The Impact of Our Digital Footprint on Personal Reputation

We live in a digital age and social media era where almost everyone has a social media account with loads of activities going on with each account possessed by an individual. While we've come to love social media and its impacts, a lot of people get preoccupied with it to the point where they use it to do things they and those around them won't be proud of if they were to find out, meaning that if others were to have access to comb our digital footprint, will we be at peace despite that or be sitting on the edge afraid of what they'll unearth from our digital footprint?

There are several people I know in person who portray an entirely different attitude in person from what they do on the social space, and sometimes if you're told that the person you know in person is the one showcasing the same attitude on a social space, it'll be difficult for you to believe. Even though social space is open for all to see, it's also private in another way unseen to many, and that's why it's easy for people to do delve into all sorts of things, thinking no one can see them.

Even though this wasn't related to combing one's digital footprint, I remember a lady in my neighborhood who spent most of her private life on social media, exposed to the general public. It happened that her phone got damaged, and she took it to an engineer to get it fixed. Unfortunately for her, after fixing the phone, the engineer apprentice was snuffing through the phone when he saw explicit videos of the lady and decided to send them to his own phone.

And from then on, several others get their hands on the videos, making the lady in question leave the neighborhood in shame of what has happened after someone gained access to her digital footprint, which could edit the content we share on social media or even those we've got on our phone, and that's why I believe we should all do all it takes to maintain morally upright behavior wherever we find ourselves.

I'm no saint either, because I know there're things I've done in the digital space that I'm not too proud of, and getting that known to some people around me might make them see me in another light. For instance, I remember how I use the social space and my presence there to do something I won't have done in person, one of which is abusing people, especially when it comes to football or tribal arguments.

It's not like I instigate such, but then, sometimes I just get annoyed when I see someone speak badly about a footballer or football club I like; the same is the case when someone speaks annoyingly against my tribe; it's funny, but then I just can't help myself in defending them. Even if it evolves me throwing abuses of my own, even though now I've stopped for about a year or two, I can't help but say if such were to be known to some around me, they'll see me in another light and probably be disgusted.

To bring this to a close, it's worth noting that our digital footprint is a mirror or our online actions; that goes on to determine how others see us, as well as define who we actually are, whether we believe it or not, so we should be mindful of all that we do regardless of where it's, and by so doing we'll be protecting our reputation and, in the process, leave behind a positive impact everywhere we find ourselves.

All photos are mine.