5 Tips for a LinkedIn Summer

The weather is turning in New York City, and winter depression is subsiding. I'm noticing an emotional change in my customers, my colleagues, and my friends. It's that time of year that everyone wishes they hadn't taken the winter off from the gym, and that they hadn't let the first quarter slip by quite so quickly. With your renewed summertime energy, I'm going to outline five tips, five small things you can do in less than a total of 2.5 hours, to feel more productive and successful this summer.

1. Prepare for your day, with zero effort

Wouldn't it be great if like magic LinkedIn would send you a morning digest of the meetings you have that day, who is attending, if their company has been mentioned in the news, and ways to effortlessly be relevant and conversational with them? Download the latest version of LinkedIn's Connected App (or on Android). To set this up correctly, you need to go to LinkedIn.com and sync your calendars and other sources of contacts under the Connections tab.  My favorite part: 15 minutes before your meeting, a push notification that helps you get to know the people you're about to meet. 

Time to set-up: <10 minutes

2. Generate professional momentum

The sun is out, and you're likely feeling happier and more confident. If you haven't published in long-form on LinkedIn just yet, like I am right now, give it a shot. This is a great time of year to build your personal brand and professional momentum. You may not think of yourself as a writer, but publishing on LinkedIn is not about great writing, it's about sharing your knowledge and insights in a professional context so that we can learn from one another. Putting yourself out there can be intimidating, but you will almost certainly be floored with how supportive and genuinely interested your network will be in what you have to say. (And who knows, you may uncover a new skill and passion you never knew you had!) 

Time to write: ~1 hour

3. Create trajectory & velocity in your career

The world is speeding up. Professionals are taking tours of duty as opposed to spending a lifetime on a career escalator, as Reid Hoffman and Ben Casnocha put it in their book The Alliance. The emotional change of Spring and Summer makes us more social and creates more opportunities to network. Find a few events to attend and send emails to a few connections and colleagues to have coffee with. You've built up your LinkedIn network over the years, but now it's time to nurture those relationships, and explore the opportunities that exist within it. I'm not saying leave your job, not at all, but I am suggesting it's time to explore and break free of the head-down-at-my-desk mentality that generally finds its way into our winter rhythm. 

Time to reach out: 15 minutes

4. Be selfless

The world is full of professionals with their own agendas and their own performance goals. Sometimes we spend too much time asking for things than giving and acknowledging others. Use your LinkedIn network a few times a month to congratulate someone, send a thank you note, or my personal favorite: send fan mail to someone you admire/aspire to be like. Don't be shy, if you are genuine in your effort, you might be surprised at the response.

Time to connect: 2 minutes each time

5. Be thoughtful about your aspirations 

What job do you aspire to have three jobs from now? Who do you aspire to be like? What do you aspire to achieve? What is your personal mission? Block an hour on your calendar to really think through these questions and outline the skills and types of jobs you would need to get there. Here is an exercise from Ryan Allis that can guide you through it (skip to the Life Purpose exercise on Slide 11). As you do this, use LinkedIn for your research, but also think about your network and who can be your champion(s) to help you achieve the potential you see in yourself. The sooner you answer those questions, the sooner your daily decisions will emulate the path you want to be on. 

Time to plan: ~1 hour 

These quick activities, while small, are what I would call productive tasks. They are not one-and-done efforts, but rather a small upfront investment of your time, that will pay dividends time and time again. You will be more prepared for your meetings, you will be seen as a thought leader, you will nurture your relationships, you will create new ones, and you will be on the path to a career you are truly passionate about. 

Have a great LinkedIn Summer!