Before you begin your internship, and often even before you start the application process for your internship, your public presence will have to undergo somewhat of a transformation. For some, this involves a complete overhaul of their social media presence, while for others only minor tweaks are necessary. No matter who you are, or what point you are starting at, you should consider how you appear to your potential employer and colleagues. So here is The Intern Group’s step-by-step guide to personal branding.
Twitter/Instagram – Unless you are working in an industry such as journalism or fashion where your social media presence can be a necessary part of your job and can even take you further in your career, you should think about setting your Twitter and Instagram profiles to private. If you are proud of your tweets and they are related to your industry then you have nothing to hide, but if your tweets mainly comprise of banter with your mates then maybe you should consider setting them to private.
Facebook – This follows the same rules as Twitter and Instagram, but a different sort of clean up is required. You should start off by going through your photos and un-tagging potentially incriminating photos of yourself. Another option is that if you add work colleagues on Facebook, alter your privacy settings to change what they can see on your wall. This will preserve your professional image at work and will help to keep your professional and private lives separate.
When you begin working for a company, you represent them and their values and this can extend to how you appear online. Keep this in mind when you start your social media clean up.
If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, get one! LinkedIn is an incredibly useful resource when it comes to networking. You can connect with and stay in contact with all of your colleagues, which may come in handy in the future. If you already have a LinkedIn account, check that it’s up to date. As soon as you start your internship you will connect with a whole new group of people so make sure your profile is perfect so you can impress them from the start.
Your the way you want to portray yourself can be very important when starting work, as it is the first impression you’ll make. It is always important to find out what the dress code is in your office before you start and remember that it is always better to be overdressed than underdressed on your first day. Giving your shoes a quick polish if you’re working in an office might also be a good idea.
Photo 1. based on Teamwork and team spirit, by 드림포유, CC-by-ND 2.0