During my time at post-secondary, Iā€™ve noticed many students using Linked In as well as Instagram for professional purposes. This was not something I had ever considered before however, I have had many friends start online stores through Instagram to sell old clothes or their artistry. I think being able to create an online store for yourself with such ease is a great thing for young people to start getting into the professional world. It opens so many doors by taking away the roadblocks that inhibit people from starting businesses like permits and leases. On a personal matter, students use many other forms of social media as well that as they grow up and move through their degree, can sometimes pivot towards being used for a professional reason. For example, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Reddit, Tiktok, or Vsco. On the contrary, other platforms might always serve the purpose of a personal matter. For example, Snapchat, Bereal, Reddit, Tiktok, and others.  Equally important, students must consider who they want to see each of their online presences. For example, my friends who have started online Instagram stores have often advertised for these stores through their personal Instagram accounts. This is a great way to let friends and family know what is going on in your life professionally, but it would become more difficult to distinguish between personal and professional online presences. 

As my Personal Learning Network continues to grow, Iā€™ve begun to think about what it means to have a network of people. Sometimes it seems that in the professional world, it is a competition to have the biggest network, and therefore have the most access to knowledge. To have the largest PLN, you would have to be very visible online which brings in questions of privacy and security. If you are someone who values your privacy more, over the size of your PLN, then you would have better security but fewer outlets for learning. One of the limits of creating a personal network online is the trade-off between growing your network and protecting your privacy. One solution to this is to teach students to create a healthy balance between the two. Being informed on how to stay safe online while networking is very important in this day and age!   Creating a digital identity/ reputation has a lot more nuances to it than creating your reputation in person does. One of the things about networking online is the assumption that everyone has the ability to re-read and think about what they are posting. Because of this, I  think that people take what you post online more seriously than what you might say in person. Everything you post online is permanent, itā€™s like writing with a sharpie on a dry-erase board. Maintaining and creating a reputation in person allows for more authenticity because we are seeing people as they really are. Whereas when creating an online identity and reputation there is the unspoken rule that everyone is controlling exactly how they want to be perceived. This can be a good thing as it can make you look more appealing to a potential employer. As for creating a good reputation in online spaces, I believe it is important to be authentic and share your values, what you do, and what your mission in creating this digital identity is. When looking back on my own ā€œreputationā€ online from an employer’s perspective I realized the depth of what a simple search of a name can bring up online. I think that my employer would assess my social media presence as minimal, however, what they would see would show off my personality. This is something that is important to me, I donā€™t want to come off as disingenuous or like Iā€™m trying to curate myself too much so I try to stay true to my personality on my personal and professional social medias. After looking me up, someone would know my work experience and education, and various hobbies of mine like painting, doing yoga, and dancing.