As more and more job seekers, and employers use LinkedIn, an abundance of bad habits are beginning to surface. LinkedIn has become more than just another social media platform. It has become the number one platform used today for professionals to communicate. However, many have taken advantage of this fact and have developed bad habits that are hurting them and their profile.

Have you become one of those LinkedIn users that everyone tries to avoid? If so, you have diminished your chances of finding employment or connecting with other important people that can help your career. Here are a few bad habits to break on LinkedIn:

  • Post responding – while responding to every post may make you seem like you are engaged, it does the opposite. Many recruiters look at constant responding as someone that may have too much time on their hands and does nothing else, while pressing the like button on every post gives the feeling that you like everything. This will not boost much respect for you. Instead, be selective in the posts you respond to. Take the time to read the post and always make a short comment about a part of the post that resonated with you. This will earn you more respect, and that post or like will go further.
  • Images – you think it is cute to have an avatar or cartoon of you as your profile image. However, you have just removed any chance of every being taken seriously. LinkedIn is a professional network platform. Save the avatar and cartoon for other social media. People want to connect with you, and they must see a picture of you to do so.
  • Collector – are you a collector of connections? Don’t accept every invite and be careful that you do not become one of the TopLinked profiles. This is not an honor that you want. Less is more when it comes to adding connections to your LinkedIn profile. Accept or invite only those that will add to your circle. Focus on others or groups that give good advice in your career area or are thoughtful leaders.
  • Job titles – do you use clever or cute job titles? Accounting ninja, digital overlord, or retail jedi. While these may seem clever and you may think they will draw attention to your profile, they do the opposite. Recruiters and potential employers do not search for these phrases or titles, therefore, you will not come up in any of their searches. If you want to show up in a search, use normal job titles.

As you can see, many of the items listed above may seem like harmless fun, but you are hurting your chances of finding your dream job if you continue to do them. Break these bad habits, cleanup your profile, and become known for a connection that is professional. Your professional online presence will flourish!

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