Look Before You Like

by | Oct 6, 2016 | Social Media

What do all of your “likes” in social media say about you?

More importantly, what do you want them to say about you?

Do you think before you “like” in Facebook . . . or “heart” in Instagram and Twitter?

Do you consider how that piece of data will be aggregated with thousands of other data points about you?

Do you decide if it will reflect well on you or not?

Just as you should look before you link, you should look before you “like.”

Why? Because of something called The Reputation Economy.

Say what?

In this 2015 book, Reputation.com founder Michael Fertik tells you “how to optimize your digital footprint in a world where your reputation is your most valuable asset.”

Ultimately, Fertik sets forth a compelling case that your digital reputation may shape how you experience the world – for better or for worse.

Over the last year, for example, you may think you’ve been circumspect about your political views. But your political leanings may have been identified, based on your social media activity.

Even more interesting is seeing how your digital footprint may reveal your personality.

By analyzing just a few of your Facebook likes, the University of Cambridge’s psychometric centre will predict several dimensions of your personality. (Updated: actually, DON’T do this. Instead, watch the 2019 Netflix original documentary The Great Hack. It’s about how a data company called Cambridge Analytica came to symbolize the dark side of social media.)

“You are what you like,” the site says.

You may think twice about what you “like” in the future.

Here are my non-algorithmic rules for liking content in social media:

  • Always consider how liking something will reflect on you. Will it contribute to – or detract from – what you want to be known for?
  • If you’re not sure what certain content could imply, don’t like it. And if you have “friends” who repeatedly post strange content, it might time to unfriend them.

What do you like?