How honest are you online? Perhaps a little too honest? Have you done any of the following in the past month?

• Posted pictures from a private party you attended?
• Sent a tweet on Twitter or changed your status on Facebook to describe how tired, frustrated or depressed you were?
• Took an online poll that revealed personal details when it posted to Facebook?
• Used profanity or made sexual references in a blog post, a MySpace update or a Facebook wall post?
• Gotten into an argument or made negative comments about a third person when talking publicly on a social media service like Twitter or Facebook?

Users of these services seem to either be unaware or unconcerned that their words have a wider distribution than they may have intended. Individual privacy settings on Facebook are often more lax than they should be, allowing everyone to see your status, wall posts and other personal information. Twitter is sometimes mistaken for another instant messaging system, but everything you tweet is public (other than direct messages), so everyone can see and reply to your 140-character thoughts. The results can be surprising and unfortunate, from simple hurt feelings and misunderstandings to lost job opportunities or respect within a community.

Here are some steps to take to keep your social media reputation positive while staying part of your growing online communities:

• Check the privacy options on every online network you participate in. Make sure they’re set so that only those you’ve approved as “friends” can see your personal details. Nothing beyond your name is really required to allow new connections to find you, though you may also include your city and, on Facebook, your status. Everyone else should have to ask to be a friend before they see more info about you.
• Everything you “say” online is public, even when it’s private. It’s easy for one of your friends, especially if the relationship sours, to cut and paste and turn private conversations or details into public with a click of their mouse. Just like gossip in real life, don’t say anything online you could regret later. While online honesty can be positive and refreshing, it doesn’t mean you have to say everything. Think before you click and learn to edit yourself wisely.
• Think twice about every add-on, game or application you think of adding in Facebook. Most of them are perfectly safe, but they often ask for more access privileges to your personal information than they really need, raising privacy concerns. And they usually generate items for your News Feed that can become annoying to your friends when they have to wade through them, making them the Facebook equivalent of spam.
• Don’t confuse Twitter with Facebook, instant messaging or cellphone texting. It’s public. (Yes, you can lock your updates, but what’s the point of that?) If you’re uncomfortable with everyone reading your tweets, Twitter isn’t for you. It’s a different method of communication and can be very powerful for building communities and finding new business opportunities, but it can also be disastrous if its very public nature isn’t understood by the user.
• Delete social media accounts you’re not actually using. Don’t drive yourself crazy trying to keep up with several services, pick the ones that seem to be working for you and concentrate your communication efforts there. Get rid of the others to avoid someone getting into an inactive account and impersonating you without your knowledge.
• Remember that not only is everything you say online public, it’s more than likely permanent. Deleting a wall post or blog entry may make it stop appearing on Facebook or Blogger, but it’s probably stored deep in one of Google’s many search engine servers, ready to be conjured up with the right combination of magic search terms. Again, think before you click.
• Make sure your online “you” is the person you want everyone to know. Unless you want to be known as a depressed, whiny person who drinks too much, leave the photos of you doing shots at the bar and the comments about how bad your life is to yourself. The power of social media runs both ways: you can create an image as a positive, resourceful person or a negative impression that could cost you friends, money and personal success.

It’s important to be part of this online communication revolution. Being in control of your online image and keeping the private part of your life private are as important, though. Make sure you’re using the tools and not the other way around.