Cisco Fatty, You'll Laugh About This Someday. Really.
This post is for anyone who wants to read it, but it's particularly for that individual who, for the moment, is known throughout the wired world as "Cisco Fatty."
For those unfamiliar with the tale, the young person in question -- a first-year grad student at the University of California Berkeley's School of Information -- just landed a job with Cisco Systems. And then promptly lost it after posting an ill-advised message on Twitter:
Unlike some people in the Twitterverse, I do feel bad for Cisco Fatty (the person, not the web site). But CF, I can assure you it merely is a momentary embarrassment. Your life will not be ruined by this incident. You're in grad school at Berkeley! Don't forget that. You'll be laughing about this in a few months or years, as many of us are now. Trust me, I know from personal experience (cue camera blur and flashback music)...
Obviously, for CF and all of us who use the Internet -- and particularly social networking tools such as Twitter -- there's a big lesson here: Assume everyone can see what you write. Because they can. There's an old journalism expression for when you're writing an article but are unsure of a particular fact: When in doubt, leave it out. This wise piece of advice should be adapted to the world of social networking: If you have any reservations about the wisdom of posting your snarky remarks, your drunk photos, your incendiary opinions on politics, race, religion or American Idol, leave them out.
Finally, CF, consider this a blessing in disguise. You were about to take a job you expected to hate. And on top of that, you were facing a miserable commute. Why start your career in such soul-crushing fashion? No matter how fat the "fatty paycheck," it wouldn't have been worth it. Aim higher than that.
Oh, and if Jimmy Fallon or other talk-show types come calling, take the offers. You might as well leverage this.
For those unfamiliar with the tale, the young person in question -- a first-year grad student at the University of California Berkeley's School of Information -- just landed a job with Cisco Systems. And then promptly lost it after posting an ill-advised message on Twitter:
Cisco just offered me a job! Now I have to weigh the utility of a fatty paycheck against the daily commute to San Jose and hating the work.A Cisco employee on Twitter saw this tweet and replied:
Who is the hiring manager. I'm sure they would love to know that you will hate the work. We here at Cisco are versed in the web.You can read more on this brand new web site, Cisco Fatty.
Unlike some people in the Twitterverse, I do feel bad for Cisco Fatty (the person, not the web site). But CF, I can assure you it merely is a momentary embarrassment. Your life will not be ruined by this incident. You're in grad school at Berkeley! Don't forget that. You'll be laughing about this in a few months or years, as many of us are now. Trust me, I know from personal experience (cue camera blur and flashback music)...
Years ago, in my first newspaper job, I was editing a press release (on paper!) that referenced a local doctor who was well-known as an extreme right-winger (a John Birch type who thought fluoridation of water was a Communist plot). I inserted the word "neo-fascist" in front of his name and showed it to one of my colleagues for a few harmless laughs. Then I must have gotten distracted, because I forgot to cross out "neo-fascist" and handed the press release to a typesetter.Granted, CF, no Internet existed back then to transmit details of my blunder to millions of people around the globe. You'll just have to live with that. But Internet folly, like Internet fame, is fleeting. Remember the incident involving the Ketchum ad agency guy who tweeted some unflattering remarks about Memphis prior to giving a presentation to employees of FedEx? That was in January. Who talks about that now?
The next day our editor was scanning the back page as the paper was running off the presses and the offending word jumped out at him. I was out at lunch, but was told he literally ran down the hall shouting, "Stop the presses!" Other reporters were sent out to intercept trucks delivering the papers. When I returned from lunch and learned what had transpired, I thought my journalism future was over at age 22.
I got suspended for a week. If I wasn't such cheap labor ($12K a year), I'm sure I would have gotten fired. But as dark as things seemed then, I learned a lesson and went on to a successful writing and editing career. I'm also occasionally asked to tell "the neo-fascist story."
Obviously, for CF and all of us who use the Internet -- and particularly social networking tools such as Twitter -- there's a big lesson here: Assume everyone can see what you write. Because they can. There's an old journalism expression for when you're writing an article but are unsure of a particular fact: When in doubt, leave it out. This wise piece of advice should be adapted to the world of social networking: If you have any reservations about the wisdom of posting your snarky remarks, your drunk photos, your incendiary opinions on politics, race, religion or American Idol, leave them out.
