30 Ways to Lose a Job on Twitter
April 10, 2009 
188 Comments
If you are searching for a job or applying to a college or even just hoping to keep the job you have you should be very careful what you say and post online. Four out of five recruiters regularly run web searches to screen job applicants. Potential employers and colleges may find your online profile and make judgment calls based on what they discover. With all of the innovative websites popping up it’s getting easier than ever to screen students and candidates online.
One recruiter I recently spoke to says that she went as far as to set up rss feeds by certain keywords to facilitate the candidate screening process. More and more employers are starting to monitor the online behavior of their employees. A good rule to live by is “Don’t share anything online that could come back to haunt you later on.” Mentioning how you get drunk every night or how many times you’ve lied on your resume won’t make you an attractive candidate for potential employers.
We ran a simple online twitter search and easily found hundreds of examples of things people have said that could either get them fired or prevent them from being offered a job in the future. It was hard, but we narrowed it down to the Top 30 Ways to Lose a Job on Twitter.
Tweet about failing your random drug test
Announce you are sleeping with your boss’s daughter
Tell everyone how much you hate your boss
Call your boss names
Let everyone know what a stupid moron your boss really is
Brag about fooling your boss into thinking you worked late the night before
Talk about sleeping with your Boss
Tell how you lied to get out of working
Ask your followers which disease you should fake to get off work early
Use Twitter even though your company blocked it on your computer
Keep posting to Twitter even after you’ve been caught by your boss 3 times in one day
Brag about how much free time you have to goof off at work
Give out tips on how to stalk your co-worker
Share how you lied to your boss to keep from inviting him to your party
Mention how you lied to your boss about having to take an exam instead of coming in to work
Tweet about Lying to your boss
Tell your friends how you got out of doing an assignment at work
Brag about possibly getting away with lying to your boss
Get your wife or girlfriend to tweet about lying to your boss
Admint to lying on your job application or resume
Announce you are quitting on Twitter
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Tell everyone how much you hate your job and mention when you plan on quitting
Tell your followers when you plan on turning in your resignation
Threaten to sue your company and boss and mention what large boobs you have
Tweet about your new job interview and how your wondering if you should sue your current boss
Share that you got fired on your very first day at a new job
Talk about your co-workers bathroom habits
Write a message to your co-workers telling them how stupid they are and mention you hate them
Describe what you stole from work
Tell everyone how how your stupid boss screwed up the payroll
It may not seem important to you now, but what you post and share online could come back to haunt you someday when you least expect it. Everything on the internet can be archived, which means it is also searchable. Your online profiles might be just for friends now, but later on, your online content might keep you from getting that scholarship, the job of your dreams or even prevent you from running for public office.
Think before you post – especially before you post to social networking sites or blogs. If you just can’t help yourself and you must tell someone at least use @secrettweet.
If you have other examples of outrageous postings online you would like to share, please add them in comments.
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Some of this sh!t amazes me. No such thing as “second thoughts” anymore is there?
anyone who doesnt accept humanity embodies inhumanity
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This is hilarious!!!
Hehe interesting post. Thanks so much
bwahahaha thats excellent.
However in saying that, some of those posts were clearly in jest, to be taken with a sense of humour.
And any boss without a sense of humour, is a job i dont want.
The truth hurts.
Anyone who posts like that and doesn’t set their profile to Private is stupid enough to be dangerous at the workplace and doesn’t deserve a job!
I don’t think the bathroom comment or the sexual harassment complaint would get you fired. Maybe it’s an inappropriate way to vent, but I doubt you’d lose your job.
The rest are pretty stupid.
At my previous job we actually looked at a Facebook profile of a prospecitve job candidate. We were going to make her an offer but noticed she already accepted a job with a competitor. We called her anyway but we already knew she was going to decline based on her FB status.
That’s why yo never let your boss follow you.
People show a complete lack of self control when they post stuff like that on social media.
Perhaps they want to be busted.
You don’t have to broadcast everything to the whole world! Use some discretion !
i do online job Facebook friend,fb fans pages likes twitter evrything,I am very experience for this job ,any body need pl z contract
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sleeping with the boss mans daughter might get you more than fired, it might get you killed ….
