Leveraging LinkedIn Today
Posted on February 23, 2012 by Scott Graham, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.
LinkedIn Today is one of the least used and most powerful tools LinkedIn has for growing your career and your business. Learn how in this article.
I remember a few years ago there was an article in the newspaper. I didn’t know about. I didn’t read it. But someone who wanted my attention saw it, cut it out, put it in an envelope and mailed it to me. Guess what happened to our relationship?
Maybe it is because my Mom sends me news clippings (accompanied usually by a few coupons and a five dollar bill) that she thinks would benefit me as a life coach. Or maybe it’s because it feels incredibly special to know that someone – in this world of status updates and mass tweets – was thinking of me and only me when they read something.
I love getting news clippings that someone thought would interest me.
So, it stands to reason that I try to do the same for people in my network.
It is a great tool to build and enhance relationships. Even Keith Ferrazzi recommended doing such in his book, “Never Eat Alone.”
LinkedIn Today puts this practice of news clipping on steroids.
If you are on LinkedIn, you might wonder how you can use it to grow your business and career. One of the best ways lies in LinkedIn Today. It is a hidden treasure in LinkedIn’s networking enhancement tool box and a great way to practice what is called the “Giver’s Gain”.
The process is simple:
- you just log into LinkedIn a couple times a week and review the articles headlining LinkedIn Today.
- while you peruse the articles, keep in mind people in your network, their interests, current goals, career focus,. etc.
- when you see an article that you think might be interesting to them, share it.
- make sure you delete the general “I found this and thought you might be interested” line that LinkedIn inserts automatically and replace it with something more personal.
You will soon discover that the more you think of others in your network, the more they will think of you and the more opportunities will knock on your door — brought there by the people in your network.
Of course, it stands to reason that you have to have a solid network on LinkedIn where you really know the people in your network. Those foolish grab-all-you-can-because-linkedin-is-just-a-big-database-over-connectors (aka LIONs) can never make this strategy work. You have to be a giver and not a taker.
Notes:
LinkedIn Today: http://www.linkedin.com/static?key=about_today
Giver’s Gain from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Givers%27_gain
