Having A Tunsil Moment

[williamjackson]

Having A Tunsil Moment
William Jackson, M.Ed.



Our behaviors are influenced by youthful
exuberance, ignorance to the consequences
of our actions and just plain stupidity. Many
of us have done things, participated in
activities that when we look back on we
resent and regret. Maturity is a great thing
to have, but it is gained from experiences
from life lessons.

Behaviors when mixed with alcohol, drugs and other substances
blur the lines between common sense and irrational behaviors.
When combined with technology we display a side of ourselves
that we normally would not. We act and react differently because
our thoughts are either clouded irrational actions and our youthful
excitement of the moment.

The National Football League Draft of 2016 will be seen as a lesson
in Social Media  caution and accountability. The lessons
learned are not just for athletes, but for everyone seeking to
achieve their goals, dreams and career aspirations.

Laremy Tunsil's high school mistake is a wakeup call for
high school and middle school students that use Social Media.
The events that happened no matter how they took place
shows several things, people will try to use Social Media
content to hurt others, you are accountable and responsible
for your content that you post from videos, to photos
and we cannot predict our futures.

This lesson in a way was experienced by Vanessa Williams
years ago when she was the first African American
to win Miss. America, but her crown was taken back
because of photos from her past. She survived with
the support of family and friends and her determined
will to be successful.
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/miss-america-resigns

The term, hind sight is 20/20, I'm sure if she knew she
was going to be Miss America she would not have taken
those photos and chosen another course of action to support
herself. Tunsil, I'm sure would not have participated in the
events shown online and not recorded them. The actions of
youth mixed with substances that take control of the
mind are a dangerous combination.

Social Media is not a crystal ball into the future, but a
window to the past, it can show positive and productive
events or behaviors that show lack of  thought and
maturity. As I have stated in many conversations at
conferences, seminars and workshops:

"Your digital devices can be your best friends or
worse enemies, depending on the type of content you
create and post, share and associate with." William Jackson

Social Media platforms are growing and allow unprecedented
opportunities to share content that shares our lives,
parents must be sure to talk to their children to
get them to understand that everything they do does
not have to go online and their behaviors, actions
and associations can be a curse for the future.

"Privacy is dead, and social media hold the smoking gun."
Pete Cashmore, Mashable CEO Tweet This!

Internet Caution
As I have blogged parents need to "Google and Hash Tag,"
their children from time to time to protect them from
themselves. To talk to their children, set ground rules
and have expectations for behaviors. Along with this if
the rules are broken consequences for actions that can
ultimately be detrimental to future careers.

Social Media is a reflection of society, there are wonderful
resources that allow for personal growth, educational
access, networking and social interactions that build
dynamic and global relationships, but the other end
are areas that promote chaos, confusion and even death;
physical, moral, psychological and spiritual defecation to
logic and common sense.
Parents are their children's first line of defense to
protect their children from physical and digital mistakes.

The Internet has created an atmosphere where children,
youth, teens and young adults feel they cannot live without
access, they have to be connected to friends and resources
that can influence behaviors outside of their "normal"
influences. Tuncil is not the only one that has been
exposed, there are others, some were lucky, but there
are others that have heartbreaking stories resulting in
unemployment, shame and embarrassment. The issue with
Social Media is that others are influenced because of the
"connected communities." Everyone else can see
your business and if you allow only a select few,
this does not stop the spreading of rumors and innuendos.

Caution in the actions and reactions of situations and
circumstances is important. Think about how or if what
you post can or will affect you and your family. It only
takes a few seconds to change to course of your future
when posting on Social Media.

"Social media is changing the way we communicate and the
way we are perceived, both positively and negatively.
Every time you post a photo, or update your status, you
are contributing to your own digital footprint and personal
Brand." Amy Jo Martin

The dangers are not just employment and social stability,
the dangers are destroying your Brand that you have worked
hard to build. From your E-Brand to your e-Reputation
and even your e-Personality all are affected. In some cases
it is easier to destroy your personal Brand and almost
impossible to rebuild it after a mistaken posting.

"How valuable your e-Brand, e-Personality, e-Reputation and
e-Value are cannot be determined until you do something to
damage it on Social Media." William Jackson

[CoastalJax]

It is quite amazing how just about everyone has to worry about the way they brand themselves on social media. It can impact your job opportunities, your connections, and plenty of other aspects of your future that the average person so rarely thinks about.

That being said, the Tunsil situation was blown out of proportion.

[thelakelander]

I've solved social media by just deleting all of my accounts except for Linkedin, which is pretty much a professional resume. However, I've never really been active with all the things that's out there anyway. I also stay away from taking selfies and plastering them all over the net. Who knows? I might want to run for president or mayor some day.  Can't have something crazy going down in 2016 and showing up on FB impacting those chances ;-).

Concerning Tunsil, as far as this Dolphins fan is concerned, he can bring his bong and gas mask to the game as long as he secures the offensive line. After all, this is the team that dealt with Ricky!

[williamjackson]

Thanks for your contributions.

The complicated part of this is what of the athletes that are not as talented as Tunsil, they are
caught with not making it into the NFL or NBA and required to work, but can't get a job
because of their Social Media content. They don't project the right image or the Brand is wrong,
what then?

Wait until Tunsil is of no use to the Dolphins or any other team and see how fast he gets dumped.
Will any news agency want to hire him afterwards because of his past to be a commentator?

Remains to be seen.

[thelakelander]

When he has no use to the Dolphins or another NFL team, it won't matter if he's on social media or not. The same goes for us and the companies we work for. When it's deemed we aren't as productive as the net person, we'll be let go. It's been that way for centuries. Only difference is Tunsil should make enough money that if he manages it right, he won't have to work for anyone else if he doesn't want to.