Finally, CF, consider this a blessing in disguise. You were about to take a job you expected to hate. And on top of that, you were facing a miserable commute. Why start your career in such soul-crushing fashion? No matter how fat the "fatty paycheck," it wouldn't have been worth it. Aim higher than that.
Oh, and if Jimmy Fallon or other talk-show types come calling, take the offers. You might as well leverage this.
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But is this one true? It is an interesting story, but I checked Tim Levad's tweets, and do not see the tweet
Two responses:
1) It better be, or I told an embarrassing story about myself for nothing.
2) I found this on search.twitter.com...
http://search.twitter.com/search?q=timmylevad+hiring+manager
this is just a blip for a grad student at Berkeley. you could tell the kids one day about it for a laugh. and you've also learned that if you don't want someone to know something, don't tell anyone. not even your cat.
i've learned the hard way that most people will use information against you if it will benefit them to do so. and the more they know about you/your thoughts, the more power you give them. sign of the times.
ah dont worry about cisco theres other places. currently i am taking a course which involves the cisco ccna and they purposely make it as difficult and confusing as they can. someone else i know failed the ccna certification exam several times before he was able to get it.
I was on a conference call this afternoon, discussing exactly this topic. That being how can hiring managers and Human Resources departments select and retain the key personal for the job. One such method many private sector and government agencies utilize are psychology or DISC (Dominance, influence, Steadiness, and Contention).
One thing from a human resources standpoint would be the legal basis for not making the decision to hire this candidate. It is not uncommon for someone, especially in an educational setting to leave a site like twitter or online social networking site up. So, as these tools become more main-stream: how from a corporate standpoint do you monitor your employee’s usage and also safeguard your company?
While I certainly agree with the Cisco employee's response, and compliment the company’s decision to not employee individuals who are not excited and devoted to their work. As I have seen countless employees’ come to work for a company, and not work a day in their life over a six month – one year time period, and it has always upset me. However, I would not be surprised if the Berkley student attempts to sue the company for pulling back the offer, on the basis that she may not have been the one that posted the original "twitter", ect.
Somebody applying for a job they hate, is wrong to apply. Especially if the job is permanent, and they don't expect to be there more than a few months (I don't know that this applies in this situation). But, being a highly functional person with Autism who cannot sell, the entire jobsearch process has been a problem forever. There are many aspects that are not fair on either side, and much of this is accepted as a right of passage. For those of us who are genetically predisposed to having problems, this is discrimination. But who can see the small amounts of discrimination through all the noise of "rights of passage"?
I do hope the person finds what they are looking for eventually. However, I do not feel sorry that they lost a job they never wanted.
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Elaina
Did I fall asleep in English grammar, or did the rest of the world. I am greatly surprised that more people are not pointing this out.
To the best of my knowledge THEY is PLURAL. In English the masculine embraces the feminine. This means that if the gender of the hiring manager is unknown, the correct phrase is "I'm sure he would love to know..." If Tim Levad is determined to bend low and kiss the hindquarters of political correctness, he could have written "I'm sure he (or she) would love to know. The plural *they* does not belong with the singular *manager.*
English teachers! Your opinions please!
Gregory, your first sentence needs a question mark.
Could it be possible that someone will use the Internet to frame you? What if someone wants to ruin your career and make you look bad to employers by misusing your name online?
Great point about the damage, this particular case presents, both to the individual as well as the company. As I had mentioned previously, Cisco may have unnecessarily exposed itself to a lawsuit. Given the timing of the company rescinding the offer & the response by a Cisco employee, there may be grounds for a claim against the company.
For example, it is not a secret that company routinely post negative feedback on their competitor's sites. And in some instance companies have pushed out false pricing or content to their competitors, based on ip address ranges of their competitors are coming in on in an effort to maintain a competitive advantage.
The same can be said for individuals and their own reputation on the internet. For example, should a company consider a Usenet or gopher post a researcher made 20-30 years ago, in making a hiring decision or grant? (ps: maybe I am showing my age, does anyone even remember gopher or usenet ?)