Social media can be a great way to stay connected, build your professional network, and express yourself, but what you post online can sometimes affect your professional reputation. Even when you’re using a personal account, employers, colleagues, clients, and potential employers may be able to see what you share. The goal isn’t to stop using social media—it’s to use it thoughtfully. Here are six ways to stay active online while protecting your professional reputation and career.

1. Think Before You Post: Before sharing something publicly, consider how it could be interpreted by your employer, coworkers, clients, or future employers. Content that is offensive, threatening, discriminatory, or otherwise inappropriate could create professional consequences.

2. Be Careful With Workplace Information: Avoid sharing confidential, proprietary, or sensitive information about your employer, coworkers, customers, or workplace. Complaining publicly about workplace situations can also create problems that may be better addressed through appropriate internal channels.

3. Consider Separating Personal and Professional Accounts: If you use social media extensively, separate personal and professional accounts may help you manage your online presence. Just remember that privacy settings do not guarantee that personal content will remain private.

4. Know Your Employer’s Social Media Policy: If your organization has a social media policy, take the time to understand it. Knowing what your employer expects can help you make more informed decisions about what you share online.

5. Review Your Privacy Settings: Check your account settings regularly and understand who can see your posts, photos, comments, and profile information. Social media platforms change their privacy features over time, so don’t assume your old settings are still giving you the level of privacy you expect.

6. Think Before You Comment: Your comments, replies, likes, and other online interactions can become part of your digital footprint too. Before engaging in a heated discussion, consider whether what you’re about to say is something you’d be comfortable having associated with you professionally.

You don’t have to disappear from social media to protect your career. Being intentional about what you post, understanding your employer’s policies, protecting confidential information, and periodically reviewing your digital footprint can help you maintain an active online presence without unnecessarily putting your professional reputation at risk.