Establishing and maintaining a social identity: four to follow, four to avoid!

Here are my four standards for creating and maintaining a positive identity or brand online…

• Be yourself.
• Be original.
• Be authentic.
• Demonstrate integrity.

That’s not in any way meant to suggest that I get it right all the time – I realise my weaknesses and mistakes. However I do have this list on the wall in my office and regularly glance at it to evaluate if I’m holding true to my values.

Here are four opposing behaviours that I consider to break my standards above…

• Telling others what to share.
• Sharing verbatim a list of pre-written content that someone else has supplied.
• Subscribing to services that automate delivery of others’ content to your social channels.
• Solely sharing content that reflects your employer’s marketing brand.

If you’re doing one or more of the above, please consider whether it reflects well on your own personal identity or that of the brand you or your company wish to promote.

I firmly believe that in the long run, repeatedly demonstrating these behaviours will harm rather than enhancing the success of your efforts.