What’s in a Linkedin profile?

I’ve always had an aversion to LinkedIn. It’s mainly because of the way people use the ‘professional networking platform.’ For example, some things I dislike are, when people use LinkedIn to post

• Plagiarized content for likes
• WhatsApp forwards as if Facebook and Twitter aren’t enough,
• About ‘celebrating a teammate’ — something that I believe has a significant impact if done on a company’s Slack group or forum 

And a lot more. If you don’t understand what I’m talking about, check out Crap on LinkedIn on Twitter.

I’ve never been a fan of any of this. That’s why I was never active on LinkedIn. But now I’ve changed my mind. 

I’ve come to realize that LinkedIn is one of the most powerful platforms to build connections, engage, and share knowledge. Sure, there’s a lot of ‘noise’ too. But all I’m emphasizing is to use LinkedIn the right way, keeping the best interests of people in mind. 

• Be honest
• Avoid spamming
• Value the reader’s time

So here are some best ways to use LinkedIn:

Updating your profile:

• Add your profile headline. Avoid jargons. Be honest about what describes you best. The idea is to induce curiosity among your prospective recruiters.
• Elaborate your work under each of your job roles. Trust me; you’ll feel good when you do this. 
• Add courses or certifications you’ve completed. I don’t believe this is a direct reflection of a person’s abilities. It’s just eye candy.

For a noiseless timeline:

• Unfollow people who continuously spam your timeline with irrelevant information. Don’t be afraid to do that. Think of it as the KonMari method for LinkedIn.

Sharing knowledge:

• Choose one or two topics to post on to build your expertise. Posting about random topics will make people think you’re a mere noise-maker. 
• Share personal learnings related to these topics. Write as if you talk.
• If your post is long, make sure the first line sets the context and makes people curious to read more.
• If you want to share an interesting article, post just an excerpt from the article. Add the link to the article in the comments box. Posts with links in the comments box have higher views and engagement.
• Use the right tags in a post for maximum reach among your target audience. LinkedIn’s algorithm is powerful enough to provide widely popular tag suggestions. You can use that too.

I’m still experimenting and learning. I’ll try adding a few more points to the list later. 

Final thoughts? LinkedIn is useful as long as you know where to draw the line.