When I first started blogging and making my presence known on the internet, I never thought I'd have anything to hide so I had no qualms using my real name. Recently however I'm feeling much differently about it. Especially since I've decided to go back to school and go into education.
Sadly, I live in a state where you can be fired for just about anything-there are laws in place that say you can be fired for something as simple as having a different political or religious beliefs than your boss does. It's ridiculous. My roommate teaches and is constantly worried about what students or parents of students may find online (even though he keeps a low profile) and now I'm worried about that for myself as well.
I've already gone through and made as many things as private and deactivated some old accounts with my name on them (good ol' google still finds them though-UGH) but there are some things I can't, or am not sure how, to get away from. Like those stupid Pipl profile things that find all the info on you and offer it up to people who want to pay for it. They make me feel so violated.
But then there are things like this blog. This blog that I have put so much work into over the years. It comes up in the search with my full name (even though I don't recall using my full name on it-at least not for years and years) so any potential employer/student/student's parents would be able to pull this up and find out all about me.
The problem is...
- I don't want to make this blog private. I want to continue to let it grow.
- I don't want to change the name and url and start all over again.
- I don't know how to stop search results from pulling things that don't even really exist on this blog/site any longer.
- I don't want to have to change my name and relocate...
One option would be to go through this blog and delete anything incriminating I have ever written, and then stop writing anything very personal on here.
Pros:
- I would get to stay here and not change my blog.
- I would be more protected in the future.
- Having a future in the career I want. (If I don't, some of my life being so public could really hurt chances.)
Cons:
- I would lose some of my own voice here in my blog.
- I would lose followers (who wants to just read about emotionless stuff?)
- I would lose some of my history here, and you know how I hate to delete posts.
- I would probably just loose all joy in this blog altogether.
- I'd have to create another blog that is for my more personal and anonymous musings.
While there is part of me that thinks it might be really fun to create another blog for personal things and with a little more anonymity, I worry that I might not be able to keep up. I already have this blog, my healthy living blog (which I suck at updating!), and Chaotic Goddess Swaps with Beth... While I love them all, it's going to get very hard to balance 3 (let alone another one!) blogs when I go back to school in the Spring.
I could really use a little advise from fellow bloggers.
Do any of you have any experience with anything like this?
How do you handle anonymity and search results?
How do you handle anonymity and search results?
I wish my awesome name wasn't so awesome and unique!
I haven't had any experience with this, but I would hate to see you disappear. I think you should get your blog printed. I haven't done this yet, but I know there are several places out there. Then...maybe you can delete the posts which might cause problems? At least then you would have a copy of everything.
ReplyDeleteIs there a way to make some of the posts on this blog private? So you could keep this blog, but if the post you were writing was some private info you could still post it? Does that make sense? Again, never looked into it, but maybe it's an option.
Oh gosh, I really wish that I had some awesome advice on this one but I am really pulling blanks. Sounds like you have an incredibly tough decision to make, and I understand all of the pros and cons crystal clear. You have gotten so far with this blog, and I would hate to see you have to change it. I want to tell you to keep going as you have been on this blog and not worry about anything, but I don't know if that is what is best for you.. Hmm. Wish I could be more help :(
ReplyDeleteI actually made a post about this yesterday (http://www.makingsenseofcents.com/2012/10/should-i-still-be-anonymous.html)! The whole thing scares me.
ReplyDeleteWow, I'm almost certain that those laws that you are speaking about are in direct violation of your 1st amendment rights. Not that I want you to purposely be defiant because you can be, or draw any unnecessary attention to yourself, but an employer cannot fire you for having different political or religious beliefs.
ReplyDeletePersonally, it's your choice whether or not you delete your blogger account, but unless your posting something that's extremely crude (which I've never seen you do) I wouldn't worry much about it.
If you're truly concerned don't use the same email address you registered for your blogger profile with on your resume. Make sure that you never use your real name when blogging, and take down any photo's that you may have of yourself.
Good luck with your decision. Ultimately it's going to come down to whatever makes YOU feel the most comfortable.