Too funny!
WOW. Makes you realize how permanent the Internet really is. Google keeps everything forever. And with data storage getting cheaper and cheaper, I don’t expect that to change.
Is your social media footprint advancing your career or stuck in your mouth? Excellent examples of the later. You get my stumble!upon thumbs up and RT from me. And link to my next blog on this issue for my career transition group. Those of us seeking our best next opportunity shall keep these tweets of twits in mind.
Funny list. Too bad they’re all true! I found a similar funny post on Top 10 Ways How NOT to Land a Job Interview at: http://www.blueprint4resumes.com/2009/04/top-10-ways-how-not-to-get-job.html Check it out. Thanks again for making me laugh!
Type your comment here…
Hmmmm…interesting-some people are just too ‘lame’ to play the game-
I guess it’s cool if you work at twitter though
Amazing what people will say. It WILL eventually haunt you. Beware. Think before you type…
Really funny. Glad my boss doesn’t know how to use a computer.
Bob
It just goes to show that young people (under 30) do not understand what privacy is and why you want to preserve your privacy. You guys will post info every time you take a sh** just so people will read your silly facebook/myspace personal boring blogs. The only people who care about this stuff are your future employers. Get a life!!!
Admitting to lies is one thing, but not being yourself is something completely different. And the minute you are not yourself you let the system win.
People who look online for your facebook profiles, or your twitter accounts and make the hiring judgment based on those things are wrong. If you apply for a job, you should get it based on your resume alone. Not what you do on Friday (or even Monday) nights.
Stand up for yourself, or you’ll just get walked on forever.
And take this to heart:
http://www.xkcd.com/137/
Great post and very funny. Proves a point I suggested in a blog post last May http://blog.peacockcreative.net/social-networking-employer-security-concern/
good thing I don’t use my real name on twitter.
Too funny. I can’t believe common sense would NOT step in with some of these people.
Twitter has privacy settings! People also shouldn’t reveal too much about themselves in life, because they need to get over the bullshit that may be there in life.
By the way, my favourite is: “I may have just lied to my boss and he may be able to prove it… but i can back it up.. so im ok.. i hope” *LAWL! over it*
For sure, some of those examples are amazingly stupid. Like the ones about sleeping with your boss (or the boss’s little girl!).
Some, however, give me the opposite reaction. What soulless HR drone would reject an otherwise qualified applicant for once having confessed on Twitter that he was goofing off? Hands up if you’ve never goofed off at work. If I was hiring, I wouldn’t find someone having been honest about that some time a reason not to hire; and vice versa, I wouldn’t think much of a company that would consider it a disqualification (what, they’d rather hire good liars?).
Basically, what Janum wrote about humanity. I mean, come on, a job you’re going to lose over posting that bathroom tweet, for example, is only worth keeping if you’re desperate. And should we really censor ourselves now, just in case anything we say might come back to haunt us if we end up desperate at some point in the future? Here’s that xkcd Lord Xeon posted above again: http://www.xkcd.com/137/
Finally, still playing devil’s advocate on behalf of the younguns (I detest Twitter myself), a more practical objection. Sure, employers might look up your current Facebook profile, or your latest Tweets. So don’t say anything stupid if you’re thinking about changing jobs or foreseeing you might have to soon enough. But the Internet is big, and if you’re on Twitter you probably produce a lot of static. Which employer is going to dig through your entire history? And if they filter, who would hold something, short of obscenity, callousness and the like, against you that you randomly tweeted years ago? Is that really how far we have come?
I hate this vain and superficial, “look-at-me!” culture that Twitter has come to symbolise as much as the next guy. But reading this and the comments here makes me want to push back a little. Bottom line: should we really buzz-cut even our free-time communications to fit the standards of hypothetical humourless HR execs in our future? In these times of crisis, for sure, what Liz said is a luxury, but it’s also important to hold on to for your sanity: “any boss without a sense of humour, is a job i dont want.”
Submitting photographic evidence of these antics to thedirty.com is also ill-advised!
