Linkedin is my long-term career asset

Welcome to episode 3 of season 4.

Just when I was adjusting to the “warm” weather (in Chicago winters, anything above 30 is glorious), we’re back at it again with the snow.

This week I want to talk about something I seem to never shut up about: Linkedin!

Two things can be true here: Yes, I treat it like a long-term career asset, but I also just see it as a social space. If you’ve seen some of my posts, you know.

Let’s jump in.

Linkedin is one of my favorite social platforms. It serves a solid purpose; delivering content and expanding networks.

Here are a few reasons why I see Linkedin as a long-terms career asset:

1. Sometimes, visibility beats just being qualified: Post content, comment on posts, react to posts. Stay top of mind for people. This is a networking opportunity. If you don’t share what you’re doing, your POVs, your wins, your challenges, how will anyone know what you’re up to? I’m not saying that it’s a requirement to share, and I’m not saying you need to be posting everyday (….guilty. sorry about that…), but I am saying it’s necessary to engage in some way if you’re looking for opportunities to grow your network, get a job, become the authority on a topic, or to just become someone people turn to for advice.

2. A solid Linkedin presence compounds over time: It’s a social network after all! Every point of engagement (posts, comments, reactions, articles) increases your surface area for opportunity. Think of it as relationship-building, at scale.

3. Top of mind vs. On the market: Perfect bullet points on a resume don’t necessarily mean you’ll land the job. I would argue opportunities go to people who also are easily remembered. That’s probably how some people learn of new jobs when they aren’t even looking; a colleague or someone in their network reaches out because they thought that person would be perfect for the role. Sure, this could happen because those two people are friend too, but it also could happen because that individual remained visible out in their network, in whatever way that might’ve taken shape.

4. You control your career narrative: It goes beyond job titles. Instead of being defined by a title or role, you get to highlight on Linkedin what else matters to you: interests, strengths, projects, values, and if you’re like me, random POVs and millenialisms (if you know, you know).

5. Build your own lil corner of the internet: Build a warm network. Not a cold audience. After all, someone has made the decision to Follow/Connect with you (more on my take on that here), so you might as well capitalize on that. It’s nice seeing familiar faces (and new ones!) participate in conversations that you might have initiated. I love especially when things become suuuuper relatable (2016 nostalgia anyone???). Hey, we’re people, not robots!

Start a new conversation, share a POV, or maybe you’re not ready to start posting on Linkedin. That’s cool; participate in other ways: react to job postings so your network sees the post, comment on your colleagues’ posts when they celebrate a work anniversary. Whatever the case may be, stay visible; it will help in the long-run.

Being qualified might get you in the room, but staying visible gets you invited back.

Thanks for reading and for being here. I don’t take for granted that you care what I have to say. Or even if you don’t care, and you’re still here; thanks for being a fan anyway. ❣️

All my links are here. Let’s connect!