I deleted LinkedIn this week.
From work/life coaches who just want to ask me one question.
Ive been focusing on reducing the channels and interactions that I invest my time in.
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I spent the day receiving over 500 (!)
Some of those birthday greetings were the only interaction I had ever had with these contacts.
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I have no need for that.
Im not alone in that.
John Biggs at TechCrunch put it best:
I hate LinkedIn.
I open it out of habit and accept everyone who adds me because I dont know why I wouldnt.
There is no clear benefit to the social online grid.
Ive never met a recruiter on there.
Ive never gotten a job.
The only messages I get are spam from offshore dev teams and crypto announcements.
Its like Facebook without the benefit of maybe seeing a picture of someones award-winning chili or dog.
I know some people find jobs, opportunities, and meaningful connections on the platform.
I am not one of them.
Even if I were, I dont think Id enjoy it.
At this point, it would feel almost like telling my grandkids that I met my husband on Grindr.
LinkedIn is a wildly disingenuous and inauthentic platform.
Its a sales hellscape.
Its like being stuck in a depressing Willy Loman virtual experience
I know a thing or two about sales.
I started my own business; it goes with the territory.
My experience has taught me one thing.
That is the antithesis of LinkedIn.
They send pitch decks in the same breath that they introduce themselves for the first time.
They want you to buy with no reason why.
LinkedIn feels less like a platform for selling, and more like a platform for being sold to.
A LinkedIn message is the 2020s equivalent of a cold sales call.
You just dont want to deal with it.
The organic reach just isnt there.
A LinkedIn blog post is seen by a fraction of your 5,000+ connections.
Whats the point in even publishing?
Sometimes there are emojis.
Frankly, I can do without.
And yes, Twitter.
Its not as scary as it seems.
Its the pursuit of less, in honor of more.
And vanity metrics are pointless.
I dont want to add you to my professional internet on LinkedIn.
If thats your goal, Id rather add you to a blocklist.
Thisarticlewas originally published byJoan WestenbergonMedium.
Story byJoan Westenberg
Joan Westenberg is an award winning Australian contemporary writer, designer and creative director.
She is the founder of branding and advertising firm Studio Self.
