8 Annoying AF Things You Probably Do On LinkedIn That'll Never Get You A Job
You know those people on Facebook who post 108 times a day about their kids? Obnoxious, right?
Or the people who tweet once every five minutes? *Unfollow*
Unfortunately, most of those people don't realize they're being annoying AF. You don't want to be that person, especially on LinkedIn.
But LinkedIn is a necessary evil for the 20-something professional. Basically, if your resume and Facebook had a baby, it would be named LinkedIn.
Are you worried you might be driving your network absolutely CRAZY? Here are some signs you're annoying as fuck on LinkedIn...
1. Your messages are getting ignored.
While it's important to regularly check in with your LinkedIn connections, you don't want to irritate them by messaging them too much, especially if they haven't responded to your previous notes.
If they don't reply to one message, that's OK. However, if you've messaged them several times without a response, back off.
Although they could be legitimately busy, they might be ignoring you for a reason. Being overly persistent can appear pushy, irritating and even stalker-ish (and, trust me, that's not a good look).
What you're probably thinking: They must be busy and didn't see my messages last week. Let me try again a few more times.
What they're DEFINITELY thinking: I don't have time to deal with this person… way too pushy. Why are they acting so desperate?
2. All you do is sell, sell, sell, no matter what.
Selling designer leggings 24/7? Promoting your diet plan all of the time? Lay off. If you're constantly selling your product or service, people might find you incredibly self-promotional (which is totally obnoxious).
Now, I'm not saying you can't be promotional. I'm saying you might want to consider turning it down a little bit. You've got to balance your promotions with some real, valuable content.
You've got to add value beyond your product or service. Try sharing an article instead.
What you're probably thinking: LinkedIn is a great tool to sell my professional services! All of the time!
What they're DEFINITELY thinking: Is this person even real? No, for the fourth time, I don't need your herbal supplements!
3. You send messages in bulk.
Don't you just HATE it when you get a message from someone that also went out to 200 other people? It's generalized, it's spammy and you can see the other people included in the message. Avoid doing this to people in your network at all costs!
Your goal is to make each one of your connections feel special and valued. That means you need to take time to email them personalized emails that are meant for them.
It also means you need to be respectful and not spam them with promos, sob stories and “I need a job, here's my resume” messages.
What you're probably thinking: I don't have time to send everyone a personalized message. They won't even know I sent it to my whole network.
What they're DEFINITELY thinking: This is clearly a bulk email. My name isn't even on it. Someone else can respond.
4. You're totally spamming your LinkedIn feed.
While you should be sharing great content on your LinkedIn feed, you don't want to overwhelm your connections. If you post too much content, your connections can get annoyed.
Unless your job requires you to post more, try to limit your LinkedIn updates to one to two times throughout the day.
What you're probably thinking: If I post a ton in my LinkedIn feed, people will notice me!
What they're DEFINITELY thinking: Oh, I've noticed you. *unfollows*
5. You're asking for too much, too soon.
Rule of thumb: Always offer before you ask. If you're going out to your connections and immediately asking for something from them, you've got to stop. This is one of the most annoying things you can do on LinkedIn... and, actually, in real life.
Do not ask someone to proofread a blog post you wrote or to get you a job at their company right off the bat. You need to prove your worth as a connection first.
Instead, think about what can you do for them. How can you help them achieve their goals? More often than not, they will be happy to return the favor in the future.
What you're probably thinking: The point of networking is to ask for help.
What they're DEFINITELY thinking: I don't even know you... why should I help you?
6. Your language is freakin' horrible.
And I'm not just talking about swearing, people. I'm talking about spelling mistakes, grammatical errors and, worst of all, poor capitalization. (You know what I mean… for some people, it's ALL CAPS, ALL DAY, or no caps at all.)
Mistakes like these might seem minor, but they can really harm your professional reputation. As a result, people will think less of you.
What you're probably thinking: Digital communication isn't as formal. It's NBD, AMIRIGHT? Sent from an iPhone.
What they're DEFINITELY thinking: You literally can't even spell my name correctly… glad to know you value me as a connection.
7. You're hitting on your connections.
If you've EVER said something like, “You're beautiful. I'd love to get to know you better,” you need to seriously stop and rethink your “networking” strategy. This is incredibly inappropriate, and it can make people feel uncomfortable.
Newsflash: LinkedIn is not Tinder. Do not try to swipe, ahem, tap your LinkedIn network for a date.
If you think someone is attractive, keep it to yourself. It's really inappropriate to say something like this to a professional connection.
Complimenting people is fine, but you need to be careful. There's a fine line between complimenting someone and totally creeping them out.
If you suspect a compliment might come off wrong, don't say it. Instead, compliment them on their work or other accomplishments.
For example, you can compliment someone on a blog post they wrote. You could say something like, “I really enjoyed the blog post you wrote last week on companies going green! Fantastic job, very insightful.”
Compliments like these are valuable and keep things on a professional level.
What you're probably thinking: I'm going to compliment this persona and tell them how great they look in their profile picture. Everyone loves to be flattered.
What they're DEFINITELY thinking: Ew, stop talking to me. I'm uncomfortable, and you're a creeper. *Unfollows*
8. You're getting blocked.
If this isn't obvious, then I don't know what to tell you. If you've been blocked, give it a rest.
Think about what you said or did that might have been misunderstood or taken the wrong way, and remember that lesson for next time. After that, move on and don't dwell on it.
Don't try to reach out to them through another outlet, don't badger them on why they blocked you, and don't badmouth them on social media. Just let it go.
What you're probably thinking: I can't believe I was blocked! What the heck did I do wrong?
What they're DEFINITELY thinking: I literally can't deal with this person anymore... BYE.
LinkedIn is a great tool that can help you advance your career, but there's a difference between being a power user and a total psycho.
Moral of the story, if you're doing any of this stuff on LinkedIn, chill.