What is too personal to post on Facebook?

Like many people, I must admit that I am an active Facebook user.  Yet, there are many times when it seems like some people are sharing too many personal details.  I post a status here or there and upload a select few pictures, but for the post part I keep my personal life personal.  I cannot tell you how many times I click the login button of Facebook and am suddenly bombarded by slightly passive aggressive statuses, and countless “selfies” (self-taken pictures, for you not-so-hip readers).  So what is too personal to post online?

Obviously, it is not a smart idea to post your phone number or address on your Facebook page.  If you did not know that then momentarily stop reading and go address that situation!  But, what about “checking in” or even all of those self taken pictures that have become so popular – are these types of things too personal to be posted online?  Below I have created a short list of some of the most common scenarios I have seen online, and my advice on what is too much to post.

1.  Self-taken pictures – What can I say on this matter?  I am personally just not a fan, however I think they can be acceptable in certain circumstances.  If there is a great scene going on behind you and you want to snap a picture of yourself in the setting, there is nothing wrong with that.  Get a new haircut?  It is still acceptable to show it off.  It is the 101 pictures you posted last week of yourself at the gym, in your car at a stop light, in your bathroom mirror, or at a bar that are not only incessant, but just plain innappropriate.  Limit the amount of pictures you take of yourself, as you don’t want to come off a little photo obsessed and a tad vain.

2.  Checking in – A good way to let people know where you are, or a potential safety risk?  It seems to me that posting every location you venture to is just a bad idea.  I suppose if you have good privacy settings on your account you are ok, however if not, then you don’t really know who is looking at your whereabouts online.  Aside from that, don’t you think it seems a little unnecessary to let the whole world know where you are at every moment?  My advice is to only check in when you are at a special event, so as to not hog your Facebook friends’ newsfeed, and stay a little mysterious.

3.  Posting a status – My rule of thumb is to keep it casual, yet still proper.  Some things that are absolutely off limits?  No angry break up statuses, no innapropriate hacked posts, and nothing with profanity.  Basically, don’t post anything that your grandma would be offended reading, or something that would make your future boss raise an eyebrow.

4.  Posting pictures – Essentially this is the same concept as the advice I gave above.  However, there are scenarios that provide a sort of gray area, which need to be clarified.  For the most part, I would say that posting a picture of yourself in a bikini is not the best idea.  While not really that offensive to me, some people do take offense to this and find it innappropriate or unprofessional.  Don’t post anything that could be misconstrued as something else, such as a picture with at a party with a red solo cup, when you are underaged.

5.  Your relationship status – It is totally fine to acknowledge your significant other by your relationship on Facebook.  However, when you have an argument, you should reconsider before taking your relationship off of your page in a frenzied rage.  Instead of making that rash judgment that allows all of your Facebook friends know you just had an argument with your significant other, wait out of respect to everyone online, and for your relationship.

So, now you have my advice on a few key mistakes some people make on Facebook by sharing too much information.  Leave me a comment to let me know similar situations you have encountered online, or just to put in your two cents!