I had the pleasure of speaking at TruLondon with my good friend “Theo.” He blogs at My Hell is Other People.
Theo is not my friend’s real name. He is an anonymous Human Resources blogger with a real job who wants to maintain his anonymity (to some extent) while participating in this crazy world of social media.
In some ways, you are a version of Theo.
You have a job. You have a life. You might have some interesting things to say — and you like Facebook and Twitter — but you don’t want your thoughts and ideas to negatively impact your employer or interfere with your primary source of income.
If you blogged (which you would never do because you’re too busy), you would stay anonymous. Why risk it?
I totally get this. And let me tell you something: you probably don’t need to blog.
I know it seems fun to have a narcissistic site dedicated to your ideas, but it’s only fun when you have readers. There is a science behind growing and expanding your readership, and the marketing activities needed to develop an audience are far more challenging than writing the damn blog itself.
If you want to blog, that’s great — but blogging is not a transactional experience. Or rather, it is a transactional experience and that’s why so many blogs fail. And when you have a real job and work for someone else, a blog becomes even more transactional. There’s too much to lose and authenticity is a risk.
Now listen, I love blogging — but if I had to worry about whether or not my words might cost me my job (or impact my team’s morale), I would skip the blog and watch more TV.
I was honored to speak with Theo. I think he is very brave to blog, and I am amazed how anyone with a full-time job in Human Resources and a real life has the energy to do what he does. If you ever want to try blogging, Theo would be a good mentor for you. But I’ll tell you something: I would recommend that you ditch your dreams of being a blogger — especially an anonymous one who wants to expose all the lies and hypocrisy in your job/company/profession — and go do something else for fun.
Trust me.
33 comments ...wanna add one?
You mean no one wants to pay me tons of money to just sit and spout off on my own personal opinions?!! Why ever not?!
Reminds me of the teacher that was recently fired for keeping a personal “friends only” blog. http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/news/116354739.html
Although I do feel she was entitled to her opinion (and probably right) she must know that nothing on the internet is every truely “private.”
Blogging has been romantisized recently, thanks for setting us straight, Laurie.
Blogging is totally romanticized and I know why — it’s pretty romantic & awesome if it goes well. For the average person, it’s boring and dissatisfying.
If we encourage professionals with current HR skills to not write, and ex-pros to write for them, can’t you see how the disparity will lead to failure?
Sports Commentators vs. Athletes
I personally would rather hear directly from the athlete. Ex-CEO’s can talk all day about what they would do now, but they have nothing at stake.
Facebook now lets you comment as your page. The anonymous voice behind the curtain from OZ.
However ex-CEOs do not have to worry about losing their jobs. Many people love to expose anonymous people which puts one at risking at losing one’s job
Even the good witch in OZ sent Dorothy to expose the man behind the curtain. In the mighty Wizard of Oz lost his job.
I would like to hear from the athlete, too. Let HR pros write in journals, on real websites like http://www.tlnt.com, and on professional association websites. Blogs are the lowest form of evidence-based HR.
Actually — I like HR blogs. I read about 100+/day. I just want to make it clear that writing a blog won’t change the world and can be inherently dangerous for some HR pros.
Laurie, especially in light of this post, I’m quite curious to know your thoughts on a local story that’s getting some legs in the regional media about Natalie Munroe, a high school teacher in whose blog she referred to her charges as “lazy whiners”.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110216/ap_on_hi_te/us_teacher_suspended_blog
She was right. Sigh. Says more about the state of education than about blogging, but people are too stupid and short-sighted to look at the real issues.
That’s also part of the dangers of blogging.
I work full-time HR, and I could never blog because I get more than enough HR talking/thinking/doing during the workday. I just wanna go home, check my HR hat at the door, have a glass of wine and watch Community. My needs are simple, really.
That’s why I love you. If you blogged, you’d clean my clock with your awesomeness. #fact
I think that there is a lot to blog about besides opinions and issues that could jeopardize your job. Although I agree with some of your points, Laurie, I also think that there is safety for bloggers to express themselves without risking career suicide.
I don’t blog anonymously, but I do use a pseudonym. People know who BZTAT is, yet the separate name does help set up a boundary between my work as an artist/blogger and my other professional domain as a mental health counselor. BZ is the artist/blogger. Vicki is the counselor. There are a lotta reasons behind the name BZTAT, but creating this boundary for myself is one of the more important ones.
Everything I put online goes through a filter. I am pretty careful to consider the potential ramifications of everything I put out there before I put it out there. Since I use blogging and social media to develop business contacts, I try to ensure that I only post things that are consistent with my “brand” and are congenial. I occasionally will get into political debates and discuss differing opinions, butI always try to take the high road in my engagement with others online.
