Don’t Use LinkedIn to “build Your Brand”
Like all social media in 2021, LinkedIn is regularly inundated with users trying to go viral or make a splash with their career ideas. While not nearly as toxic as Facebook or Twitter, while remaining a much more favorable platform, existing (mostly) outside the cultural wars on social media, the flow of attention flows through LinkedIn, assisted by business gurus and influencers . who use the platform to preach the corporate gospel.
While this can set the tone for the web or make you feel like you need to spend a lot of energy “building your brand,” it’s important to ignore it all. This is why you should use LinkedIn as a career development resource, not as a vehicle to promote your professional image.
One meaningful connection is better than 500 superficial
Today’s corporate culture can be distorted by social media, which often makes employees responsible for developing their so-called ‘brands’. (People are not expected to be workers in need of work, but rather professional organizations that should recruit them.)
As a result, there is an unspoken culture of competition on LinkedIn, where users build up as many connections as possible in order to give the appearance of professional popularity. In reality, however, it says nothing about your skills or job opportunities.
Building connections with people you will probably never work with professionally strengthens your superficial brand image much more – whatever that means – than it serves you in any practical sense. Instead, consider ignoring unnecessary platform connection requests. Any legitimately significant relationship may be based on shared professional interests and ambitions. By all means, expand and connect with people you don’t personally know, but try to connect with them more meaningfully and meaningfully. You can then improve your relationship accordingly and see which ones really bear fruit.
Now is not the time to go viral
You are not Richard Branson. No one really expects you to know wisely about the rigor of building innovative marketing strategies or take notes on how to go public. There is some modest bragging in many of the viral posts on LinkedIn, many of which follow a near- exact copy of a project in which a user exults at professional triumph in the face of adversity.
It’s more than okay to post about your successes and failures, but you don’t have to fall into the trap set by influencers and power users of the platform. Instead, consider sharing projects and / or accomplishments that you could include on your resume, rather than long stories of climbing the corporate America ladder.
As a practical matter, a post containing an example of your work is more likely to impress a potential employer than a humorous anecdote about persistence.
Take advantage of new, really useful LinkedIn tools
While over-attention-grabbing posts will certainly keep the LinkedIn conversation going, the platform actually prioritizes getting users to turn to tools to help you notice – features that are useful when creating a dynamic digital resume.
First, add media to your profile to showcase the projects you want to show everyone. Another feature of the early days of the platform that remains important is the support section, which actually talks about what your current and former colleagues think you are bringing to the table. And if you want to further optimize your profile, you can even list your preferred contact topics that will represent your interests to those who want to contact you so that they at least understand if a potential discussion is worth it. This.
Sure, it’s possible to build a career in 2021 without using LinkedIn at all, but for those who still find the platform valuable, there are ways to use it productively without overtly trying to go viral.