Why are you connecting on LinkedIn?

By Jeff Altman, Big Game Hunter

I find it weird what people do on LinkedIn.

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In this show, I want to deal with the stupid things people do on LinkedIn that are absolutely weird to me. I’m asked to connect on LinkedIn; most of the time, I don’t initiate contact. I was doing sourcing and recruiting (as you know, this was documented before when I was still searching), and I didn’t really actively go out and say, “Hey! Connect with me on LinkedIn!” But people did that to me. After all, I am a very recognizable figure and people want to connect with me.

There are two things that are definitely weird to me. The first is the person with a first name and last initial. Like my profile says “Jeff A.” Why? Are you embarrassed by your last name? Are you ashamed of your last name? Or are you trying to hide something from me?

I don’t know which of the above it is, but I think there is a fear of racist orientation. So, if you have a long foreign name, you worry that native Americans will be discriminated against because of your name. OK So, do you think that if a connection request comes in and you try to establish a relationship, we won’t know your name? Just like that first phone call or first conversation.

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“Jeff A? Hey Jeff, what’s your last name?”

This was really my first question because I wanted to know who I was talking to. I’ve gotten to the point where I don’t accept these requests. To me, that’s not a concern. What I care about is getting to know someone. I don’t want them to be prejudicial to me the first time I interact with them. So, I delete those immediately.

Another thing that is definitely weird to me is there is no contact information. I contacted you but could not reach you. Would you like me to chat with you via LinkedIn by sending you a message? That has nothing to do with me. That’s nothing to me. Today, someone contacted me on LinkedIn and they seemed like a normal person. I contacted them, no email address, no phone number, no way I could reach them except through the system.

In case you haven’t noticed, LinkedIn is pretty clunky, and besides, you’re on LinkedIn every day? Probably not, but you want me to sit there and wait while I try to network some, I try to ask some questions, I try to get opinions, provide some information, why are you contacting me? Should it be a one-way street, where I’m the one who’s supposed to give and you’re the one who’s supposed to receive, and I’m not allowed to ask you anything?

So, I immediately felt trepidation and realized that if I did this, and I’m a very open networker, what are you going to do with other people? The answer is that you or they annoy them. If it’s a one-way street, your connection has no value.

So, I paused and said, “Don’t be stupid.” You’re on LinkedIn, trying to connect with people to get help. Don’t be stupid. Reach out. connect. It doesn’t matter.

Be generous. Be polite. Be helpful. Don’t start hiding from the beginning. After all, if you’re looking for a job, you want people to be able to contact you easily, right? Correct?

Therefore, please make your information public. e-mail. telephone number. Indicate your preferences for how you would like to be contacted. People will respect that.

As for your name, put your damn name in there. Don’t hide it. People will find out. Anyway, Pat, what have you accomplished? If your last name has 47 letters and there are no vowels in it and people can’t pronounce it or they end up seeing an “L” because your picture is there, that’s stupid and racism happens, right?

Don’t be stupid about these things. Be generous, be kind, and recognize that bigotry clearly exists. I know I can be the target of paranoia at times and you will experience the same thing. There is nothing to hide. I wish it were different, but putting the first initial of your last name in there does nothing.

About Big Game Hunter Jeff Altman

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This article Why should you connect on LinkedIn? “First appeared in Jeff Altman’s “Big Game Hunter”.