If only your personal life and your work life could be entirely separate. Unfortunately, things that happen in your private life always have the potential to affect you at work. If they don’t distract you from doing your job, they can even make it difficult to find or keep a job. While some problems in your personal life aren’t your fault, there are some choices you can make that have a direct impact at work. If you’re not careful, some things could cost you your job because they make you or your company look bad. If you want to keep your job, avoid these things.
This is a contributed post and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Meet The Harris Family.
Legal Trouble
Getting in trouble with the law is never a good look. It doesn’t look good for you, and it’s not great for your employer too. If you end up with a conviction, your employer might not look kindly on it. Some convictions could mean you’re unable to do your job. People who drive for work facing a DUI will need to see legal help right away if they want a chance at staying in employment. Other legal issues could lead to your employer letting you go because they don’t trust you anymore. Plus, a criminal record could make it harder to find more work.
Messing Up Online
Everyone can be a little more forthcoming about their life online than they should be. There are things that you perhaps shouldn’t share, but not everyone knows that or is as careful as they should be. Even when you think your social media profiles are private, what you post could be shared elsewhere. You could end up in big trouble at work for saying the wrong thing online, so it’s vital to be cautious. Avoiding going on long political rants, insulting people, telling controversial jokes and other risky behaviors are best avoided if you want to be safe.
Doing Personal Stuff at Work
It can be tough to leave your personal life behind when you arrive at work. Most people are going to have the occasional chat with a colleague or might call home on their lunch break. But you need to be careful about doing personal things at work. If you’re caught using company time to take care of personal matters – or just mess around – you could be in big trouble. If there’s a reason that you might need to take personal calls, like an ill family member, clear it with a superior first.
Keeping Your Job and Personal Life Too Separate
On the other hand, keeping your personal time and your work entirely separate could backfire on you too. If you completely switch off your work brain as soon as your workday is up, you might not make a great impression on your boss. A lot of employers expect you to give some of your personal time to socialize with colleagues or attend business events. Consistently turning these down could make it look like you lack commitment and don’t care about your job.
If you want to avoid trouble at work, make sure you you’re smart about what you do in your personal life.
