…there are no facebook photooos of me when I was in college, thank you god. Yes, college was fun, although for the most part, photos would be me drinking beer and talking / dancing / whatever. I was also a *very* serious student. I was a music student who practiced a strict regimen for *hours* every day and *almost* always had a 4.0 grade-point average. Not always. I mean, when I was a sophomore and my (old icky) piano prof had a crush on me, I got totally creeped out, stopped practicing and got a C. It’s okay, my major instrument was flute and I felt comfortable enough with my sophomore year flute teacher that when he reported that the piano teacher mentioned my disinterest in practicing, I could tell him why. And he *understood*! I can’t dredge out that guy’s name at the moment but this was the early 1970s and he *rocked*! And then there was a conducting class creep that I can’t even describe (well, disparaging the UP was only part of his stupid spiel). He wasn’t interested in meeee (I don’t think, hmmm), he was just icky. And I am not a conductor but a better, more supportive prof might’ve gotten me through that class with more than a damn C!

When I graduated from college (with a music degree) I had no frickin’ idea about how to make a living. I felt reduced to searching the classified ads for secretarial and receptionist type positions. Remember when those jobs required a typing test? I can type like the wind but not the kind of typing a secretary had to do in those days. I didn’t really want a secretarial job. In the end, I dropped off a cliff into the IT business, thanks to a cousin of mine. I flourished there and my typing skills are one reason I did, who knew… Good thing there weren’t photos of me on facebook back in those days. Maybe this almost straight-A student who liked to have fun (who *still* likes to have fun) wouldn’t have been hired.

Nowadays, employers can search facebook et al to look for what their prospective employees have posted. I hope they are thinking about their own youthful indiscretions when they search for new hires. Please. Talk to the *person* and find out what they are all about. Who do you want working for you? I think you want a diverse bunch, including maybe a few folks who hoist a beer once in a while. People do grow up. If you are researching googling a potential employee and you find a few drunk party pictures, please give that person a chance.

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