The last paragraph in your argument contains the very conundrum as to why being connected with co-workers on Facebook is not a good idea. At its optimum, Facebook is a tool to provide information about your life wtih family and friends in a uniquely informal way, to the point that it’s practically replaced e-mail as the main way to communicate information electroncially in some circles. As such, we feel comfortable communicating with them in the types of informal, colloquial ways that we would if we were hanging out in their living room. Bringing in any type of work element to it severly damages this purpose and spirit of the site, and we are left with an outlet where we have to carry the same kinds of facades that we must hold at work.

Also, regarding the Facebook rules, there are ways to prevent one’s page from being open to anyone except the people that a person befriends, essentially keeping the public out. That way, one doesn’t have to restrict the information that is posted for fear of the public eye (or people from the workforce). After all, everyone of us have things going on in our lives that we share with our friends and family that we would not think of sharing in work. Why take away a forum to do just that? Additionally, while I’m not advocating public drunkeness or any other kind of debauchery, it seems the rules state that if one has a Facebook account, he or she should essentially live his or her private life as an extention of a company’s employee handbook. To me, that sets a dangerous precedent.

There are other sites where an online connection between co-workers makes much more sense than Facebook. LinkedIn is the one that immediately comes to mind. However, Facebook’s original intention was to be a site for friends and family to have fun, be social, and escape from the pressures of day to day life, including work. What is wrong with keeping it in line with those original intentions?

Yes, it was textbook management/leadership to discourage relationships between the hierarchies. So I can understand your concerns there. After all, there are laws that are based on perception alone; therefore it may not be appropriate for some to be on Facebook. Nevertheless with new concepts such as “emotional intelligence,” which encourages new ways of leading/managing, there are benefits to using services such as Facebook, Linked-in, etc. to improve relationships and networks.

While we can’t control what “friends” do on our Facebook pages, we can control the content we choose to reflect who we are and the way we behave in public. Generally, if these basic rules are followed all should be well: 1) When using any service such as Facebook, don’t include information you wouldn’t want made public. 2) When friends and/or relatives take pictures of you, make sure you’re not drunk or doing anything too silly. 3) If at all worried about other peoples’ perception of you, then it would probably be best to forgo the idea of using Facebook.