u/starraven wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
😅 If you’re employed by Codesmith and you’re mentioning them and your job title in social media that’s automatically and universally taken as you taking on the face of the company at that point. Personal opinions included.
u/michaelnovati replied · ★ FEATURED
I agree with this. I'm someone who has to navigate this challenge and I can't just have it all ways that work for me and dismiss the consequences of having a public identity because I don't want to acknowledge them.
I have my real name. Some people appreciate that, but others are skeptical.
I state clearly when something I say is an opinion, but if I say it when also talking about my company I have to think about the consequences. Is this something my company would agree with, and if it's not, I might have to extra emphasize where the opinion is coming from, rather than just throw it out there.
Working at Facebook from 2009 - 2017 through some really challenge times (some for Facebook and others for humanity) I really saw why it's CRITICAL to have integrity in pubic discourse.
It's hard. Someone insults me and I'm defensive and emotional in my head. But if I bring that online and it becomes passive aggressive or I exaggerate something to make a point, then I'm hurting society as a whole, and we end up with the whole fake news problem of 2016.
We all make mistakes, and I don't hold anything against anyone. I've been able to have good conversations with people who might have had two-way-emotional conversations with on Reddit in the past and that's fine.
We can't have transparency without being vulnerable and showing our humanity - which means we BOTH have to have a higher bar AND be more forgiving of others. I wish I could do that all the time and I will keep aiming for that goal.