How to use LinkedIn without breaking your brain😳

Hope y’all are doing ok today. “Ok,” is pretty great on some days. What’s on tap in today’s Feature Story?

I’ll lay out some steps that should help your brand get something out of LinkedIn without frying your brain while using that platform that’s full of overwhelm. Then, I’ve got good stuff in the following sections: 

• The Knowledge Base (helpful videos galore)

• Self Help (doing > being) 

• Facts & Stats (ads influencing parents’ buying)

• Get Hacking (Walden technique for ads)  

Appetizer: Watch 5 storytelling techniques you can use to get better at stories (the John Krasinski “zoom-in” example is good).

Now, let’s get into today’s Feature Story…

Is LinkedIn a Hellscape?

It’s worse than that. But maybe it’s just that I’ve been on the internet too long overall. 27 years. It’s a lot.

Anyway, there are supposedly big upsides to being active on LinkedIn (that’s not a sponsored statement BTW😁)...

• Good place to network

• Job opportunities 

• Brand building

• Spot talent

• Connecting with others in your industry

• Groups to join

• Grow your personal brand

But if you’re a flesh-n-blood human being, it’s tough to get those benefits and keep your sanity at the same time.

Just logging on for this Feature Story, I got waylaid by a cluttered screen reminiscent of My Space. Random stuff jutting out of nowhere to distract me from what I was trying to focus on.

And LinkedIn Messages?

I’ve never received one I wanted. Not once. 

Sure, I’m not your average LinkedIn user. Still, you’d think it would be statistically impossible to not receive even one desirable message!

Apparently I’m not the only person who sees LinkedIn as a hellscape either (see monthly search volume below). 

I know, I know. You get out of LinkedIn what you put in. I’m willing to believe that’s true. It’s just hard to see how you can use a platform like that five days a week and not be negatively affected by it.

That said, LinkedIn isn’t going away. And there are benefits for marketers and business owners being active on the platform. So I might as well give you a few steps designed to protect your mental well-being while squeezing some usefulness out of a platform that feeds you engagement bait posts like this…

Steps for Using LinkedIn without Losing Your Mind

#1 Develop a Consistent Posting Schedule

• Aim for 3 useful posts per week rather than daily to avoid burnout

• Use a content calendar to plan topics ahead of time

• Set specific times for using LinkedIn to keep a work-life balance

#2 Quality Over Quantity

• Share insightful, valuable content related to your expertise

• Avoid outlandish “thought leadership” ideas designed only to get attention

• Post 80% informative content, 20% promotional

#3 Engage Like a Human Being

• Respond thoughtfully to comments on your posts

• Comment on others' posts with genuine insights, not just to be seen

• Join relevant LinkedIn groups

#4 Use LinkedIn Features Strategically

• Publish long-form articles to showcase in-depth knowledge

• Create LinkedIn newsletters to build a dedicated audience

• Use polls and questions sparingly to encourage meaningful engagement

#5 Build a Targeted Network

• Connect with relevant professionals in your industry

• Focus on quality connections rather than sheer numbers

• Use personalized invitations to explain why you want to connect

#6 Measure and Adjust

• Use LinkedIn Analytics to track post performance

• Identify content types that resonate with your audience

• Adjust your strategy based on meaningful data, not vanity metrics

#7 Hang Tight to a Work-Life Balance

• Set boundaries for LinkedIn use outside of work hours

• Avoid the pressure to respond immediately to notifications

• Take regular breaks from the platform to prevent burnout (but don’t announce you’re taking a break - nobody cares 😎)

#8 Create a Content Mix

• Share a variety of content types: text posts, images, videos, and perhaps audio

• Repurpose your best-performing content across different formats

• Experiment with storytelling to make your posts more engaging (just don’t make up stuff like the psycho in the screenshot earlier… no one fires a top performer unless they’re doing coke in the conference room)

LinkedIn Problems Summed Up

We shouldn’t expect LinkedIn to be any different than all the other social media platforms. Just more business attire in the profile pics.

Every social platform is unhealthy mentally, and by proxy, unhealthy physically because our brains are attached to our bodies. 

Since there are financial upsides to using these sites, though, the only thing we can do is try to protect our well-being while wading through toxic environments. 

The steps I laid out above should help. However, the surest way to shield yourself from the negative vibes of LinkedIn is to avoid it — if you can promote your business in healthier ways.

Unafraid of logging on to LinkedIn early and often? Think your brain can handle the horrors? These 5 personal brand building success stories should help guide you.

“LinkedIn’s overall vibe is as if Facebook was made of cover letters.” ~The Tacoma Ledger

The Knowledge Base is below. Have some…

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Self-Help

A lot of gurus suggest simply “being.”

They say you can find peace by being still and letting worry fade away.

Perhaps I’ve even suggested such a thing (if you see me as a guru, you’ve taken a wrong turn😁).

However, most people will have an easier time finding peace when they’re not hunting it down like a rabid Bengal tiger. 

Putting your mind and hands into something worthwhile is the surer path to peace. 

Some would say you’re just distracting yourself by doing that. Good!

Your mind (and mine) could use some positive distraction that comes with doing something creative.

Facts & Stats

Bonus: How many people consume podcasts on YouTube each month? Answer at end of email.

Get Hacking

A specific strategy to implement today

Do this for one of your ads or your competitor’s ads. 

Remove all cleverness. Make the ad as direct and clear as possible.

Yes, I’m asking you to erase the creativity.

Just this once. See what happens. 

Alt Hack: Seek out podcasters who truly love your product or service. Run ads there. A smaller audience may produce more sales than a large audience if the podcaster does their own ad reads. Their enthusiasm is apparently noticeable by listeners.

Thanks for reading Inbox Hacking. Please share it with your peeps - it’s sugar-free but stings a bit.

Shane McLendon - Copy Kingpin

Bonus answer from Facts & Stats section: According to Simon Owens, 1 billion people consume podcasts on YouTube each month.

ICYMI: ☠️Should you quit using the Authority Principle?