We Aren’t Two People

According to The Economist, potential employees are beginning to discover the cost of their online behavior. 

"The rise of the online self means the employer’s eye can travel … past your desk, past your office and into your home, family and even (through ill-judged social-media posts) your most intimate thoughts. Today, companies wield the sort of spy power less commonly associated with directors than with dictators, even deities."

Of course, this shouldn’t come as a surprise since our “most intimate thoughts” aren’t online in the first place unless someone chooses to post them. Still, the fact that some believe there should be a kind of immunity for bad behavior online points to a deeper truth about technology: Our tools shape us whether we like it or not.  

For example, studies show that “negativity” spreads more easily than “positivity” online. What we’d never say to someone’s face, we’ll put on Twitter. What we’d never say about a neighbor, we’ll post on Nextdoor.  

We aren’t two people. The best advice for Christians, whether online or off, is to “Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer.”