My 3 year journey from 50 views to 50,000 on LinkedIn

November 11 is my 3rd year anniversary to the first LinkedIn post I ever wrote - Why Should You Have “E-mail Writing” Skills?

I left my corporate job in Oct 2014, believing that I will spend next few months doing things that I like which I never really got time to do, such as travelling to some dream locations, teaching at kindergarten, working in rural areas in development sector, or just cooking for a change, and discovering things that I might enjoy before starting a new job.

I took a financially and emotionally well planned decision. I knew that I will have to survive on my savings for next few months or may be an year or may be longer. But I was determined, and thankfully my close friends and family especially my brother were huge supportive of my decision - which for me was a huge morale booster.

1. I planned a trip to top 5 cities I always wanted to visit- those were not foreign places- those were my own Indian cities which I had always heard of a lot, but have never gotten the chance to visit - Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Bhubaneswar and Guvahati. I started from Delhi, covered a few places, and got back to my hometown without finishing the list. Reason - I got super overwhelmed in this process. It was not as easy as I had thought it would be. The food, the temperature, the traveling sickness, the hotel rooms - it was full of too much of change and surprises.

So was it a failure? No! I set out on to something, tried, enjoyed, and left. It was my first success in failure. I was no more thinking of going to those places. Full stop.

2. At my hometown, I taught toddlers for a few weeks. It was super fun for first few days, but slowly I started getting bored. I realized I cannot spend life teaching someone how to draw an A. Though it’s the most important and fundamental step of human literacy, I found I am not an ideal fit for that job. I have now humongous amount of respect for people who do this job. Again, an important lesson about a fantasy I always had - being a kindergarten teacher. I enjoy spending time with kids to relax and laugh with them, but being with them full time might not be a great idea for me! Full stop.

3. I came back to Delhi to realize some of my other dreams, on top of which was writing!!!!! And that’s when I had my first corporate affair with a platform we lovingly call “LinkedIn”.

I was too skeptical about my writing-mania though. I had many questions and inhibitions that time - Can I write? If yes, what should I write about? Will anyone read if I write? Will people laugh at me? Am I old enough to start writing on LinkedIn? and so on.

In my last corporate job, I got the opportunity to read and write just hundreds of emails on a daily basis. I used to read every single email I was copied in with a lot of attention and interest as I saw emails as a great tool to one’s professional success. The power of email used to always intrigue me. I thought of putting my learning on email writing in my first LinkedIn post - Why Should You Have “E-mail Writing” Skills?

I received modest response on my article from friends and colleagues across border. As of today, exactly after 3 years from publishing date, that post has roughly 400 views, with 20 likes and 4 comments ie 5% Like Rate and 1% Comment Rate, and 133 views per year or 1 view every 3rd day so far! NOT BAD!!!!! ;-)

Today I have 30+ articles on LinkedIn, with 3 being promoted by LinkedIn itself, and published on various LinkedIn channels and international platform (BBN Times), and “Dear Recruiters - Stop Asking These Silly Interview Questions!” with 50,000+ views in less than 50 days on LinkedIn. My highest Like Rate on a post “The Dream of Digital India can come true at your Doorstep!” so far is 70%, fourteen times higher (5%) than the first post. Not bad again! My least visited LinkedIn post “On This Thanksgiving, Say "Thanks" to Your Friends & Foes” has roughly 50 views.

My biggest learnings from this journey of 50 views to 50,000 on my writing are-

• It’s never too early or too late - whatever you want, just do it. Be ambitious, but not greedy. Plan for future, but don’t stop enjoying the present.
• The issues that I face in my personal or professional life are not unique - people across culture, custom, color, cuisine, countries face same issues. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. You don’t have to hide in corner and crib about it. Do seek right, honest mentors, and take adequate steps to improving the situation.
• Success doesn’t necessarily mean attaining something tangible. Getting out of your comfort zone is a first step to getting success - if there indeed a word as success exists. Make plans and take steps to realize plans - and most importantly, be responsible for your decisions.
• Don’t always try to gain something from everything you do. Try to give back sometimes. You are unique in your strengths, and there is at least someone out there who will thank you for your support!
• Last but not least, there is always a first time. Three years back it was my first time on LinkedIn. I was a new fish in the pond. I was afraid of people’s opinion. I was shy. Today I am closer to being myself without being so shy, scared, hesitant. It’s a most beautiful feeling! I have miles to go, but I am more confident than ever! :-)

Good luck with your journeys! Please share your feedback, comments, thoughts or anything related! :-)

Cheers,

Swati