Work can be emotional, but should you share how you're feeling? Plus: What's trending the week of Feb. 21 and who to follow now

People often ask what topics they should talk about on LinkedIn. And my answer isn't super helpful: Only you would know the topics that are right for your audience or community. But here's what I do know: Whatever you’re talking about in work settings with colleagues, partners, prospects, etc. — and with the respectful tone you use in those meetings — all of that is gold for LinkedIn.?

In the early days of content on LinkedIn, people took that "what works at work" idea and translated it to a lot of buttoned-up conversations. No doubt, no uncertainty, and no emotions. But the workforce has changed in the last few years. Professionals have embraced the idea that their mental health is impacted by being a different person at home than they are in the office. To use the HR lingo, they have started to bring their “whole selves” into work — and they've done so wherever work takes place, which is often at home. All that blurring has led to colleagues talking to colleagues about struggles, concerns, uncertainty, and more. No surprise, that “whole self” transformation is transforming LinkedIn.

In a recent post , senior creative Jared Wicker shared the story of his “full uncontrollably-crying-in-the-bathroom-at-work-like-a-small-child-in-the-middle-of-the-day honest-to-god mental breakdown” to point out that we are all going through something. And the hashtag #ImNotOK — introduced by CEO and founder of ALLY Energy Katie Mehnert in this post —?led to numerous posts of people sharing what they once would have kept to themselves.?

I’ll be honest, I’m not always comfortable seeing this kind of emotion in my feed. But I’m not always comfortable with it in meetings, either; something I’ve had to learn how to be open to. One thing that has helped me manage that change is watching how the LinkedIn community responds when they experience it.

A couple of weeks ago, Natalie Rose authentically shared the behind-the-camera reality of the emotional challenges she faces as a full-time content creator, tears and all. The post generated 630 comments and 80+ shares; it clearly struck a nerve and I wanted to know more.

Now, it gets sort of meta here: Natalie is a content creator creating content about creating content — but there are takeaways for anyone in any role or industry. As Natalie said: “I would definitely encourage people to talk about [the ups and downs of their jobs] because I feel like they also owe it to a younger generation. If someone wants to become a lawyer or someone wants to become a carpenter, or whatever it is, people should be talking about the emotional strain that can come with that type of work.”

Here’s more of our discussion:

How did you decide that this was something you wanted to talk about? Was it something you thought about for a long time or was it a spontaneous decision?

Natalie: “Actually, I made a video a while ago on TikTok about the emotions of being on social media. And I got destroyed in the comment section. I mean, absolutely destroyed. There were people that were supportive, but the negativity outweighed the positivity in my opinion. And I took it down. And I said, ‘I'm never doing that again. These people don't deserve to know what it is that I'm going through. These people don't deserve to see this side of me if they're not going to be sensitive towards it.’ They don't owe that to me. That was my decision to try and be vulnerable. And it was not the reaction I was hoping I would get.

"I was going through a divorce. I had moved home. I had no money. I was living in a 200 square foot bedroom in a family member's house. I felt in every possible way I was going backwards in my life. It just felt like my whole world was falling apart. It was very, very hard.?

"And then a few weeks ago, my Creator Manager on LinkedIn reached out to me and said, ‘Do you mind making a video of you talking to the camera about the challenges of being on social media?’ And I was just like, ‘This is what I'm comfortable with. I'll just do a post about it, put some photos next to it and then I'll go from there.’ And the response was amazing. I didn't realize how much it impacted people. I was very thankful for it. So I pushed myself and did it.”

What happened after you put up the post? Walk me through how you handled waiting for the responses?

"I turned my notifications off. I did not want to see what notifications were gonna be popping up on my screen or the little number next to the icon. I put my phone away and I took my dog to the dog park. I did something to keep myself busy, because I didn't want to think about it. Because in my mind, it could have gone one of two ways. And I'm so hard on myself that I just assumed it was going to go the other way. I finally came back two hours later and checked and I saw the response. The reaction I was getting was so positive. Such a different experience. It gave me hope that people can be kind.

“I'm so glad that I posted it. I feel like I have this army of people behind me who are also experiencing the same thing and maybe they were equally, if not more scared to make the post that I did. And maybe I could have been that influence for them to feel like it created a safe place for them to talk about it in the comment section. And maybe it inspires them to want to make a vulnerable post for themselves.”

What was your ‘why’? Why take that risk?

"For me it was feeling this obligation that I owed it to myself and to other people, for them to see the hardships of it so it wasn't painting this picture for young girls or even young boys that this life is so perfect and so easy. It's not … There's no guidebook on how to be an influencer or a content creator. You figure it out as you go… I thought I was a tough person. I thought I had thick skin before I became a content creator, but I realized that I don't have as thick of skin as I thought I did.”

