http://www.ck12.org Chapter 8. Business Documents
- When you type a word in all capitals, it is considered SHOUTING at your reader. Avoid shouting online.
- As with your professional emails, some things are better communicated in person than in an email. If you need
to type 200 or more words to explain your situation or point of view to your reader, you should consider picking up
the telephone or speaking to him or her in person. - Social networking sites (such as MySpace, Facebook, linked In, and Twitter), are fun and a good way to keep
in touch with many friends. However, remember that everything you send or post goes into the public domain and
can be retrieved even if you delete it later. You are not going to be a high school student forever. Even if something
seems funny and harmless now, it could be the reason you get denied admission to the college of your choice, or
denied a job in the next year or two. Before you hit “send,” think about a future employer seeing what you are about
to send. Would you be proud to have that individual see the comment or photo you are posting or sending?
Below is an example of the repercussions posting photographs online can have.
A college student was interning at a state law enforcement agency posted the following on her Facebook page under
her photo:
“I am an agent with (she named the agency). It is a rockin’ job! I am currently working undercover on (she named
three cases which were currently under investigation by the agency). When I am not busting bad guys, I love to get
falling-down drunk. My favorite bars are (she named two local bars).”
When her internship supervisor with that agency saw the intern’s Facebook page, she was furious. What this
young lady had posted online compromised three long term undercover investigations. Not only had her posting
compromised those investigations, but she said she was an agent, which of course she wasn’t. She also had the
poor judgment to list the bars she frequented. The result of this posting? The intern received a failing grade for her
internship. Not only that, but she has effectively precluded herself from ever getting a job in law enforcement. No
law enforcement agency would consider hiring someone with such poor judgment.
Below is another example of how information exchanged online can be forwarded to someone other than the intended
audience.
A high school student was extremely disappointed when the vice principal of the school cancelled the upcoming
dance. She sent out an email to her friends describing the vice principal as a “douche bag.” Someone forward her
email to the vice principal. The student was suspended for 2 weeks, and not allowed to attend any school dances for
the rest of that year.
The above examples demonstrate how poor judgment can lead to severe consequences. In both cases, the person
who was the subject of the electronic communication suffered as a result of his or her poor judgment. A