That’s me. Your approach is different, Laurie, and I LOVE IT. You challenge others and draw clear lines in the sand, and you defend those lines ferociously. You use the F-word and get away with it. You call out folks who sometimes could be your meal ticket for ignorant policies and practices. You have the standing to do it and get away with it, I have deep admiration for you because of it.
But we do not all have to be you. There are ways to discuss issues and concerns without taking risks that could risk your career. Blogging isn’t just about criticizing and exposing hypocrisy. It is also about putting new ideas out there so that the old ones become obsolete.
If folks want to blog but fear the consequences, perhaps they should examine their purposes for blogging. If you just want to bellyache about the unfair and hypocritical ways of your profession, you will soon become redundant anyway, so why take the risk? If you want to put new content out there that is relevant and potentially impactful to the evolution of your profession, go for it. But set your filter and stick to it.
If you want to blog like Laurie Ruettimann, be prepared for the ups and downs of being a failed human resources professional who travels the world speaking her mind’s brilliance and charms us daily with her wit online. Strike that. No one else can do THAT but you, Laurie.
Everything I put online goes through a filter. Ya know, I do this too. I don’t take a poop without thinking about the personal, social, and financial ramifications. And I write it, anyway, because the risk is low for someone like me. But I think about it. Constantly. I just didn’t want that to go unchecked because it gets missed.
Thanks for the awesome comments. I think the internet is big enough for all kinds of authenticity — and your points about why we blog and the ramifications are SO GOOD.
xoxo
Great, thoughtful comments. I love what you write, Laurie, and that’s why I read your blog nearly every day but I also love your commenters. Intelligent people who have worthwhile things to say. You’re right, Laurie … your blog wouldn’t be as successful if you didn’t have awesome readers. There’s an HR lesson here somewhere: Valuable leaders encourage and respect thoughtful input and respond in kind.
I like blogging, but I would never blog about my specific job because I don’t want to risk it. That’s why my blog is focused on other topics. I get to write and participate in the blogosphere without worrying about my company viewing something negatively. Blogging takes time and in some ways is like a second job to me, but I like it. It’s a fun hobby and I get to display some creativity. I need that in life.
I remember when my blog was a hobby. This is what happens.
I post in my Instructional Design blog every once in a while, but my field isn’t really cut-throat anyway. As far as everything else on the Internet, I try to “Big-Brother Proof” myself as much as possible. Unsearchable Facebook, watching what I say on Twitter, etc. There’s still some stuff floating out there, and I’m mindful that any hiring manager can Google-stalk me and try to find out about the man behind the 3-piece suit that came in, answered questions and shook everyone’s hands.
Good luck being invisible. I’m sorta jealous!
Oh boy, the will I get spanked if I blog discussion. I have been waiting for this one.
Will your employer get their underwear in a knot if you blog? if they are a public company, as in shares traded on a stock exchange in the United States, you are guaranteed that the corporate communications department and the legal department will eventually pay you a visit. Most corporate communication departments today, in a ritualistic and religious pattern, have automated Web search tools that highlight everything that is said about their company.
A few years ago I was asked to be one of several bloggers on a professional trade magazine website. I gave it tentative acceptance, pending permission from the corporate communications department. I spoke to the folks in communications and after being thoroughly instructed on what I could say and not say about the performance of the company (must obey the SEC fair disclosure rules), and a final remark of using “good common sense” I was given the verbal permission to participate.
Oh, what a mistake. It took about six weeks for my direct boss to come down upon my head. When he discovered the blog, having been tipped off to it by another of his direct reports, his first reaction was to call the publication and threaten them with a lawsuit if they didn’t pull my posts. Once the posts were pulled he smugly appeared in my office to admonish me for my sin. his claim was that it was “company policy” not to have a blog. I calmly listened to him and then flatly stated that I had spoken to corporate communications about the blog and had received approval. “I don’t care what communications said. I’m the one who calls the shots,” said my boss.
And that is true. The boss always calls the shots. That was fine since I’d given notice just one week before.
Now I have my own company and I encourage everyone on my team to blog there ever lovin’ hearts out. The blog is the voice of the company, and the company would not exist if not for the people that make it happen.
Laurie, you were so right about the amount of effort needed to market and cross pollinate. If anybody wants to come over and play in our sandbox of supply chain managers and logisticians, you’re welcome to come and visit us at http://wearethepractitioners.com.
Wow, what a story. Thanks for sharing!!
