Balancing Your Social and Professional Lives

By Melissa Maynarich, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- What happens if you throw a party with all your friends and your boss shows up? Does it change how you act? That's the question social networkers are facing these days.

With millions logging onto popular sites daily, worlds are colliding and it's getting tougher to separate work and play.

John, 39, is plugged in to the social networking scene. Logging on helps him stay connected.

"Most of my friends are on, including long lost friends from high school. I can keep up with them. They can keep up with me," said John.

Now, his boss can keep up with him, too. John recently accepted a request to be his friend on Facebook.

"The first thing I did before I accepted it was I posted an update to all of my friends saying the party is over," John said.

Mixing business with pleasure is shifting the online social scene. A growing number of people are 'linking up' with both personal and professional contacts on sites like Linked-In, Facebook, MySpace and Twitter.

Social networking expert and author Jason Alba said once that line is blurred, managing your online reputation is more important than ever.

"Are you coming across as someone who's going to bring value to the table or are you coming across as someone who's going to be a goof off or communicate things that are inappropriate?" Alba asks.

But how do you protect your persona? Business professor Gigi Johnson recommends monitoring online content as though your boss is always looking, even if he or she isn't one of your buddies, and become familiar with your network's privacy settings.

"You can describe which part of your world is viewed to the public and which part of the world is viewed to your friends, family and good acquaintances," Johnson said.

John actually adjusts his privacy settings for co-workers.

"They can't see as much information about me or my updates as my regular friends outside of work can," John said.

You can also guard your brand by keeping your pictures neutral and your personal information to a minimum. Don't feel required to post things like marital status and birth year.

"If you are providing too much personal information, and it's coming out in your status updates, you may be making people uncomfortable," Johnson said.

John said his profile strikes the perfect balance between work and play, and hopes others who are wired will stay "cyber smart."

"Everybody should always be cautious," John said.

If the thought of mixing work and play is overwhelming, both Alba and Johnson recommend creating two separate accounts; one for business and one for pleasure.