The surefire way to kill your career.

Meet Rahul.

Rahul is an ambitious professional.

He is eager to stand out on LinkedIn.

Determined to impress recruiters.

He stumbled upon a well-written content of a professional.

The person was in the same niche as Rahul.

The achievements and language felt perfect.

The engagements on the post were backing this thought.

Rahul decided to copy large chunks.

Rahul decided to copy regularly.

He did not even bother to tweak it.

His profile views increased.

His follower count increased.

He even received connection requests from top voices.

At first, it seemed like a brilliant shortcut.

But his excitement expired soon.

This is the story of a professional who learned about the

dangers of copying content on LinkedIn.

And he learned it through a very hard way.

I am going to share with you the dangers of copying content

in today's edition of Good Luck and Good Growth.

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The First Warning

Saturday Afternoon.

Rahul’s phone buzzed.

It was an email from LinkedIn Support.

Someone had flagged his profile for copying content.

The email gave him a feeling that he had never faced.

The feeling that forms pits in your stomach.

As he read further, he realized the repercussions of his theft.

His account might face suspension if the complaint was verified.

The U.S. and many other countries have copyright laws in place.

This set of laws is collectively called

DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act).

These laws strictly prohibit content theft.

Hefty penalties of up to $150,000 per violation can be imposed.

How is this applicable to copying content on LinkedIn?

Content found online, with or without a copyright notice,

is automatically protected under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).

Platforms like LinkedIn follow DMCA and take any violation of this act seriously.

Violators risk having their accounts restricted, suspended, or even

permanently removed.

If you are impacted by this, then LinkedIn

offers processes for reporting stolen content and addressing copyright concerns.

Aside from legal and platform-related consequences,

copying violates ethical standards.

Stealing someone's hard work and labor can never be justified.

(Source: https://www.dhirubhai.net/legal/copyright-policy)

It raises one question for sure:

Is risking a lawsuit or losing your LinkedIn profile worth it?

The Identity Crisis

Rahul thought hard about the e-mail he received.

He felt that if things didn't go his way,

he would lose all his professional credibility.

He starts scanning the copied content he used.

He realized something important.

Even if he evades the report, his copied profile wasn’t truly his.

It lacked authenticity and failed to reflect

his unique achievements or personality.

Instead of differentiating himself,

he had painted a generic, uninspiring picture.

This didn’t connect with anyone who read it.

A personal brand should reflect who you are.

Your distinct skills.

Your personality.

Your professional value.

Copying content from others might sound good.

But fails to represent your authentic story.

It was William Shakespeare who said:

"So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,

So long lives this, and this gives life to thee."

which when paraphrased means,

that you become immortal through your writings.

Then why do you want to throw away this chance at immortality?

A Close Call

Days later, Rahul received a call from the recruiter.

It began as an exciting opportunity.

It quickly turned awkward when the recruiter started talking about his posts.

Rahul was nervous. He did not remember.

"Are you sure this is your content?" the recruiter asked.

The recruiter was suspicious.

Rahul stumbled over his words.

This was enough for the recruiter to politely end the call.

Rahul knew he had lost the chance.

He had undermined his credibility.

But Rahul's damages were not going to stop there.

Damaging His Reputation

Word spread quickly.

The MD noticed Rahul’s copied content.

He mentioned it to their mutual network.

“If he can’t write his own profile," the MD thought.

"Can we trust him to handle important tasks?”.

Rahul’s integrity was in question.

Even the current employer was not sure of Rahul's abilities.

The SEO Fallout

Rahul attempted to rebuild his profile.

But he noticed a decline in visibility.

LinkedIn’s algorithms and search engines had

flagged his account for duplicate content.

His profile got buried beneath others in search results.

The content that had once boosted his presence was now working against him.

And it was too late to repair the damage.

Starting Fresh

Rahul had hit a dead end.

His digital and real life got intertwined.

Starting fresh was the only option.

He deleted the profile.

He spent time reflecting on his genuine achievements.

Instead of shortcuts, he:

-- Poured effort into crafting LinkedIn Leadership posts

-- Showcased his unique skills and personality.

-- Reached out to mentors for feedback.

-- Researched the companies he admired.

-- Tailored his profile to their needs.

The results were slow.

But were steady.

Recruiters began noticing his authenticity.

And Rahul regained his confidence.

Confidence is something that not many lucky people can have.

Rahul realized that true success doesn't come by mimicking others.

It’s about standing tall in your own story.

No matter how imperfect or unfinished it may seem.

With renewed confidence, Rahul hit "apply" on his next job application.

Knowing well that he was now more than just another profile.

He was authentic, and that made him unforgettable.

PS:

If you have read this to the end, then thank you.

This was a case study on how copying content can bring

certain doom to your professional status.

Until next time, this is Manikk Gupta ,

wishing you good luck and good growth!