How do you know how far to push yourself past your comfort zone and where do you draw the line? How human is too human for a professional platform like Linkedin?

“I think it's for each individual to decide for themselves. They're going to know the boundaries and lines within their company, what they actually can and can't talk about. With me, I'm my own boss, so I can't get fired. But I do feel like people should still be able to have the freedom to talk about the reality of the workplace and what their experiences are or what they're going through or struggling with mentally.?

"Somebody who is working 80 hours a week is a way different kind of hard than what I'm experiencing. Or someone who is sitting at a desk all day. I think it's just so individual and personal for each person but I would definitely encourage them to talk about it because I feel like they also owe it to a younger generation. If someone is wanting to become a lawyer or someone is wanting to become a carpenter, or whatever it is, people should be talking about the emotional strain that can come with that type of work.

"As far as vulnerability goes, I don't think there is a line. I think you should talk about it. As long as you're not damaging or hurting a company then I think it's fine but I'm also from a younger generation where I feel like people are more okay talking about their feelings. Whereas, with my mom and her job, it was always like, you go to work to work. You don't go to work to make friends, and you come home and then you do it all over again. So I'm so thankful the workforce is taking a shift in that sense because I think it's healthier for every individual.

And I'm more willing to work with a dentist, or a hairstylist if they're sharing more personal stuff about their life. That's gonna set you apart from other professionals to where I'm more likely going to go to your practice, or want to connect with you on LinkedIn, or want to work with you. Whereas it would feel very intimidating to work with someone who looks like their life is perfect 24/7. So I think it's cool, from a professional standpoint, if people showcase that stuff because you might relate to more clients, more customers, more people in the long run and it'll benefit you.”?

Here are my takeaways:

1. Let people get to know the real you. You may be surprised at the response you’ll get and where that leads.
2. This is now a part of the workplace conversation. We have to accept these real life experiences and make room for them in our professional dialogue.?
3. Especially in the last two years, employees have had to navigate mental health issues and managers have had to learn to deal with these issues because it’s been a really rough ride. Maybe we were foolish for not making this part of the workplace conversation long ago. So let’s keep it going.

We had two exciting launches today designed to support even more creators in even more ways:

1) Linkedin’s Creator Accelerator Program is coming to India. As part of Linkedin’s $25 million investment into creators, we’re expanding our Creator Accelerator Program to India ???? with a cohort of 200 creators. India is the fastest-growing market on the platform with a robust and engaged creator community.?For those of you in India, applications are open now until March 16th. For more, see Andrei Santalo's article here .

2) The LinkedIn Podcast Network is our first foray into podcasts. But this is about more than audio; the reason we're so excited about it is the opportunity to build community around each episode and each host. I'll write more about this in an upcoming Creator Weekly, but check out Jessi Hempel's post here for more details or JP Mangalindan 's article in Business Insider . ... And for even more audio goodness, be sure to RSVP for upcoming audio events like Jon Youshaei 's Creator Office Hours Live ; he'll be on with Jonathan Javier, Austin Belcak, Quentin Allums, and Tiffany Yu.

Here are the topics generating attention over the last 7 days. These give you clues about what the audience on LinkedIn is looking for; use the insights to help you with your own posting ideas. Anything with a ?? is likely to continue to trend for another 2 weeks.?

?? With more employees working remotely, West Coast tech companies in California, Oregon and Washington are increasingly hiring outside the region for higher educated white-collar occupations. Do you think this trend will continue? Weigh in to share your insights and opinions.

?? Home ownership dreams deferred The housing boom combined with supply chain issues and rising prices has made home ownership less attainable for many. What are you seeing in the current U.S. housing market? Share your thoughts on this national trend.?

??? It’s Engineers Week. This week marks a celebration of how engineers build a better world. Use the hashtag #WhatEngineersDo to highlight the work of engineers who are making a difference.

Expected to trend: Will there be fewer meetings planned in the future world of work? Are there benefits to declaring certain days meeting free ? What’s the best way to introduce these days and how many make sense? Join the conversation and share your perspective.

Each week, I’ll highlight creators who are initiating meaningful conversations on LinkedIn. These members use a variety of tools — from live video to polls — to nurture their audience. See if any of their actions work for you or engage with them directly by leaving a comment and sharing your insights.

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2. In this post , marketing strategist Annick-Ange Logmo shares her take on a unique example of the kind of collabs currently trending in the luxury space.
3. Moderator and communications specialist Aishwarya Singh draws on her experience as an emcee to offer this advice on public speaking.
4. Former salesman Ross Pomerantz , who pivoted his career to comedy, shares why he keeps pushing through those tough moments in this post .??
5. Product design manager Saptarshi Prakash shares this “quit-story ”, one of the more memorable tales of his professional life.