You Aren't As "Anonymous" As You Think, So Manage Your Online Identity Carefully

A new trend in media is reporting stories on how people get fired because of their online persona. Specifically, foolish young (or old?) employees announce loudly on twitter or facebook that they hate their bosses, co-workers, or jobs in general. And internet-savvy bosses respond by showing them the door.

But there are more things to be afraid of when you are active online aside from the astute employer. One of which is watching the negative feedback you give, or information you post, and realizing that you aren't as anonymous as you think.

Last week, a former model sued to obtain the information on a blogger who put out very negative and defamatory information about her online. The former model won. Several news sources produced up in arms pieces about the first amendment and how revealing the identity of a vitriol blogger threatens our fundamental rights. While I believe that there is nothing protecting anonymity in the first amendment, and furthermore if you are man/woman enough to say it, you should be man/woman enough to own up to it, this case should put a chill on anonymous hateful speech. Furthermore, this debate has been going on for much longer, and this outcome, in a day and age where employers google potential employees, was inevitable.

When I was 17 I began using internet forums to find out information, and I still do today. For example, I use Yahoo questions for research (to get a general consensus) or other similar sites. When I was accepted into law school, I was directed by someone I knew who was a law student to visit a forum dedicated to law students that is currently involved in a law suit after two students were attacked on the forum by name. I know of several other students who were also treated very cruelly on this forum. The two students who were named in numerous threads on this forum fought back, filing a law suit, and the identity of at least one of the individuals behind the most malicious comments was to be disclosed to the students.

I read the developing case with interest, especially when the it became apparent that the individuals who had used anonymity to attack these female law students would face some exposure. It became apparent that at least one of the individuals was living a dual life; his or her online identity was completely inconsistent with his or her real-life persona. The individual begged the judge not to reveal his/her identity on the grounds that it would literally ruin this person's life. They spoke of their family (as in mom and dad), and career aspirations. It was an odd juxtapose to the damage that this individuals comments had done to the two women suing to repair their image.

What it all comes down to is this: an individual needs to be as concerned about what he or she says online anonymously as he or she is about what is said openly. While an errant facebook comment may cost you an entry level position, vitriol posted anonymously about an innocent individual could cost you your career and forever limit your potential. Because comments posted anonymously are becoming part of one's online identity, such un-masked comments are part of a growing trend of online infamy.

Work and Religion

For full disclosure, I am a Sabbath keeping Christian. I am very passionate about my religion.

A few days ago, I watched the documentary Jesus Camp. I was worried that it would be critical of religion, and make Christians seem like, well, freaks. But it was a surprisingly interesting take on the situation of politically active Christianity. It showed the church's efforts to train the next generation of members, an attempt to ensure the survival of their brand of Christianity. One of the most difficult things to do for a religion is to ensure that they retain the younger members of their faith. A particularly compelling moment in the movie was when a young girl walked up to a young lady at a bowling alley and told her about Jesus. I was surprised by her courage. And it made me question what I am doing as a Christian to spread what I believe. And what a delicate line there exists on matters of religion at work.

I first thought about the careful lines between work and personal belief during the election. Most of the lawyers hid their political leanings as if they were deep dark secrets. This is true even more for the religious persuasions of the people I work with. I find out about them from people who know them outside of the office. And sometime the revelations are shocking: I could not understand, for example, how a particular coworker was Catholic and their behavior is, well, inconsistent with their religion.

Furthermore, as a Christian I feel the need to share my beliefs. It was easy to do when, as a criminal defense attorney I was asked by inmates to pray with them, or asked how I could be so kind in such a difficult situation. However, things are different in the corporate world. The situation is even trickier if one wants to share their religion. I would not recommend sharing one's religion directly; it can create a hostile work environment for people who do not believe the same things. However, there are subtler ways to share one's beliefs, a way that improves the workplace.

As a Christian, I believe in a few things. One of which is that I am required and mandated to be a kind person. Some people hold the belief that being kind at work is one way to ensure that people will walk over you. But being kind is not being a pushover. Being kind is a different animal entirely. Being kind means you bite your tongue when a cruel word could be spoken (i.e. a critical and unnecessary barb at a difficult coworker). I am also required to turn the other cheek, and to ignore an insult as if it never happened. I had a meeting once where I realized I could have said a lot of true things in defense of an accusation made against me that was, well, unfounded. I did defend my position. But instead of saying what I wanted to say (which was that the person was completely delusional and incompetent), I took the rather rudely given criticism in stride, provided my explanation, and looked for positive ways to integrate the information I was given and make it constructive criticism.

A final mandate that I find particularly important as a Christian in the work place is to be a forgiving person. This isn't an easy thing to be, but it does make you a much better coworker. Not remembering every fault or misdeed done to you is a real asset, especially in an industry that is small, and the power dynamics between people change continually. In the legal industry, a subordinate today might be a desired client tomorrow, or a government attorney in a position to make or break a client's attempts at avoiding a federal investigation. Forgiveness is a very useful trait, that protects relationships and allows someone to be the bigger person in a very meaningful way.

In the Bible, there is a sermon given by Jesus with the mantras that every Christian is encouraged to live by. These are: humility, compassion, mercy, good intentions, and peacefulness. These mantras are very useful in the workplace, make an employee a much more like-able person, and are an easy way to be a good Christian without preaching a sermon. Whatever your personal religious persuasion (or lack thereof), it is important to develop your mantra that shows your faith (or world-view), and use it to make you a better employee, and to make your workplace a better workplace.