How I grew my network on LinkedIn in just 6 months and why?

Joey Stutson

Leadership Facilitator / Public Speaker / LinkedIn Author

June 18th, 2024

LinkedIn ran a campaign #ThisIsSuccess theme a few years ago. I want to celebrate how writing on the LinkedIn Publishing platform has made me a better writer. What better way to promote other people and winning brands than to share a success story and express gratitude.

When I started writing in April 2024, I had just 8,000 Followers. It took me a few months to get to 10,000, and then it took another four weeks to reach 11,000. And in the past five weeks? I have been able to see a huge reach of people reading my content, providing me with new relationships and friends who are passionate about what I am passionate about.

I have not arrived, not who I want to be yet, but I am growing.

It started on a flight to St. Louis when I picked up the book, The Authority Advantage, by Adam Witty @CEO of Forbes Books Rusty Shelton Chairman at Zilker Media.

Based on those shifts, Adam and Rusty knew they needed to write a book less focused on marketing tactics and more on an urgent pivot that leaders need to make to accelerate something that has become harder and harder to build—trust.

Two key things have changed about the way trust is built:

1. Your audience (potential customers, talent, partners, etc.) is more skeptical than they have ever been...of everything.
2. Your audience doesn't trust your company, institution, or non-profit anymore (a recent Gallup study shows trust in entities is at an all-time low)...but they are willing to trust YOU—if you are visible to them in an authentic, credible, and, ideally, impact-driven way.

There book is entirely focused on helping leaders—particularly servant leaders—get over the 'throw-up-a-bit-in-your-mouth' gut reaction to phrases like 'thought leadership' or 'personal branding' and understand that thoughtful, intentional visibility with a focus on teaching is a crucial component of modern servant leadership.

Today, the less visible you are as a leader, the less you serve those around you, be they team members, customers, or those who can be positively impacted by your message.

Now, I am able to reach people in my company and many others with inspiring content to help them with their work/passion.

"People can’t trust leaders they don’t know. If you’re only leading behind the scenes or behind the corporate brand, you are likely less effective when it comes to accelerating trust for your organization."

"Modern servant leadership requires leaders to flip a key tenet of the previous servant leadership model—rather than serving only behind the scenes, you must also serve out front as the starting point in building trust with people inside and outside your organization."

The good news?

In their words, "When you do this, you can make an impact at scale and give your company an unfair advantage."

The better news?

In their words, "As you'll read about (or listen to!) in Adam's book, he doesn't want you to be the message—just the messenger."

What's in it for you?

I really needed to read this book because of the way I grew up. I lacked confidence and always took the back seat for fear of coming across prideful or like an egomaniac. In the process I did not use the gifts I was given to inspire and help promote other leaders.

Want to know how I did it? Well, me too, so I decided to try and find out.

Theory of Weak Ties

In 1973, Stanford sociologist Mark Granovetter showed just how important casual acquaintances are.“ Your weak ties connect you to networks that are outside of your own circle,” explained Dr. Granovetter in a 2022 interview . “They give you information and ideas you otherwise would not have gotten.”

In 1973, Stanford sociologist Mark Granovetter revolutionized our understanding of social networks with a groundbreaking discovery. "Your weak ties connect you to networks that are outside of your own circle," Dr. Granovetter explained in a 2022 interview.

"They give you information and ideas you otherwise would not have gotten."

Granovetter’s research, which formed the basis of his doctoral dissertation completed at Harvard in 1970, was supported by a survey among a dozen or so other important studies. This work culminated in his now-seminal paper, fundamentally altering how we perceive the value of casual acquaintances in our personal and professional lives. “The Strength of Weak Ties.”

When I first started publishing on LinkedIn, the platform allowed me to refine my new upcoming book continuously by watching engagement and comments. Initially, I wasn't particularly enthused. It's not that I lacked interest in writing; on the contrary, I had been writing on my own with moderate success.

I had been reposting my articles on LinkedIn, which garnered a fair amount of views, but I wasn't very prolific.

The real shift came thanks to reading The Authority Advantage. They suggested that I use the LinkedIn Publishing platform for my content. Being somewhat skeptical, I initially dismissed their advice, but their book can be quite persuasive. So, in April of 2024, I decided to repurpose my edits and constantly refine my content. Then, I waited to see the results...

It was hardly a raging torrent of readers, but it didn't do too badly. The Lesson of the Big Op did 1000 views, 2 comments and 0 shares.

Within a few months, the average number of viewers per article grew from hundreds to thousands. I am not a Linkedin Top Voice yet but I am enjoying beign in my purpoze zone to create Real Life Inspiration.

And all the time, my number of Followers continued to steadily build. I hope to part of the?LinkedIn Top Voice ? Ryan Roslansky community one day to inspire more leaders.

Then in May of 2024 I finally realized my story like yours has a purpose. Watch the news interview, of my story, The Ties that Bind Us to learn my why for writing about lessons of inspiration. Thanks to AncestryDNA @Deb Liu I have answers to my lifelong fight for family.

What are people saying about my book that is not published yet?

Throughout this journey, my number of followers steadily increased. The milestones were quickly surpassed, and I rocketed past 10,000 followers recently.

Now, as I work on refining my new book, I’m taking a different approach. I'm sharing content free, through my newsletter. This allows me to gather real-time feedback and stories from my readers, helping to shape and improve the book as it develops. This method not only engages my audience but also ensures that the final product is something truly valuable and well-crafted.

"Feedback is the breakfast of champions." Dr. Ken Blanchard

By doing this, I'm not just writing a book; I'm building a community around it. I'm involving readers in the process, inviting their insights and experiences, and creating a book that resonates deeply with them. This journey of writing and sharing has been incredibly rewarding, and I'm excited to see how this new approach will further enrich the book and its impact.

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed the article, please SHARE, SHARE, SHARE! (and maybe even LIKE, COMMENT, or TWEET)!

I have c.11,000 Followers on LinkedIn, and you can FOLLOW ME via this link to try and win a free copy of my?book when it comes out.