BAH-hhh!
Since when is mentioning an incident of sexual harassment on twitter bad? The post in question wasn’t mentioning that she was intending to sue… likewise, the bathroom twit wasn’t really firing-worthy, just… not in good taste.
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Great list, very funny. It’s serious stuff though – whether you’re applying for a job or already in one. Anyone that assumes their tweets won’t be seen by their boss is crazy. Here are some more examples.
http://tweamr.com/dont-assume-that-your-tweets-are-personal/
Wow,
I didn’t realize i changed the look on my twitter that often.
Nice post which helps many freshers hunting for new job.Thanks for sharing.
classic!
You are dead on. I warn everyone I talk with about social networking sites to be carefull what you post as a status update as well as what your friends post. You never know when big brother is watching!
WUAJAJAJAJAJAJAJJAJAJAJA …
The problem isn’t that people are goofing off, don’t like each other, etc and so on….it’s that they don’t seem to understand what is and is not APPROPRIATE for public comment!
Social media, and to some extent, public email providers, are the equivalent of an open microphone. What you say can and may be broadcast at any point in time.
I believe employers are reacting not necessarily to the content of the posts (goofing off does happen, and people sometimes don’t get along) but to the fact that a prospect felt those things were perfectly fine to share with the world. THAT lack of thoughtfulness is what would rankle with me.
I want to work in software companies. so i have submit my resumes in any of the employ job website. At that time i found this resumebear. And i submitted my resume. hope i’ll get the job soon.
Point taken . . . but why is “I was just sexually harassed” something that may come back to haunt you? I mean . . . . . am I missing something here?
Legal or not – If a future company ran a search for your name, is that something that you would want them to see? I agree they shouldn’t hold someone else’s actions against you but you would never have any way of knowing if a statement like that cost you a chance to interview with a company. The overall point is …. be careful what you post online, you never know who might see it and form an opinion of you prior to even having met you.
I agree, Ren. Some will assume that she’s looking for easy money. I would assume she doesn’t take any shit and stands up for herself.
Exactly, I was thinking the same thing – unfortunately, that’s the very nature of sexual harassment – that if you speak up about it, you become the problem. While Kate’s point is valid – it is very sad if a perspective boss is thinking in those terms. In that event, I wouldn’t want to work there!
Unfortunately, a lot of those seemingly innocuous statements could end up costing someone a job. Like if I am talking about autism treatment, that might mean that a potential employer who thinks autism is a parent’s fault wouldn’t want to hire me. Or if I am a Raiders fan but the employer is a 49er fan. (And this could be a totally subconscious bias.)
While I agree to be careful about what is said online – the potential employers also have to recognize that a person’s work persona is frequently quite different than the “play” persona. (or at least the off-work persona.) Knowing “everything” about someone breeds a sense of familiarity that isn’t really there. Assumptions can be made that are damaging – and yet completely off-base. How I chose to raise my children isn’t going to impact my job – but if an employer disagrees with me on breast versus bottle, is he/she going to trust my judgment with something completely not related?
I’d encourage HR folks to only nix an interview in the event that truly damaging information is found – and yet it is hard to avoid making assumptions about the “small” stuff when looking for the “big” stuff. Tough call!
You make very good points that should be taken seriously by anyone using any social network site.
My thought is that anyone that says anything that refers to the way they really are to anyone else on these sites, you were warned.
The reason that I feel that this is happening is because of the coarseness found in society today. Major changes in the manner that people dialog with one another and are willing to say anything at any time and anywhere is the reality that we live with today. No longer is it really tabo or even offensive to many for vulgarity to be part of their normal speech and behavior. In fact, it is often promoted by the most offensive users of vile, hate and shock as a right of passage when other things aren’t shocking enough. Their language is not simply crude, it is designed to cause and inflict great damage and it does. I see it every time I visit Twitter or other sites because many have no moral compass any longer nor do they care. Poor skills, lack of appropriate vocabulay, immoral thought and no penalties for the behavior is not helping to fix the problem.
