Sophia Bush's shares her foolproof social media mantra: 'Don't be cruel'

BY DONNA FREYDKIN

With her 1.19 million Twitter followers, Sophia Bush knows a few things about the machinations of social media. She's a prolific poster, sharing uplifting remarks by Charlize Theron, and photos of herself promoting her NBC series, Chicago P.D., which returns on Wednesday night.

So we asked Bush to share her social media tenets.

Number one rule of thumb is to say what you mean, and mean what you say. "I post things that make me feel good. This is something great to share. It's stuff that I believe in," says Bush, an advocate for educational causes.

And then, edit. Heavily. "I don't overly share my personal life," she says.

Be smart about over-sharing. "Anytime I'm going to post a photo that might have a friend's child in it, I always check first. It's always about being respectful and keeping certain things for yourself. That stuff becomes precious," says Bush.

Use the powers of social to further your causes -- and don't worry about it impacting your career. In Bush's case, the opposite happened. "I see the value of social media as an expressive space to elevate causes. I haven't had a day off since I signed up for my Twitter account. But to each his own. Do what's good for you," she says.

And her top rule: "Don't be cruel. Do try to use your voice to do something good. I'm a little bit of a perfectionist. I'm OCD. It's a desire to have things work out and just be right."