My poor first born. 

 

A lot of people have written about annoying social media habits, but evidently not enough.

In case you’re still unsure about what to post to Facebook, consult this list:

1. Disturbing photos: Pictures of starving babies, burned dogs, and people with horrible disfigurements are in poor taste, and very upsetting to some people. We know a good cause is usually involved, but use some discretion.

2. Hard sales: Not everyone is in the market for expensive makeup or real estate. Share something the whole class can enjoy.

3. Guilt trips: Posting things like, “Make this your status for an hour or else you were not raised right or don’t care about babies with cancer” just makes people feel bad. This modern version of a chain letter doesn’t help the cause.

4. Games: This is like forcing people to play charades when they hate parlor games. Ask people first if they like games, and whether they will mind the hacks, spams and viruses that come with some of them.

5. Urban myths: Before you post that eating pomegranate seeds will cause your kneecaps to burst, run it through Snopes.

6. Religion: Don’t assume everyone shares your faith. There are places people can go for fellowship and like-minded praise and worship: actual buildings and private Facebook groups.

7. Confessions: Too much information is, well, too much. If you wouldn’t tell your spouse, mother, or shrink something, why would you tell me?

8. Profanity: A well-placed expletive for real outrage or disappointment is justifiable. A post with 10 F-bombs about a funny YouTube video shows a lack of vocabulary.

9. Fire alarms: You should thoroughly vet “Danger! Danger, Will Robinson!” posts about foods that will give you cancer or a Neti-Pot worm that will eat your brain before you post them. (See the Snopes reference above.)

10. Crypticisms: “I’m so mad!” doesn’t give us a lot of information to go on, or any way to help.

11. Information without links: It’s fine to tell us about a cool website, but include the link, OK? Also, don’t use a link with 417 characters. Use a shortened one, please.

12. Wrong tech advice: If you run a tech-support company, we’d love to have your advice on the best anti-virus software or the right way to partition a hard drive.

In short, behave online like you would at a social event. No one suspended the rules of polite society for Internet interaction.

What’s your least favorite type of Facebook post?

Kim Phillips is the founder of Lucid Marketing and author of the Lucid at Random blog. A version of this article originally appeared on 12 Most. Find the original article posted on PR Daily here. 

Looking for a new job usually means the joyful process of interviews. While you should dust off your resumé, you should also polish up your wardrobe, since making a good first impression is a key part of nailing the position you really want. Being sharply dressed and well-groomed can be almost as important as previous experience and the number of degrees under your belt, or at least could fool them into thinking you look the part.

What you need to purchase to outfit yourself perfectly doesn’t have to cost a fortune, and all the pieces that you need are those that should be an essential part of your wardrobe regardless of where you work. Think of them as the basics – pieces that will take you from work to a date to jury duty.

Image Source: http://www.HM.com/ca

For Guys:

Guys need a nice pair of dress pants, a crisp dress shirt, and a stand-out tie. If you’re interviewing for the Vice President of International Corporate Banking, a jacket would definitely be appropriate. Check out the choices at H & M, where you can find a veritable rainbow of men’s superbly cut dress shirts for a mere $29.95, as well as jackets that range in price from $49.95 to $149. And you can easily pick up a nice designer tie at Winners or Marshalls that will only look expensive.

I love the Banana Republic Factory Store for finding really well made career clothes at incredible pricing. Sign up for their emails and you’ll receive a welcome discount offer as well as notification of upcoming sales events. And I always check out the clearance section where you can score some amazing deals.  Last week I found men’s suit jackets that were regularly $179 for a mere $39.99.

For Girls:

Image Source: http://www.gapcanada.ca

Girls can go with pants or a skirt, just follow some of the same rules. Basic black or gray bottoms and the ubiquitous crisp shirt. Check out the Gap for their ‘perfect shirt’ for $49.50, which offers a beautifully tailored fit and a quality which will last for years. Jazz it up with some bold jewelry or a bright scarf.

Don’t be afraid to shop in places you may never have thought of to score some great basics at unbelievable prices. Walmart has a fantastic selection of career dress pants and basic shirts from their George™ line, with a variety of pants in modern cuts available from as little as $20.

One of the most important things to make sure of before you leave the house – check that your shoes are clean and polished if necessary. One of my little tricks to spiff up a pair of black shoes is to grab a Sharpie marker and colour in any worn spots, just a couple of dabs of ink can make a huge difference. My mother always said you can tell a person’s pride by the way the care for their shoes.

Always carry extra gum or mints with you. There is absolutely nothing worse than speaking to someone and having to inhale their latte breath or remnants of the extra onions you got on your sub at lunch, but never, EVER chew gum during the interview. And NEVER wear flip flops – unless you’re interviewing at the Head Office of Havaianas.

Don’t Forget!

And don’t forget the most important thing to wear – CONFIDENCE! With enough of it, you’ll be sitting in the big corner office in no time at all, and your assistant will gratefully polish your shoes for you.

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