People have a legitimate right to say what they want, but not in social situations where others will be offended. It is still criminal in most places to use profane & vulgar public utterance. People should be ashamed but they are not. That is the problem!
lol and twitted! These are hilarious! Total lack of common sense sometimes, I swear! hah!
I wonder what my employees tweet about…..I know I am not the most hated boss in the world…..(hoping)
god i hope twitter dies, seriously, do any of you ‘tweeters’ think anybody gives a shit about your play by play thoughts?
So now we know that the massive rise in lay-offs and unemployment figures has nothing to do with the recession.
HAHAHA… some of these are hilarious. But i think its a little too amateur to fire people based on silly comments about bosses. Everyone does it and i’m sure the bosses themselves did it before becomin bosses ..
but yea .. some of them require action to be taken. for eg its unethical to go sleepin with your bosses daughter at work. unacceptable. ..
Networking on sites like twitter can be fun but as we all saw above…can lead to serious consequences. But do you know how to handle firing an employee who has pushed the limits (like the above employees)? I found a great article from Winmark Business Solutions about how to properly and professionally fire employees while also protecting yourself and your business. Check it out! http://www.wbsonline.com/resources/before-firing-for-misconduct-or-poor-work/
@bob 126 followers says you’re wrong.
Some of these examples are just common sense! The sad thing is, I’ve seen some of them before. Also, don’t forget to watch your Facebook and MySpace accounts. Even if you are friends with someone who posts something dumb on your wall, it reflects badly on you.
i just want to say some thing “great job” on the blog.
Update your Twitter randomly according to your intrest Or, from Rss Feed Or, from your own tweet message list Or, Any combination of the above three http://feedmytwitter.com
Your post 30 Ways to Lose a Job on Twitter | ResumeBear Blog was very interesting when I found it over google on Monday by my search for sein amateur. I have your blog now in my bookmarks and I visit your blog again, soon. Take care. Parejaspareja.es
What I find appalling is the complete lack of a) morality; and b) common sense displayed by these people, not to mention the execrable spelling and grammar. Didn’t anyone ever tell these people that it’s wrong to lie, cheat, and steal? Jobs are hard to come by these days, and people should be grateful to have one, not spending all their time plotting how to rip off their employer!
” I have a crush on a woman at work so i stole her watch so she’d have to get it from me. smelling it, it smells so good -ds
WTF that is really creepy!
Let’s not forget about the women who had an offer from Cisco rescinded because she tweeted to wonder if the big fat paycheck was worth the long commute along with a job she was gonna hate. Someone at the company responded, asking who her hiring manager was, and ensuring she wouldn’t need to make a decision. Sure enough, the next day, her offer was rescinded.
There are the facebook stories, too, of course.
What happened to common sense these days?!?!?!?!? That’s all it is common sense! Way to bring common sense to everyone’s attention!!
Cool
It’s obvious these people deserve to be fired for their inappropriate tweets (and absence of common sense). But my question is, based on most of these people’s baffling lack of basic spelling and grammar skills, how did they get hired in the first place?
Really. “Hoam” instead of “Home”? Wow.
Maybe Twitter could make money by offering a spell check.
Tweet about your new job interview and how your wondering if you should sue your current boss.
Another way to lose your job would be bad grammar.
Thank you for a very instructive article – more often I will go
lol. I guess some people feel that they’re suddenly safe when expressing themselves online. Kind of like how people act when they’re in their cars, doing things like picking their nose while waiting for a light to turn green.
Thanks for providing such great tips and the valuable job and salary trend research. It has been very helpful to me in my latest career search.
Scary insight into today’s workforce-
How can anyone be this dumb? Isn’t it career 101 in High school and surely parents teach their kids ???? to not just say whatever online????
very interesting post – please do it again
You can lose more than your job if you’re dumb enough to twitter some of thse things.
??????? : ?????
The examples in Box 8.8 show that by simply reordering the words and creating an object-to-subject flow between sentences, the ideas are carried forwards and do not jar the mind.It is best to just give the results once, check that they are correct and use a format that gets your message across clearly in one go.
