Imagine your mom, brother, or best friend is sitting beside you while you share something online. Would they be upset by what you’re posting? Offended? Grossed out? If so, don’t post it. Use your judgement and try to imagine how you would feel if you randomly stumbled across the content you intend to post.
Posting negative content is quite personal and could make others uncomfortable – even if they are not referenced directly in your post.
In other cases, you might want to share an inside joke with friends. Instead of opening the post up to all your social media followers, you might instead just send the joke as a group message directly to your friends.
You can tastefully share some physical states or events. For instance, you might post that you gave birth to a child on social media. You could even post an image of the newborn wrapped snugly in a blanket. But it would be inappropriate to post an image of your child being born.
Remember that anything you post on the internet is in the public domain, even if you use privacy settings. While social media is a great way to stay in touch with friends and family, other people may also be able to see what you post.
Keeping your social media profile private means that you’ll only be sharing with a select few people (your friends or approved followers).
If you need to use your GPS, just turn the location function back on. Consult your user guide for your phone or tablet for more information about how you can turn off location sharing features.
Additionally, think carefully about where you check-in. Limit check-ins to special events and trips. Don’t check-in when visiting your friends, the laundromat, or other places that do not hold special interest. Additionally, don’t check-in from places far from home, since this will alert potential criminals that you won’t be returning to your home any time soon.
In some places, posting images of children – even your own children – without their approval is illegal. If your child is old enough to ask whether you’re posting a photo of them online, you should ask them if it is okay for you to do so. Even if others approve you posting the photo, think twice before doing so. Oversharing images of yourself with your friends or your children might grow tiresome for people consuming your social media.
Employers and colleges often check social media accounts, so your controversial posts could cost you your job or education. Likewise, if you are an illegal immigrant, you should not post information about how you came to be in your current country, or mention your current legal status.
If you want, you could share where you work, but never relate stories about your workday on social media. Assume your employer will see all your social media posts.
That way, you will ensure that they see it, since many people have so much information coming through their social media that they don’t have time to check it all. You’ll also avoid oversharing since you’re adding one less post to social media. Don’t forget the importance of face-to-face and phone conversations.
It’s especially important to respond to your friends’ posts regarding sincere emotional pain. It’s even better if you call or visit them as well. Responding to other posts on some social media platforms is best done through built-in approval indicators or by rebroadcasting the post you identified with, enjoyed, or found amusing.
If you find you’re checking social media so much that it interferes with your work, academic, or real social life, implement a steeper cut in your social media usage. There are many things you can do instead of oversharing on social media. For instance, you could play baseball with your friends. You could invite your family for a hike in the woods. If you prefer spending time alone off of social media, you could catch up on your reading or learn how to bake a new recipe. Think about some of your favorite hobbies and spend time doing them instead of oversharing on social media.
Feelings of guilt Anxiety Depression Dishonesty Euphoric feelings when in front of the computer Unable to keep schedules No sense of time Isolation[22] X Research source
