The Worst Time To Use LinkedIn
J.T. O'Donnell
Founder & CEO, Work It DAILY | Board of Directors, McCoy | Career & Professional Development | Job Search | HR & Recruiting | Employer Branding | Recruitment Marketing | Talent Management | Executive Coaching
LinkedIn currently has over 500 million user profiles. However, it's estimated that less than half of them use the platform regularly. Which means, roughly 250 million professionals have their LinkedIn profile in 'set-it-&-forget-it' mode.
You're Not An Employee, You're A Business-of-One
The problem with ignoring your LinkedIn profile is you're essentially failing to maintain a critical component to long-term career success. Today, every job is temporary. We shouldn't think of ourselves as employees who will stay with a company for decades. Instead, we have to embrace the fact we are businesses-of-one who serve a customer that, at any time, could decide not to use our services anymore.
[NOTE: Be sure to check out P.S. at the end of this post.]
Your LinkedIn Profile Is The Website For Your Business-of-One
If a company in your town decided to not invest in keeping its marketing up and it eventually went out of business, would you feel sorry for it? It's not likely. You understand it was the business' job to make sure it used marketing to ensure it had enough customer relationships in place to stay open. Well, the same applies to you. Just because you have a job you like right now, doesn't mean you'll still have it tomorrow. Your business-of-one needs to keep its marketing up to ensure should you need a new or different customer (a/k/a employer) unexpectedly, you can find one quickly. Which leads to my point...
The Worst Time To Use LinkedIn Is When You're Desperate
Sadly, way too many professionals ignore their use of LinkedIn until they are suddenly in a tough career situation and need to find a new opportunity - fast. Because they failed to keep their profile current, share content on a regular basis, and build and maintain an active online network of peers, they find themselves having to start from scratch. Had they been consistent in their usage of LinkedIn, they would have been able to immediately mobilize the power of the social media platform to find their next opportunity.
How To Make A Habit Out Of LinkedIn
The solution is to learn the right way to use LinkedIn. In fact, right now is a particularly good time because LinkedIn just released a huge user interface update. If you've noticed, a lot has changed on LinkedIn. Learning about all the new features and the best way to leverage them is the perfect way to re-engage with the platform. From there, you can start to schedule daily activities that will ensure you are maintaining your presence on LinkedIn in a meaningful way. With just ten minutes a day, you could be leveraging the power of LinkedIn to ensure your business-of-one is marketing itself wisely.
Still Not Convinced? Consider This...
Economic recessions are cyclical. We are due for one in the next few years. If you were working during the great recession of 2008-2009, you know millions of professionals lost their jobs. Those that are maintaining their profiles on LinkedIn and building strong peer networks will find it much easier to land a new job if they become negatively impacted by the next recession.
In short, if you don't want to have any career regrets, it's time you built your daily strategy for leveraging LinkedIn.
P.S. - If you took the time to read this post... I have a reward for you. At Work It Daily (the #1 provider of online career development courses), we just updated our video course, The LinkedIn Plan, to teach people all the new features. You can save 20% on this online video course with the discount code: LIPLANJT.
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Business of one..I like that..great way of thinking, kinda like you against the world or an Army of 1
Partner, Investor, MB Alekso Namai.
7 年Doing business without advertising is like winking at a girl in the dark. You know what you are doing, but nobody else does.
Public Affairs Specialist at the U. S. Department of Energy's Office of Environmental Management
7 年"Business of One," says it all. Thanks for the reminder that, "regularly scheduled maintenance" will help keep your "vehicle" running longer and operational when needed most.
Certified Virtual Assistant ? Collaborating with small business owners to reduce chaos & grow their bottom line?
7 年AHA moments come from the simplest of statements. Today I have two: - Today every job is temporary - We are a business of one Awesome mind set shifting statements! Thank you!
Actively seeking any position in the fashion industry, after working in other fields I have decided to go where my passion truly lies
7 年There are so many parts that are worth commenting on, so starting with the idea of being a business of one-spot on. The days of huge conglomerate companies needing the same marketing staff for years are gone. Sad but true, job stability is a thing of the past in most fields not only PR and marketing. Also, I literally work for one person, myself. Yes I am freelanced by many different companies but if I don't maintain and update my Linkedin account, there lies a risk of becoming a business of none! Loss of future career expansion and a possible negative reputation. Everyone has busy lives, but if effort was made to create your account, use it! Not using it may make employers think tasks won't get done.