18 Ways Leaders can ruin their reputation on Facebook, Part 2!!!

Facebook is a great way for you to build and maintain relationships with people both inside your church and in your community. But Facebook is not without its risks. Every time you post something, you risk hurting, offending or distancing yourself from people.

The disingenuous…

9) Act like your life is perfect. Nobody is perfect, and everyone knows it. If you act like everything is good all the time, you’ll be perceived as inauthentic, wearing a mask.


10) Act like you’re always “joyful in the Lord” Nobody is happy all the time either.


11) Act like you have all the answers. Nobody likes a know-it-all either. Share insight and advice when asked. Be confident but not arrogant.

The offender…

12) Act like the language/morality police. Your Facebook friends are not perfect. They are going to swear, post questionable pictures of themselves, and share things you don’t agree with. If something is really bad, consider contacting the person privately about it, but don’t call people out publicly for what is unfortunately common behavior in our culture.

13) Roll out the fire and brimstone. I don’t know if preaching about sin and hell worked with past generations, but it’s not going to put you in a position to influenced people on Facebook. People on Facebook respond much more favorably to hope and love.

14) Be overly political. It’s OK to take stands on key issues, but unless you want to irk half your church and close the door to half the people in your community (not to mention risk losing your non-profit status), don’t tow a party line.

15) Engage people in debates. Online (and offline) debates rarely cause anyone to shift their position on an issue. Discussion is great, but if things get heated or personal, it’s time to lighten up.

The disengaged…

16) Post a lot of theological stuff that’s over the head of your friends. It’s great for pastors to engage their Facebook friends in spiritual conversations, but avoid posting your doctoral thesis. It’s not going to engage anyone, and will put people off.

17) Login once every week or two. Relationships require consistency. You can take breaks, go on vacation, and don’t need to be on Facebook every day, but you’ve got to be regular if you’re going to build relationships in Facebook.

18) Fail to respond. When people send you messages, post to your wall, or post comments to your status updates and links, it’s important to respond. Answer people’s questions. Thank people for their insight and stories.