of knowing the ground rules.”

I’ve noticed there are quite a few comments from those who have been tagged in the comment section of Paull’s blog which I’ve purposely decided not to read. Reason being is I’d probably plagiarise them. Here are mine:

Don’t…

… say anything online you wouldn’t say to your boss, colleagues, parents, grandparents etc. Common sense really but you’ll be surprised at how many people think that because they’re in behind a computer and not actually communicating with others in the physical sense then it doesn’t matter. Seriously, it really does. Google has a longer memory than you and me put together.

… lie. Okay, maybe little white lies are okay. Say if your friend on Facebook asks you what you did last night and you tell him/her that you were the life and soul of the exclusive celebrity party you attended when really you stayed in reading a book then maybe (just maybe) this is okay. However, lying about who you are, your age or any other way of deceiving someone then that’s when you’re in hot water. And besides, you can’t lie online because 99.9% of the time you’ll get found out.

… forget you mature with age. Dude, we all go through music phases. There was once a time when I liked this guy*. Not now though. And there’ll come a time when you’ll look back at the pictures of yourself looking like a white Tupac with embarrassment. Only a limited few can make a bandanna look genuinely cool and, frankly, you aren’t one of them. Be warned. It’ll haunt you.

Do…

… be yourself. Just because you are easily google-able it doesn’t mean you’ve got to be seen as a square. Everyone who has some sort of online presence – be it on a blog, MySpace or Facebook is ‘image building’. Let your online presence be an extension of your real personality.

… see online as your gateway to the world. Woah, less of the corny-ness Davies. It’s true though. This little ole blog got me to London, my last three jobs, the various speaking events I’ve done/I’m doing, New York next month and I’ve now got contacts/mates all around the world. Granted I’ve put the work in but it’s there if you want it.

… be prepared to know what you don’t know. I can’t tell you how much I’ve learnt over the last two and a half years but, at the same time, it’s made me realise how much I don’t know. I guess what I’m tryng to say here is that you’ll learn far more by communicating with your peers online than you would from any magazine, book or (dare I say it) degree. If you’re willing to put the time and effort in it of course.

And that’s it.

* Did I Rick Roll anyone? An explanation of Rick Rolling here. Awesome. Thanks Seasons.