Had I not quit my job, I would never have the time to blog regularly. I don’t think my employer would have cared either way – but if you work for a company that is not your own, you definitely need to walk the line with sensitive topics.
But I still think it’s worth it. I find blogging to be a development activity. It makes you think more, read more, and tap into parts of your brain that you haven’t used in a while. I highly recommend that everyone try it for at least five days straight, or once a week for a couple of months.
I think it’s worth it to write. Absolutely. I just wish we had more thoughtful outlets for HR people beyond blogs. I co-founded this site with Lance Haun — http://hrmtoday.com — and it’s a safe way for HR people to start blogging in a more professional way.
What I do? What you do? It’s kind of a luxury.
I started my blog after my position was eliminated/restructured. No immediately mind you, first came the vacation (without company blackberry, computer and disruptions…quite freeing actually). I was thinking about entering the fray after reading the many different voices. Not to be a total kiss-ass, yet Laurie’s blog was one of about five that upon reading it I understood that you can retain your professional credibility and have some of you as a person come out in what you write (yes, she has paved the way for others to follow).
My should I or shouldn’t I was with my more conservative side and training. It was an especially easy voice to listen to as I am still looking for my next opportunity in HR. My rationale against my conservative nature was that all things being equal, I would prefer to work in an organization that was open to social media and how this application of technology is changing how business is being conducted. Between that, not having everyone and their brother beat a path to my door to hire me I finally got over myself and started my blog.
For me it has been a great learning experience. As a starting point, when I was employed I was not averse to communicating a well thought out opinion in email or at a meeting, so a blog has simply expanded the potential number of people who might be subject to my thoughts. With a blog I have to bring forward a topic that someone might want to read in a manner that might make it entertaining. The other bit is that I truly believe in this unique profession of ours and feel that it has more impact to business than we give it credit for.
I intend to do this for a year and see what happens. On the perspective employer front, so far the results are mixed; both positive and very cautious. At some point in time I may have to make the decision to walk away from it because working is more important, I will cross that bridge when I come to it.
Blogging is not for everyone, which is why not everyone does it (thankfully). If you are going to, dicide what you want it to be and what you do not want it to be. Then work through the risk/reward issue yourself, keeping an eye on the future not just the now. And if you do not want to blog, you always have strong, entertaining, passionate and honest voices like Laurie’s to read.
Wow, Sean. These are great insights — especially on the employer front. Thanks for commenting!
Sometimes lawyers get involved too:
http://www.businessinsider.com/crapple-store-blog-2010-11
damn lawyers
Well, I don’t totally agree. Shocking, I know. I blog because I want to blog. It is therapeutic. And, I do it anonymously because I like anonymity. Regardless of jobs, families, and all the other crap, I would still blog anonymously. I am not looking to promote my ideals, only to have a voice. Is there anything really wrong with that? I don’t like most TV, so not an outlet. My life is full and rich. And blogging is just a part of it.
So, I say to each their own. If it’s not hurting anyone, why should I be concerned about what they are doing? It’s your money, spend it as you wish. It’s your voice, express it as you wish.
Blogging is therapeutic until you get ‘caught’ and lose your job.
I have been putting some thought into this lately as well. All the “authenticity” and “transparency” talk has me feeling guilty. Well, a little anyway. I write mostly combined experiences – no one person is identifiable, assuming that anyone I work with or have worked with would ever read it.
But I think to take advantage of the networking and many people I can create with in the online community, it feels disingenuous to stay anonymous.
I hear that a corporate social media policy is coming soon, we’ll see what that says….
Good luck with that policy. Oy.
I cheat, I have a corporate blog – that allows me to write around subjects that I am interested in and means I can not worry about being ‘caught’ on other sites…
That’s not cheating. That’s working the system!
Great article as always… I feel the same that if you are going to blog and have to worry about what you are saying and it could conflict with your day job then you should not have it. Being social is just that, being social and sharing your ideas with a face. If you are unable to show your face then who are you? Why Should I care?
I am starting into the blog world rather then just commenting on others and it will be a reflection of myself and my current interest in the Social Media, Business and Search Engine Marketing. Hope you will follow, but be warned it might be a little bumpy at first until I get the hang of a blog. Twitter, Facebook is easy, blogging you really have to put more thought and passion into it.
I blog pseudo-anonymously (I use a nom de plume). I think my blogging lacks authenticity because of this. I can’t share many details about myself, which details would be boring anyway but would lend credibility to my blog.
You’re right about the time it takes to market a blog. I have a decent amount of traffic and subscribers, but can’t for the life of me get people to comment!
33 comments ...wanna add one?