If You Don’t Do This One Thing, You Won’t Get Hired

ATS results can determine whether or not you’re considered for a job. But ATS is not your only enemy.

It’s hard not to talk about technology these days.

It is constantly changing the way companies in every industry conduct business. Life seems to move more quickly now, and so does the job market.

You may have heard of applicant tracking software (ATS) by now - it’s a broad name for the tools used by recruiters and hiring managers to search large databases of candidates’ résumés and identify profiles to match with jobs. That’s a common cause of anxiety for job-seekers as ATS results can determine whether or not you’re considered for a job. But ATS is not your only enemy.

Have you ever typed your own name into Google?

(If you have a very common name, this part may not apply to you). The results can be shocking. You might see old pictures, groups you joined and forgot about, that newspaper article you were mentioned in, or something else.

This is a great litmus test for your own internet presence, but you’re not the only one who can do it. When you send your résumé to a company for a job application, you are putting yourself on their radar. There’s nothing stopping a hiring manager from immediately searching for you on the internet, and it doesn’t stop with Google.

Let’s talk about the elephant in the room - social media.

Most of us regularly, if not frequently, use at least one of the major platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn), and many of us are active on more than one. Do you know what other people see when they look at your social media profile(s)? If not, you need to know now.

Let’s say you just bought a house, it’s beautiful, and you are very proud of it (you should be!). Posting a photo of yourself and/or your significant other holding the key by the front door is an exciting way to let your friends and family know about your accomplishment.

But if your profile is public, this is also a great way to let the whole world know where you live. If you’re seeking a job with a company that’s conscious of information security, this could signal to them that hiring you could put important company data at risk.

Ah, that beach trip when you took those nice Instagram photos while drinking spiked seltzers with your friends - what a beautiful day it was! But to some prospective employers, these photos can display potential issues with judgment in the workplace. If your dream company has had its reputation tarnished in the past by an employee who was drinking at work, this could be a major red flag that could keep you from being considered for the job.

We’re not saying that all of your social media posts are inappropriate or that all employers will mind. But our theory is that “you don’t know what you don’t know” - it’s impossible to know how the person looking at your profile will respond to it, so we recommend you play it safe.

Here’s how to clean up your social media act:

Facebook: Just visit your profile on your computer - under your name and bio, there’s an eye icon. If you click on that, you can view your profile as the public (a.k.a. somebody you’re not Facebook friends with) would see it. If there’s anything on there that you wouldn’t want your mother or a role model to see, you should probably change your privacy settings. To change them for an individual post, click on the ellipse (…) on the right side of that post, then click Edit Audience. We also recommend you look into your Facebook account privacy settings, which you can learn how to do here: https://www.facebook.com/help/1297502253597210.

Instagram: We recommend making your whole profile private, so it can only be viewed by people who are currently following you, or people you approve to follow you in the future. To do this from the mobile app, go to your profile (the icon farthest to the right on the bottom tray), then click the menu icon (3 horizontal lines at the top-right) and select settings at the bottom of the page. Then select privacy - there’s a lock icon that says Account Privacy. Here you can make your account private and keep prying eyes from seeing your cat videos.

X/Twitter: To change your settings about personalization and data in X, visit https://x.com/settings and log in if necessary.

LinkedIn: Posting questionable content on LinkedIn is always a bad idea since you’re likely connected to current or former colleagues and your professional reputation is on display. But even if your LinkedIn presence is squeaky-clean, it’s a good idea to look at your settings so you can be sure how much of your personal information is visible to your network and to strangers. You can inspect and change these settings here: https://www.linkedin.com/psettings/.

It’s a great feeling to know that you have secured your social media accounts from the outside world.

But sometimes this isn’t enough. We have a few other recommendations that can help you take control of your information and manage your relationships (work and personal):

1. Check out your lists of followers/friends/connections, and make sure you want all of them to access your full profile. Remember that it takes less than one second to take a screenshot on a phone or computer. Assume that everything you post is permanent.

2. Consider purging old posts and photos. If you’re a Millennial or Gen Z, odds are that you were young when you started using social media. If you think there’s a chance that any of your social media content was spiked with a bit of angst (or something else), it could be a good idea to take a stroll down memory road and clean things up.

3. Watch what you post in the future. A potential boss isn’t the only one who could be put off by an off-color social media post - your friends, neighbors, and family could as well. We think sensitive topics such as politics and religion are best discussed privately. But if you feel that compelling urge to wage war with your fingertips, it’s definitely best to avoid targeting specific groups of people with different views or characteristics than your own.

Now you’re an expert in your social media image - congrats! We hope this guide will help you gain more momentum in your job search.