Something is holding you back. I don’t know what it is. I think you’re fascinating and you have some impressive accomplishments. But when I look at your LinkedIn profile I barely recognize that fascinating person I know.
Perhaps your Mother taught you not to brag. Maybe you feel more comfortable with a resume-like third person LinkedIn profile. BORING! That resume tells me next to nothing about the person I just met – not really. It does tell me where you worked and maybe even what your job titles were but where is that engineer who is passionate about the new product at his company and even made me – the totally non-technical person – want to know more and brag about knowing you and having a connection to you? And why is it that some otherwise modest people feel comfortable with the resume-style “Award-winning leader.” If you can’t “own it” in the first person, don’t use it.
Perhaps you’re shy. Maybe you’re intensely private and having anything but the basics on LinkedIn makes you cringe. Really now – I don’t want to know your dress size – I just want to know a little more about your skills and what makes you tick.
At least you have a LI profile – congratulations on that! I just met an interesting woman at a workshop today and wanted to find out more about her so tried to look her up on LinkedIn of course. She was nowhere to be found. I sent an email but now I’ve lost the opportunity to look at her background, find commonalities and make notes about our meeting and my impressions.
I often work with new college graduates who may not hesitate to share too much on Facebook but hesitate about how to position themselves professionally.
Silicon Valley is full of socially reluctant folks. Along with all those who have no problem with self-promotion, there are many more who just want to do meaningful work that they are passionate about and now they have to share and promote their personal brand too?
Part of the fun and challenge of working with my clients is finding a way for them to share their many talents in a way that feels comfortable to them.
For my brilliant university professor who repeated throughout her profile: “I was lucky enough to be chosen…” “I had the opportunity”, it was as much as she could manage to change some of her statements to a simple “I was chosen…” or “I was one of the first…”
For another client it was easier for her to talk about how she wanted to help others: “I would like to help you create a culture in which people thrive. My passion is to keep the “Human” in Human Resources, knowing that employees and their full engagement is the “key” to the bottom line.”
You can also use the words of others to showcase your skills: “I am known for organizing the work of really large groups of people for maximum productivity.” Or use a quote from a client: “She really does know what you need to focus on – my profile views are 35% higher in just two weeks.”
Is there something holding you back?
I am a believer in the value of LinkedIn to grow your relationships and your brand and that it can offer great opportunities for business opportunities or jobs. I would love to talk with you about the benefits to you being more active on LinkedIn and the type of activity that would work best for your personality and your goals. Please schedule a free 20-minute strategy consultation to see how I might be able to assist you.