However, chopping and changing suggests that you are talking about many different groups of participants and leads to confusion.Errors in the year of publication, the volume number or the page numbers make it very difficult and very frustrating for fellow researchers who want to retrieve the cited article.
These are all so true and people get fired over twitter so much.
I think this is kind of an awesome roundup, but the photos are all skewed and a LOT of them are missing…some of them are not with the right headline…It’s be a better roundup if the photos were a little better put together, no? Just a thought.
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Boy, this is a two edged sword. As others have pointed out, if a potential boss evaluates me based on what he/she finds on social media sites then I don’t need to work for them, nor want to.
Second, I should not be so foolish as to post negative things on any of my sites. If I am that dumb to do so then I shouldn’t be hired by anyone.
Gary Gile recently posted..What to Do When You Loose Your JOB
common sense now days…if you post it, chances are someone will read it
No right to privacy anymore? What a person does outside of work should not interfere with their job or hiring status. I agree posting things about work is over the top, but to just someone based ontheir status updates? I by nature am a funny person, so if I make a joke about something, this should not interfere with me getting a job. There is no such thing to privacy I guess. Not only that, but people are being turned down based on a judgment. Jdging a book by its cover is never effective
Is this supposed to be funny?
You need to go enroll in comedy college to learn how to make people laugh.
I would think people would know what NOT to do, but I guess they do not, so they really need this kind of information to help them navigate the job world. Great article!
It’s unbelievable that some people have so little common sense. Still laughing!
The problem with common sense is that it is not always common. Social Media forums are a phenomenal resource for job seekers to network and communicate. It is also an open, public forum wherein your comments are there for the world to see. Be discreet.
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Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups
Being on twitter is a gamble especially if you don’t know how to use it or the impact it could have on you. Ask the congressman about social media and texting.
Don’t forget posts about drinking/being hungover! I’ve seen it too many times: reputations damaged by alcohol-related tweets. We deal with that kind of thing a lot at Brand-yourself: online reputation management and putting your best foot forward online.
Deffo agree with you comments here. I am uncertain if I would do it though
Be careful what you say because it just might come back to haunt you.
May be they are using fake names?
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What amazes me most is the comments following. How can anyone expect a public format to be considered “private” even if you privatize it, it is still out there and anyone can get ahold of it. Private, as we used to say before computers, is keeping your mouth shut about personal things. Discretion is a word few understand. I am amazed at the pictures people post for their profile pictures when they know they are applying for jobs! Discretion is a wonderful thing!
Thanks for sharing this funny article. Believe it or not some of those tweets I have seen in real life.
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Definitely a case of Big Brother is watching you … and I thought new technology was meant to be liberating!
Probably the only time you can get way with bagging the boss is when you’re self-employed.
The other side of social media
that you are being watched by everyone. Its so easy to be caught these days!!
Completely amazing what employees and potential candidates share across Twitter.
They certainly make a recuiter’s job easier.
No wonder corporations complain they cannot find talent. Actually, talent is out there and available. They are not found on social media because they would not be this mindless.
Thanks for the share.
This is real eye opener. People should be cautious while posting on social media sites.
There seems to be a serious lack of common sense out there. Its so easy to tract your employees social profiles I don’t understand why people would tweet such things.
There seems to be a serious lack of common sense out there. Its so easy to tract your employees social profiles I don’t understand why people would tweet such things.
Wow, seems to be a huge lack of common sense out there. I say lack of common sense more a lack of professionalism and common decency.
What does it 30 ways to Loose a Job in the twitter?
http://acaithermo.net/?p=167
Very interesting post, however there are many ways for jobseekers to find a job on Twitter. we have registered two hashtags #IamLookingForWork and #CheckOutMyCV When employers want to find a UK Candidate search using the two hastags
Interesting info
Because social media take time to become truly engaging for most users, I think job seekers forget that what they are tweeting out really does become “public” record even if no one responds to them. They don’t look at Twitter as a way to build a brand but as a long string of random comments. As noted here, those random comments can come back to bite you. More people are listening that you realize…
These are totally hilarious. Thanks for sharing! I’ll be sharing a lot with my tribe.
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Very good article