Welcome, aspiring & current Chiefs of Staff!
I can’t believe it’s already November. Maybe it’s just me but Q4 always feels like it goes by in the blink of an eye. Thanks for coming back and if you’re new here, consider subscribing to get the latest issue in your inbox! Next issue, I’ll be spotlighting some of the companies that I’m working with who are hiring Chiefs of Staff.
ICYMI, I announced my new Chief of Staff placement and recruiting business on LinkedIn last week. Would love if you gave “Ask a Chief of Staff” a follow on LinkedIn and I’m excited to help more people land the elusive “Chief of Staff” title!
In this week’s issue, we’re going to cover the beginnings of LinkedIn brand building. Quite a few of you replied to my first issue saying you would be interested in learning more about LinkedIn networking and branding so we’ll tackle some LinkedIn 101 this issue.
Why even network on LinkedIn?
If you’re anything like me, just mention the word “network,” and I immediately start a slow retreat backwards. My mind conjures images of people in suits chitchatting at a dimly lit restaurant bar top using phrases like “synergy” and “elevator pitch” and “I’ll have my people call your people.” (I have no idea why my mind goes straight to 1960s Mad Men.)
The first thing I had to overturn for myself was this preconceived notion of “networking.” It felt icky and transactional and it made me really not want to do it. Instead, I looked to dispel these myths about the platform:
🚫 Myth #1: You have to personally KNOW everyone you’re connected to on LinkedIn
LinkedIn isn’t Facebook. You don’t need to know someone IRL in order to connect with them. I’ll fully admit, when I first started out on LinkedIn, I only sent connection requests to people I knew personally. My network grew 0%. I was reaching out to people I already knew and was already connected to. Instead of creating a network around myself, I was creating an echo chamber. You should be connecting with your target audience - more on that later.
🚫 Myth #2: You only use LinkedIn to find a new job
LinkedIn has come a long way since I first started using it in 2013 (don’t do the math on my age). There are timely industry news stories, groups for career-similar people, and, of course, plenty of job postings too. But all that to say, LinkedIn isn’t exclusively for job seekers anymore. I haven’t been actively looking for a new job in the last two years, but yet I’ve been more active on LinkedIn than ever before. Figure out how LinkedIn can best work for you and utilize the features that make the most sense.
🚫 Myth #3: I’m not good/smart/knowledgeable enough to post on LinkedIn
Firstly, yes you are! Secondly, write what you know. If you don’t know anything about crypto, don’t write anything about crypto - you will see none of that on my profile. Like everything else, progress comes with practice. Start small and write about something you learned this week. It can be as simple as a new productivity hack you started implementing or something you observed in meeting. Use your first few posts to refine your voice. Tag one or two people to ask them to chime in and see if they agree with your perspective. Write the posts you want to read and over time, your engagement will grow as you attract the audience that you want.
Ok, I’m convinced. So how do I go about building my brand on LinkedIn?
When it comes to brand building, the first question you should ask yourself is, “Why do I want to build a brand on LinkedIn?”
For me, I really started building my brand when I was working as the Program Director of the Chief of Staff community at On Deck (now spun off to Coho). I realized that if I wanted to attract top Chiefs of Staff into the community, I had to show that there were top Chiefs of Staff who were already in the community. I wanted the Chief of Staff community to be a place where Chiefs of Staff at all different stages of companies, careers, industries could come together to share their learnings and help each other in their journeys. So I defined my WHY: “To bring together Chiefs of Staff so they can learn from each other.
Since being at On Deck, my focus has changed to “Helping aspiring and current Chiefs of Staff find their next role.” The content that I post now is hopefully helpful for both aspiring and current Chiefs of Staff alike and will continue to help answer some of the hard questions that come with being a Chief of Staff.
Secondly, build your audience. Figure out who it is you want your content to appeal to and get specific about those people. Then put it in your headline. Your headline shouldn’t just be a reflection of your title - the rest of your LinkedIn profile will show that. Instead, use your headline to capture the eyes of the people that you want to connect with.
Maybe you want to connect with more people in your industry or role. Maybe you want to explore what roles outside of your current company look like. By honing in on who you want in your network, you’ll be able to configure your LinkedIn feed to reflect the kinds of content you want to consume as well.
After you update your headline, reach out to up to 100 people a week that fit your target demographic (that’s the limit LinkedIn allows you to send per week). Because your headline makes it clear why you’re connecting, you’ll get more connections accepted. You can choose to include a small message along with your request, but don’t you dare use the generic “I would like to add you to my LinkedIn network.” If you’re going to send a message, make it personal!
By just reaching out to 20 people a day (or I like to block off a half hour each week for LinkedIn connecting), and even at a 10% acceptance rate (which is probably a conservative estimate if you’re clear about your target audience), your network is going to get some valuable additions very quickly.
Then it’s time to start posting content. Posting content is going to be an entire issue in the future, but for now, I’ll leave you with the 3H’s I learned from Dave Fallarme. Make your posts Helpful, Human, and Happy - and do it consistently. More examples on this in a future issue!
Additional Chief of Staff Related Reads:
Chief Of Staff Responsibilities Framework
How to Sabbatical at a Startup
Want to Avoid Quiet Quitting? Employee Engagement is Key
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👋🏼 Until the next issue,
Clara
PS: I’m going to work hard to keep all the content in my newsletter free so that it’s accessible for everyone, but if you want to help support my writing endeavors, you can buy me a matcha 🍵 Special shoutout to Joshua for supporting the last issue!