How to Clean Up Your Social Media Accounts Without Deleting Them

SmartSocial.com helps 1MM parents, educators, and students each year to be safe on social media so they can someday Shine Online. One of my favorite features of Facebook is the “Memories” tab. This page is available on the left side menu under “Explore” or via the lower right menu in the app.

Better yet, buy a journal and a pen because nothing is private online. Relationships gone bad and digital betrayals happen every day so even content that lives behind a padlock can be screen shot and shared elsewhere online. To make most accounts private, you can generally visit Settings and select “Privacy.” Here you will be able to block accounts and restrict user access.

If your online profiles are filled with your weekend antics, disparaging comments, and racy photographs, it will give potential employers the wrong impression. You should aim to maintain a respectable and engaging social media presence. Recruiters and hiring managers want to know that you are well-versed in this form of communication and are adept at managing a social media profile. They want to see that you understand its potential for both good and bad.

Instagram has the option of story posts, which only last 24 hours and are then automatically deleted, an idea it ripped off from the original ephemeral platform, Snapchat. If you don’t want what is wood fracking to leave a social media trail behind, using stories on Instagram is a good idea. Facebook has actually copied this idea too, but we’re assuming you’re more likely to use it on Instagram.

If you choose to post publicly, don’t say or do anything you wouldn’t want your future boss to see. However, they should also be aware that even if their profiles are set to private, there is still the possibility of their school or classmates accessing their profiles. Students should be cognizant of what they post and not post anything they wouldn’t want screen-grabbed by another student or shared with anyone outside their immediate social circles. Do not allow your friends, or anyone, to tag you in their posts or photos so that you don’t have to clean additional posts on your feed later. Creating a business or brand online used to be something you’d do in addition to your personal accounts, but now it’s not uncommon for your personal account to be a part of your brand. That means having your personal accounts cleaned up and ready for the world to scour.

On Facebook, you can also restrict who’s allowed to tag you in photos so you won’t be surprised. This process is exactly the same on your mobile app — the profile icon to see your posts, then tap on any picture or video to bring it up, then tap the three dots . Before you start erasing your Facebook history, you might want to save everything you’ve ever committed to the social network, just for old time’s sake. If you go to your Facebook settings page on the web, then click Your Facebook information, you’ll see the Download your information option in the list. It’s worth noting that Twitter limits third-party app access to your most recent 3,200 tweets. Even if you think that you’re safe because you’ve set up a private space to act a certain way or share this kind of content with others online, you’re setting yourself up for a rude-awakening.

There are countless cautionary tales of people sticking their foot in their mouth on social media, and sabotaging a job offer. There are plenty of stories of poor behaviour on social media to shake your head at. Just because social media is there, doesn’t mean it’s a channel to voice your every thought and emotion, no matter how incendiary. Don’t miss out on a great opportunity because you didn’t think before you hit send. Here’s how to clean up your social media before looking for a job.

This is especially important if they’re going through the college admissions process. Social media mistakes can happen to anyone, no matter how prepared they may be. So learning how to clean up those mistakes is a vital part of having a positive digital footprint. When students follow the steps above, they ensure that their online reputation is a positive reflection of who they are. Known red flags can truly be damaging to your career and your personal life.