Great post.

Great post! I have to agree with you; I think many students will start to try on blogs just to use them as a way to sell it as a credential to employers.

However, I also think employers are shrewd enough to see through this guise, and recognize those who are writing to say something from those who are writing to be something.

Secondly, as far as the fearless factor, I don’t think blogging will ever inhibit students and hinder good conversation. There’s way more for them to fear from what can be found on their Facebook page!

Anyways, great post once again and I’ll add you to my blogroll! Cheers!

Perhaps the solution is like email or telephone numbers. Have one for work and one for home. Don’t give everyone your home (ie. personal) blog address. They might still find it, but at least it’s giving people fair warning that it’s your personal space, to vent or talk about your cat or whatever.

Still, the idealist/anarchist in me doesn’t want to have to bow to this new paradigm.

I’ll have to admit, though, that my own Toronto Screen Shots blog came out of a desire to have my film writing taken more seriously by publicists, etc. I still write what I like there, but it’s tightly focussed on one subject.

It can be harder to keep the focus on a subject students are just learning about, like the PR field, but I do see the value in encouraging people to try.

Still, I wonder often if bloggers are born and not made? Another discussion, perhaps?

I’m not as worried as you are that people will transform their blogs and social media presence into dry, empty online resumes.

I believe that if people only link to potential employers and say the things those employers might want to hear, their blogs will be boring and their tactic will be seen for what it is.

Those folks won’t hold the attention of potential employers who will have clicked away to find the truly interesting, creative elsewhere.

Fearlessness is not saying anything you want when you know nobody is listening.

Fearlessness is saying exactly what you want when you know the world is listening.

While I agree that knowing potential dates, employers and investors are reading what you have to say can put a damper on creativity and self expression – it can also open the door for more cohesive thought, clarity and distilled versions of that aforementioned creativity.

Technology, social morays and society are always in flux. Those with a real need for self-expression adapt and create within those structures.

I’m glad that you’ve found a career that you are passionate about. To be honest, I’m exploring the field myself and that’s how I’ve found so many interesting new blogs. But I worry that now that we’re aware that The Boss (or The Potential Boss) might be reading, we’re going to censor ourselves and perhaps lose a bit of our souls in the process.

I just wanted to say that this post helped me better understand why you’re skeptical of bloggers such as myself.

I guess my next move is to convince you I’m not rapidly circulating this ’sphere for selfish reasons.

Although, to be honest, we are sometimes taught (by not only our professors, but also professionals we admire) that being active in social media will help build our personal brand, and we should work proactively online in order to do so.

I can see the blurry lines from here.