Why I Quit LinkedIn (Twice) as a Beginner.

For a beginner, LinkedIn can be overwhelming.

I remember going through the guru rabbit hole. Big creators like Lara Acosta, Justin Welsh or Jasmin Ali? make the 'LinkedIn' dream seem possible - but before I could make an impact, I was paralysed with information overload. Therefore, time has taught me that success on LinkedIn (for a beginner) requires an elaborately simplistic approach that not only keeps you motivated but will exponentially progress your skill level.

So, if I were to go back in time to when I first started writing on LinkedIn then, this is how I would have begun my education to circumvent the inevitable pitfalls that make beginners quit.

Be patient for results. But impatient for action. ~ Dan Beverly

You're going to be bad and that's ok.

Because of perfectionism, I had only posted around 10 times on LinkedIn despite being on the platform for about a year. I wish I had adopted a better mindset.

Perfectionism is a form of egoism. It will cost you time. Whenever I'd post, I'd stress about trivial details when I should have just written as much content as possible. I'd binge-watch YouTube videos about personal branding for weeks whilst taking minimal action. Creating content was far from my priorities. To fix this, I had to become comfortable with being bad at writing.

Post. Post. Post. When you're a beginner, nobody cares. The more you post, the more data you collect. This is valuable because you'll start to notice what stinks and what doesn't -the hallmark of a true expert

Create more than you consume.

Choose 1 guru.

Less is more. Choose one guru's philosophy of doing LinkedIn and stick with it. Execute their strategy for at least 30 days before you bombard yourself with more information. A single creator rarely contradicts herself. Focus is a game-changer.

You don't have to buy a course. Look at what your favourite creator is doing, implement it in your style and iterate from there. Months ago, I bought a $100 personal branding course and I felt scammed. I gave someone $100 to tell me to comment 200 times a day. And what's worse? I didn't have confidence in the material because I heard other gurus give conflicting advice. So I got confused and I gave up.

The new information-rich economy may be doing you more harm than good. Be selective with whom you decide to listen to (and especially, to whom you decide to give your money).

Listen to one expert at a time.

It's useful to know why you're here.

Not every beginner joins LinkedIn at level 0. You may already have a specific skill set, experience or an offer. If this is you, then your priorities should shift.

The inexperienced beginner focuses on learning the platform. The experienced beginner does the same except their entire profile should centred around looking attractive to their ICP (ideal customer profile). Popular creator Dan Koe's philosophy appeals to the inexperienced beginner because he promises that you can get paid to post about anything you want. But if you're focused on, for example, client acquisition, then it's useful to just focus on authoritative content and cold outreach. You could also use a mixture of both. Any path is fine. There's not a single correct methodology.

So, think about your goals. Do you want a personal brand? Do you want clients? Do you want a job? Do you want a personal brand that gets you inbound leads from prospective clients and impresses your future employers?

Take some time to reflect on your aspirations.

Copying doesn't work (all the time).

Imitating others is great for learning but be careful. The context of someone else's success is rarely publicised.

A creator's external achievements rarely tell the whole story. A content strategy at 0 followers differs greatly from one at 100k followers. When I decided to be a ghostwriter, I tried to imitate the best ghostwriters on the platform. I saw a profile with over 10k followers and his profile said, "Ghostwriter for CEOs and consultants". I decided to do a similar thing but nobody cared. I was just another self-proclaimed ghostwriter. If you're going to copy, ask yourself if it is a logical action.

Don't copy blindly. Everything you do should make sense for your situation. This is difficult because there is no such thing as a 'successful beginner' you can copy.

Make sure everything you do is intentional.

So you don't waste your time.

LinkedIn is too important.

You're at the right place. When I was inactive, a voice in my head told me that I was missing a big opportunity. This is a platform that rewards you for networking and improving your writing (two of the most lucrative activities you can partake in).

With an active LinkedIn profile, you can:

• Position yourself as an authority in your industry
• Network with your ideal ICP
• Build a personal brand
• Find your dream job

It's the ultimate professional network with over 830 million members with its members possessing the highest average household income of any social media platform.

Starting something new is always difficult. This article was spontaneous. I woke up this morning and thought to myself, "I should write my first LinkedIn article". There was a bit of resistance at first but I got into a flow state and here I am, 12 hours later with a 900-word article posted on LinkedIn.

Trust the process.