I’m one of those people who throws herself into spring cleaning early in the season and doesn’t stop until the house is spick and span. I don’t stop there, though. I spring clean my computer, my files, and my diet, too. I find myself taking my car in to get serviced, my dogs in to the groomers, and running those errands that I’ve been putting off for so long.

I don’t know if it’s because of the sunshine that has been hiding all winter, or if it’s just human nature, but I love starting spring feeling productive, fresh, and ready for the nicer weather.

I was on Facebook the other day, listing an item for sale in a buy/sell group I’m a member of. When I went to my news feed, I noticed a few people cropping up in it that I no longer keep in touch with. After un-friending them, I felt as if I had pulled a thread. I started unravelling the thread by un-friending, un-following, and hiding posts to get rid of the visual junk that I don’t need to see when I log on to my Facebook account.

I had only hit the tip of the iceberg, so I made a night out of it by spring cleaning all of my social media accounts.

Photos

Starting with my Facebook account, but then moving over to my Instagram, Twitter, and other accounts, I began reviewing old photos of myself, that I had been tagged in or that had been posted on these accounts. I deleted some, untagged myself in some, and requested that my friends take some down.

I’ve had my Facebook account since I was 19, so I have some photos on there that aren’t as professional as I’d like to present myself now.

You can never really get rid of photos (or anything) from the internet, but that doesn’t mean you need to have the photos up on your wall, feed, or account for everybody to see.

Friends and Followers

We all have a few people we are friends with or follow on Facebook or Twitter that we find annoying, or are only still friends with because they are always stirring up drama and it’s somewhat entertaining to watch unfold.

There are also the people that make you feel bad about yourself, that you barely know, or that are always inviting you to play Candy Crush despite your adamant refusal.

Clean up your friends list; unfollow those people that spam your feed or that you don’t know.

 Posts, Information and Bios

I rarely update my bio on my Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram accounts. I did so recently, and realized that the information was very out of date.

I also found that there was a little bit too much information that I was revealing about my personal life. It wasn’t inappropriate, however, I’d rather my professional contacts not have access to those small details.

Think about what information you want to reveal to people, and what information you’d rather keep private. Your social media accounts are often people’s first impressions of you; know that recruiters often look up potential employees on social media such as Twitter, Facebook, and Linkedin. Think about what you would want to see if you were a recruiter.

 Professional Social Media Sites

Professional sites, like Linkedin and Glassdoor, require updating at least once per year. Updating these sites is like updating an online resume.

Updating your skills, competencies, and experience on Linkedin will not only present your abilities to potential employers, clients and contacts, but will also subtly alert your current employer of any accomplishments or projects you have been working on, without having to approach them and let them know.

Spring cleaning is great for more than just your home. Try spring cleaning your social media accounts to present yourself more positively and cut the extra noise out of your life.