-Reese
i would be so sad if you dissappeared, i have everything under camille yanair so hopefully my kids parents cant find me on the internet, but if they do, i feel like they have to respect the fact that i have a life outside of teaching ya know? it's SUCH tricky line to walk! let me know what you decide on doing! <3
ReplyDeleteThis is a hard one! I'm awful about being too personal on my blog..which is weird considering I think i'm a pretty private person. I would hate it if you left the blogging world! That would make me sad. I honestly haven't read anything on your blog that I thought was crude or wrong or anything. And I mean you have to have a life outside of work. I swear social media scares me. I got rid of my Facebook because I feel as if you can find stuff out about people so much easier now..and that's pretty scary! Hmm & I'm basically just telling people on my blog..maybe it's a good thing that I don't have that many followers..Well wish I had better advice than that!
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't worry about losing your job. You've consistently demonstrated that you're one of, if not THE, most valuable employee in the department over and over. If anyone in management took action against you for anything you wrote, I guarantee that they would be immediately shouted down.
ReplyDeleteI am a student, and I have heard so many stories about admissions people finding incriminating information on Facebook or failed job interviews because of photos found on the internet. So, when I started my blog, I wanted to hide my identity. Ever since I started my blog, I have tried to keep things as anonymous as possible. I avoid using my full name, and I have kept everything for my blog separate from my personal life (new email, new Facebook, new twitter, etc.).
ReplyDeleteHowever, I'm certain that if anyone saw my blog and they knew me, they would immediately recognize that it was my blog. My pictures are up everywhere on my blog, and I'm sure that some of them pop up in a Google search. Maybe those pictures aren't linked to my full name, but people could still figure it out.
I don't think that you should stop blogging, especially since you seem to enjoy it so much! As long as you try to keep your identity anonymous and try to keep some information private, I think you should be fine. Yes, your name is now linked to your blog, and it pops up in Google searches. But, I'm sure that eventually someone would find your blog and link it to you.
I don't think that you have anything on your blog that is too bad, so I would try not to worry too much about it. I'm not sure if this was helpful at all, but I hope you find an answer!
P.S. Come check out and enter my giveaway for a custom steampunk birthstone ring!
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If you write a blog post that is sensitive, you could maybe make that individual post private?
ReplyDeleteI LOVE reading your blog! I have been a horrible blogger so Have not been doing allot of commenting but Im getting back into it!
ReplyDeleteI would say to keep your blog and just try to tighten up!
Maybe be brief in your discription, go to your google account and change settings, things like that!
I go by Joanna Noel here but my last name is still around too, I figure that if someone is gonna judge me for me, and not like the real me, than why would I want that job!
Your amazing girl!
XOXO
Hmm. Tough decisions. But like everyone else has already said, you don't post anything crude or disrespectful on your blog. So you don't have much to worry about. I thought about this when I started anything I have done online, even facebook. So I try not to use bad language or be disrespectful when posting my opinions and thoughts. And I am especially careful about which photos I post. It seems like you take the same care in thinking about what you post. So there is not too much to worry about. But if it is still nagging at you (which I am sure it is), try to research those laws you mentioned and find out what they are about in detail. Then make sure you keep your blog within the legal limits so you would not have any problems in the future. I hope this helps.
ReplyDeleteThis is a cycle...how do you define what "incriminating" is? And also, Google and other search engines cache everything that they crawl, so just because you delete it here doesn't mean that an employer can't find it.
ReplyDeleteHere's the deal, in terms of employers: They will do a Google search for you. But it won't be extensive. They won't comb through pages of results to learn everything about you. They will see the blog, and see that you're an active poster who understands social media concepts and can write well. That's all. That's not a bad thing, either, if you're applying for anything in the future that involves writing or social media or community encouragement/building/involvement.
The only thing in there that would worry me is anyone having free access to your home address (the paid folks, there's nothing to be done- they mine info like the yellow pages, white pages, USPS, catalogue databases, etc). If I were you, I'd write a polite email to the webmaster of the site where you found your address and ask them how to go about removing it as you're concerned about your safety. I'm sure there's a method for that. Otherwise, I wouldn't worry about your lack of anonymity (which we all have, thanks for social media).
Have we already talked about this? Sorry if this is a repeat!
ReplyDeleteHonestly, if you want to be able to write honestly and from your heart, I would suggest starting over. Your online readers could always email you to get the new address, so you wouldn't lose your true fans. I was not anonymous on my first blog, and I got into a bit of trouble over it. I started over, and although it's been two years and I still have less readers, I feel more comfortable, being able to write what I really feel. Good luck!