At this point we all know the rules of the game when it comes to surviving social media. We want to avoid making obvious mistakes, such as providing personal information, bad mouthing our bosses, or posting pictures of ourselves that are all too revealing. But Facebook censoring should not be limited to these issues. Especially for those of us who are heavily involved in the dating scene.
These days, one of the first questions single people ask when meeting other singles is, “do you have Facebook?”
Why? They want a deeper insight into whom you really are. Especially when meeting through online dating sites.
This is because Facebook is the most accurate window of what our personal lives and personalities are truly like. With all the tagged photos, comments, and postings we have made over the years, it is nearly impossible to hide our true personalities unless we are absolutely obsessed with the process of censoring.
For this reason, we must have our Facebook accounts prepared for when potential partners request our information. If we deny access, their guard may go up and we can potentially lose out on a potential romance. Here are a few rules that you should abide by:
1. Take down pictures of your ex. Sometimes we completely forget to go take down old pictures of our exes. Out of site, out of mind right? Maybe for you, but not for your profile visitors. Potential partners do not want to see this. In addition, they will wonder if we are over this person, and if we are still having hang ups about our past. This is a major red flag, even if it is unintentional.
2. Eliminate provocative pictures. For reasons beyond my imagination, some women think it’s a smart idea to post half naked pictures in front of their computers, as creepy men tell them “how sexy they be lookin.” Maybe the negative attention feels good, but men who have substance will only be thinking one thing, which I will refrain from saying on this site!
3. Avoid pictures that question your character. What might be funny amongst ourselves and friends, may not be funny to a complete stranger. Sometimes people need to warm up to our politically incorrect sides and get to know us before they understand our humor. If we were tagged in pictures that are very controversial, or have created these types of pictures ourselves, I would highly recommend taking them down, or keeping them private.
4. Don’t be the adult that wants to be a kid forever. Here at Forever Twenty Somethings, we all must eventually transition from childhood to adulthood. Yea, doing keg stands and drinking yourself stupid is cool and fun when you are in college. But eventually, we all need to grow out of this behavior. Your Facebook should not have five hundred pictures of you engaging in nothing but childish behavior. This creates the illusion that you are still a frat boy or sorority girl that never grew up. Let’s face it, we can’t stay kids forever.
Remember, Facebook is intertwined to all of our lives at this point in history. And it sure doesn’t seem like this will be changing any time soon. So make sure your Facebook passes the test!
Joshua Pompey is an author of three online dating guides for men. Click here for plenty of free help with online dating. And don’t forget to follow him on twitter!
