In early 2021, Matthew Sciannella shared a post with his network of colleagues and professional connections on LinkedIn.
This wasn’t massively unusual for him; as a marketing executive based in DC, Sciannella shares pretty regularly on the work-focused social networking platform. He writes posts about CRM and media software. He shares samples of his work and client testimonials.
But this post was different: Sciannella was sharing the news of his split from his wife of 12 years. “I’m getting a divorce,” he wrote. “God it sucks to write that.”
The responses rolled in – and they were mixed. While some people praised his ability to be vulnerable, and “human” (as he stated was his aim), others felt a professional social network just… wasn’t the place for that kind of thing. But who was right?
In the post-pandemic years, it’s fair to say that our attitude to work, and the separation of work and home, has shifted massively. As we adjusted to lockdowns and quarantines, many of us spent months working from home, seeing our colleagues only through computer screens, as they got to grips with working remotely, sometimes from their guest bedroom or kitchen table.
Seeing more
As a result, we got to see a lot more of their home lives than we were used to, sometimes at the worst possible moment. We saw their partners, walking in and out of frame; we were introduced to their pets, eager to jump up and say ‘hi’ and meetings took place with a toddler on someone’s lap.
In a way, it showed us all that, in fact, there was no harm in breaking that fourth wall between our office personas and who we were at home. In some cases, it even humanised us to our managers and co-workers.
Trends like loud parenting, something that can start off accidentally, became the norm, and reminding everyone that there’s more to all of us than our in-office productivity levels.
However, while it’s generally recommended to exercise your emotional intelligence in the workplace, there’s also a danger that oversharing details about your personal relationships, for example; your private medical issues; or that massive fight you had last night with your sister, can lead colleagues to view you as volatile, unreliable and, ultimately, untrustworthy.
If you’re willing to air your dirty family laundry in the workplace, what are you saying about work, once you get home?!
It’s ultimately up to you how much you want to share, or not, in an office environment, and just how personal you want your water-cooler chat to get. Sharing your marital updates on LinkedIn probably isn’t necessary, but there’s no harm in sharing moments of celebration, achievement or even disappointment.
We’re all human, and there’s no saying that a little emotion is going to take away from our professional lives. Just, you know, not too much emotion. We are Irish, after all.
By the way, in case you were worried – Matthew got remarried last year. How do we know? He posted about it on LinkedIn…
If you find your workplace isn’t exactly giving off the sharing-is-caring vibe you were hoping for – or maybe you’ve got a little too personal and would rather get out of dodge – it might be time to look for something new.
Check out the latest listings on the Evoke Job Board.
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