Facebook is generally a place where you go to socialize with family and friends. Not necessarily a place where you want to interact with your boss or think about issues related to your Miami job.
But what if your boss “friends” you on Facebook? What should you do?
There’s no easy answer to this situation. It really depends on your relationship with your boss. But here are 3 possible solutions:
1. Accept Your Boss
If you have a close relationship with your boss and confide personal issues, then you may want to accept the friend request. But before you do, be mindful of the fact that you’re essentially opening up your life to your boss. Your pictures, comments, and activities and interests reveal a lot about you – more than you may want to reveal to your boss. Also, once you do accept your boss as a Facebook friend, there’s no going back. The last thing you want to do is “unfriend” him or her.
2. Ignore Your Boss
If you have a more formal relationship with your boss, then you may not be comfortable with the proposition of being friends via Facebook. If that’s the case, then communicate that to your boss. Either send him or her a quick note or swing by their office to let them know why you chose to ignore the request.
Say something along the lines of:
“It’s nothing against you at all, I just don’t like to mix business and personal stuff.”
Simply ignoring their request may lead to some awkwardness between the two of you.
3. Change Your Settings
Another option is to use the permission features and filters on Facebook to create groups (like one for work) and allow those groups to only see certain types of information.
With the rise of social networking, personal and professional lives are colliding more and more. What are some of your stories – the good, the bad, and the ugly – of social networking crossing previously defined boundaries in your Miami job?