Alexandra Chang’s article at Wired.com is spot on!
If you care a whit about your career not only do you have to be on LinkedIn, you should have a detailed profile with your job history. It should look like your resume. Taking advantage of LinkedIn features like Skills can also make you more searchable to recruiters. And of course, build out your network with people you know.
It’s no longer optional, a nice add-on, or a drag-your-feet-gotta-do-it. Whether you are in a job search or simply being smart about managing your career, it is absolutely essential to create and maintain a strong, complete, well-written, clearly focused profile on LinkedIn.
Better yet, delve into the capabilities of LinkedIn. It can (easily) help you find connections to people who can be incredibly influential in your career. You can find and connect to:
- University alumni
- Corporate alumni
- Friends-of-friends
- Affinity group members
- CEOs of mid-sized companies … or whatever your specific target is
It’s been said before, and paraphrased in this article: If you’re not on LinkedIn, you don’t exist. Better to embrace it, use it to its fullest, and reap the rewards rather than trying to resist the inevitable.
