"It's Not LinkedIn, it's You." Why I'm Breaking Up With These 5 Types of LinkedIn Connections Forever

You may have noticed that I've spent a little bit of time away from LinkedIn.

I've been getting over a terrible breakup, reminiscing about the good times, wondering if you could change and be the connection that I've always longed for.

I've even spontaneously endorsed you, hoping to revive the camaraderie that began after that first inmail.

But, if you fall into one of the 5 categories below, there's something that you need to know...

...my LinkedIn connection, I'm breaking up with you.  

1. The Aggressive Pitcher 

If you are sending a sales pitch the second that somebody clicks on 'accept request', you're doing it wrong. 

If you're sending a generic sales pitch, you need to pause before you pitch. 

And if you're a salesperson using blog posts to spam your entire network about your new service or product, just hand over your LinkedIn license immediately and please see yourself out. 

I've said this before, but I'll say it again. Treat your connections like gold. These are the people that will cheer you on and have your back on your road to success. But, you need to respect their time and energy.

Spamming people on LinkedIn is like a modern version of cold calling. Does it work sometimes? Of course! But is there a much more effective long-term strategy to engage with your audience, definitely. 

LinkedIn is an incredible channel to build relationships, but to be successful, you must be useful, be considerate, and if you can't be either, be quiet. 

2. The Catty Commenter

Since I started writing on LinkedIn, I have been called every name you can imagine. I've been told my profile photo is inappropriate, that I Photoshop my photos, I'm trying to be Kim Kardashian (seriously), and worst of all, that the only reason that anybody reads my posts is because I am young and blonde. Often, the worst culprits of negative comments have come from women. 

Strong, beautiful women inspire me every day. I have learned, through the example of my female colleagues, that women are unstoppable forces with unlimited potential. I've witnessed such incredible things happening when women support women, so comments that echo chauvinistic sentiments are particularly frustrating when they come from women. 

3. The Social Interactions Sheriff 

I have roughly 17,000 connections on LinkedIn, but my news feed is perfectly customized for me. How? If one of my connections is posting content that is inappropriate, I report it. If it's too personal or irrelevant, I unfollow them. There are so many ways to customize your experience via your settings. A big change for me happened when I started following companies, news sources, and influencers. 

If you are policing the updates of others, ask yourself what YOU can do to improve your own experience. Are you publishing blog posts? Are you following people and companies that you want to learn from? Are you sharing curated content that your network will benefit from? 

Being active on LinkedIn doesn't mean just logging in and lurking. Your time is much better spent exploring resources and gaining knowledge than it is scrolling in search of offensive content. 

4. THE MOST VIEWED LINKEDIN USER, TOP 1%ER, WITH TEN BAZILLION CONNECTIONS!!!!!!!!!

If your profile view ranking is on your business card, you've gone too far.

I've read profile summaries that have made me squirm because they are so braggy. There is a fine line between confidence and smugness.

Talk about your awards and accomplishments, but think about your audience. Would you be speaking the way your profile reads at a networking event? If not, it's time for a revision, without the vanity metrics in your name.

You aren't a baseball card, I don't need to know all your stats before we've even chatted. Let your success speak for itself, and ease up on the CAPS LOCK. 

5. The Casa-Hell-Nova 

Recently, I had a former press secretary send me a full description of himself that looked like it was copied and pasted from a dating website, along with a wink emoji and a sultry selfie. Dude, what were you thinking?

The only picking up that I plan on doing on LinkedIn is new content marketing whitepapers, so save your charm for other platforms where you won't risk becoming part of a blog post :) 

LinkedIn is changing and growing every day.

The ones that sour the platform are not by the ones that share their bikini photos or silly memes, they are the ones that gloat, interrupt, harass, and criticize.

If you want to maximize your LinkedIn experience, just like any relationship, you need to listen, learn, encourage and appreciate each and every connection. 

Want more tips on maximizing your Linkedin experience? Check out my other tips now!  https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/how-i-landed-my-dream-job-two-weeks-top-5-linkedin-tips-alexis