Vulnerable moment: are you scared of LinkedIn?

susanlee·Feb 23, 2023

Creators seem confident on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, but when it comes to LinkedIn, they run for the hills.

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If this is you, I want to help!

I've been actively using LinkedIn to land jobs and clients for the last five years. I want to help people take the guesswork out of LinkedIn and help them leverage it better.

➡️ What questions do you have about LinkedIn that can make it less confusing and scary for you? I promise to reply to every comment!

amrosnik·Feb 23, 2023

Ok, I'll go first: I am really enjoying how, especially since Twitter's devolution began, LinkedIn is becoming a more authentic place. Yet I'm not quite sure how to take advantage of it being less uptight and "fake nice", for lack of a better way to say it. I have no aspirations to be an influencer or even someone with a lot of followers; I just think life is easier when we can be more transparent with each other. There are times when I would like to say or repost something that could be read as "political", and I worry that some of my LinkedIn activity could be used against me in future job interviews. To be fair, that's an easy way for potential employers to filter themselves out from a job search! So I guess my main question is: how much of our non-resume selves do you think is safe to share on LinkedIn?

susanlee·Feb 24, 2023

Kudos to you for going first! Your concerns about LinkedIn, especially the part about your activity being used against you, is legitimate and quite common. I'm glad you brought that up.Some gurus will say you should be more personal and share your story. I say you can keep your personal life private AND STILL show up as you. For example, you can share a great book you read or a recent article with your key takeaways. LinkedIn is THE place for learning and conversations. Why not mesh both together?LinkedIn isn't about being an influencer or having tons of followers - that's Instagram's game. LinkedIn is where anyone can build credibility as a thought leader in their space. Where you can invest in more than just your role or a specific skill - you're investing in yourself as a person.Does this help @amrosnik?

amrosnik·Mar 09, 2023

Hi Susan, Apologies for the delay; I was on vacation! This was very helpful! I tend to agree that one can keep personal life private while being authentic. I really like to idea of sharing a great book or article and brief takeaways from it; that's a good example of how to share personal views without over-sharing personal details. I generally am inclined towards conversations that involve learning and analysis anyway!I do like the mindset shift of seeing LinkedIn as a place to invest in oneself. I think people like you are helping the rest of us realize that that's technically what it's about. I'll need to think more about how I may want to show up that way.Thanks again!

Alia51·Feb 25, 2023

I'm currently employed, but I have a few companies in mind that I would like to work for in the future. How do I go about reaching out to people at those companies to find out about how their organization is structured and how I could make a future application competitive?

susanlee·Feb 26, 2023

I would accomplish that in 5 steps:1. Search for the company's LinkedIn page.2. "Follow" them.3. Go to the People tab. Look for people who are in HR and Talent departments. Go to their profiles.4. Go to their activity and engage on their posts. Leave thoughtful comments. Follow them and ring their bell so you're notified every time they post.5. After 10-15 interactions, send them a direct message requesting an informational interview.That way you're doing two things: you're learning more about the company and they already see that you're invested in them. Does this help Alia51?

Alia51·Feb 27, 2023

Yes! Thank you!

Randi·Mar 04, 2023

I'm not looking for a job myself, but this is fantastic advice for people who are. May I share a screenshot of your post with others off this platform? I don't want to violate Elpha's confidentiality rules, but I'd like to pass on your advice to people I know who could benefit from it and give you credit for it (of course, I won't include the reference to Alia51 - I'll just paraphrase the question you are answering in a general way). Alternatively, if you turn this into a LinkedIn post and tag me there, I will amplify it.

susanlee·Mar 05, 2023

Lets do the latter. I'm happy to help however I can. Send me your LinkedIn url or connect with me there https://www.linkedin.com/in/hey-ms-susan-lee