MySpace meets LinkedIn
I posted a response to question posed by a Facebook friend about the blur between personal and professional life on Facebook. She asked us to post an answer on her Facebook wall… a public space for Facebook members. In the spirit of the question and request for the wall, I am cross posting my answer here:
The blurring of worlds on Facebook is an interesting challenge. Do we try to maintain a consistent profile online or take advantage of the opportunity to explore other perspectives than “your own.”
Both are hard to do. Life online is takes time, reading. And you know how little we read. Thank god you can drop youtube into Facebook.
But Facebook is an interesting space for meshing your professional and personal life. It has good social and professional networking tools. I like to think of it as MySpace meets LinkedIn.
This is partly due to Facebook’s roots as a space for college students. I am sure many of us reminisce about that mix of learning and fun. College, by its nature is a mixing of personal and professional life…except you are paying them, instead of the other way around.
Another factor is that Facebook, unlike MySpace, has a hard distinction between individuals and groups… groups cannot have a profile. So participation in Facebook attaches your voice clearly to your profile, you.
And yet another perspective: Western dualism says your professional and personal life are separate. Eastern thought seems to treat them as one whole life. If the emperor lives a virtuous life, the land will prosper.
And a final thought, as out of place as any of the previous, check out Life Online by Sherry Turkle (1997 or so). She psychoanalyzes a bunch of people to see if their multiple online personalities were psychological problem or normal behavior. Great read for anyone struggling with this issue.
Other than that, I feel that the blur on Facebook is inescapable.
Check out Roshani’s OneWorld blog for some very interesting and useful resources.