Giving up Blogging for Work?

As seen on a friend's Facebook status update, she was fired asked to leave her job because she spent too much time blogging.

For your information, she wasn't ask to leave because she was blogging during office hours but she is just an active blogger during her free time.

According to her boss she is spending too much time during her own free time on blogging and not fully committed to her job. That is as good as saying that I spent too much time watching NBA and I am not focused on my job?

What? I can't watch Nadal play on clay?

By the way, she was hired partly because of her social media know how and bloggers contact.

More information, she did not get an official warning letter, the situation was talked about once few weeks ago and than BAM! It happened just like that. 

As an employer we hope our employee will be fully committed to their work and all but we also understand the importance of work life balance. My rule of thumb is always, earn me money, get the things done, don't get me into any trouble. I'm cool with you coming to work wearing your wife's bra.

As an employee, we have our rights on choosing our hobby as long as it doesn't affect my work right? I might be working for you but as long as I am not doing anything that harms the company and that's cool right?

I am pretty blessed that non of the companies that I have worked with thus far has a problem with my social media image. The things I say, the things I do is most of the time ignored or allowed in some ways or in fact being appreciated at times. Some might challenge because I am in the industry itself thus making it easier but think again, how much more sensitive can it get since it is the same industry? Will my client judge my company because of my blog? Will my potential client judge my company because of my poor grammar in this space? Will I lose my job for such a post? I guess I could only count my blessings that I can do what I like. 

If you are asked to give up blogging for you work, will you? What will you do? Blog in an alias but unable to attend events? Quit your job? Me? I wouldn't give up my hobbies for my work but if work is engaging enough for me to stop doing my hobby, that is a different story and that has happened before.

It is true that having bloggers in the company can be compared to having a time bomb in the office to some older management. They are worried about the negative things they might blog about or even anything sensitive. While on the other hand, more and more bloggers are also getting hired to be part of marketing/social media team but truth is how many of them really know marketing or digital/social advertising? Can they even go pass a proposal without proposing things like "vote to win", "blogger engagement" or "follow me and stand a chance to win"? No doubt it is always good to work with somebody from the "inside" but my question here is how many of these guys really know their work?

Inspired by many conversations with different bloggers, PR people, Ad men, I must say that being in an agency is not an easiest job. Regardless if it is events, advertising, PR, social or any form of media, the challenges are there and the adrenaline is always running high. It might seems all glamorous and fun to some but you have no idea what happened within that 48hrs before that glamorous picture was snapped. 

Btw, she IS single. Drop me an email if you are interested and only the selected will be notified via email.

I've worked on client side, I've work at different agencies and different types of agencies but I must say I really enjoy being on the agency side. The ever changing challenges, the things you learn and the people you get to meet is BIG. And if you think you are up for the challenge, read this and drop me an email. I'll be waiting.

Mr.Smith, if it ain't difficult, it ain't fun.