Most prospective customers and employers are now using social media and the internet as research and recruitment resources as a matter of course. Whether you are a business owner trying to grow your business or position yourself as a thought leader, or someone looking to climb the career ladder – it’s important that your personal and professional personas are consistent.

The trick is not to pretend to be someone that you’re not, but be strategic about what aspects of your personality you choose to present and, ideally, leverage. By being deliberate in all aspects of your online behaviour – what you share, what you publish and endorse – you can take a clear stand and represent very specific values or skills.

Being deliberate puts control in your hands so that when you (or others) type your name into a search engine, you’ll have nothing to fear.