Keeping it clean

They say Lindsay Lohan does it every day.  Regular people may do it only once a month or so.  Your parents have probably done it, certainly your dates have.  And it’s likely your next boss will too:  type your name into Google and see what comes up.

Your potential employer may not like what they see.  Those pictures from a drinking game at a party that a friend posted on their site or Picasa.  Maybe a nasty blog entry or wet T shirt contest that you think better of now.     There may be all kinds of career limiting information about you lurking out there in cyberspace.

Getting rid of it isn’t all that easy.  You can contact the Webmaster of the page to take it down and if that doesn’t work, you can go to the companies hosting the site to ask about their policies for removing content.

You can also use Google’s Webpage removal request tool (google.ca/webmasters/tools/removals?pli=1) to remove a page from the search engine.  It’s important to note that this doesn’t remove the page itself, it’s still floating around on the interweb, but the page is removed from Google’s search index so it doesn’t show up in the search engine’s results.

That’s what Tamara Micner did when a blogger Twittered her cell number.  “I asked him to remove my number, which he did, and then I filled out the removal-request form for that webpage, so that Google would no longer index it and it would no longer be attached to my name.” 

Micner – who works in Google Canada’s communications department  - has also set up Google Alerts (google.ca/alerts) so she knows when her name, cell number, and Social Insurance Number show up somewhere.  “This way I know every time they appear on a new webpage or, ideally, don't!”  she says.

Micner says it's usually pretty hard to get content removed.  She says to manage your reputation, you may want to add more positive content about yourself which will out rank the negative stuff that a search engine would turn up.   “There are several ways to do it” says Micner.  “You can start a blog, join a social networking site with public profiles, comment on news articles around the Web, and so on.”

She says blowing your own horn can drown out the less than flattering noises about you on the internet.  “If you can write content (or have content written) about yourself and have it be interesting and compelling so that people link to it, it may indeed be relevant for searches on your name or business and may be a valid search result that surpasses the negative content.”

So as you are approaching potential employers, you may want to Google yourself and see how you look.