What are some common LinkedIn mistakes to avoid when looking for career opportunities?

Here are the biggest mistakes I see: - old grainy photo, no customized banner, anemic headline with only job title and company - about summary that doesn’t speak to your target audience - no work history details with missing statements of impact - a handful of skills versus an ideal 50 - no recommendations - given or received - no engagement with one’s LinkedIn community and few connections Lots to work on!

Think of your LinkedIn profile as your own personal website. What do you want your brand to be? What voice do you want to convey to people that visit your page? Also, the same SEO rules apply as those of a regular web page. Is your profile set up to be found by searches, and will it "sell" yourself to anyone that visits?

The more people you can connect to (that relate to your professional brand and goals) the more people you will have access to, and also, that will have access to you. It is critical to expand your network consistently and max out the number of connection requests you send.

You don't need to be a "creator" and post original content to be "active". Supporting those in your network with intelligent comments, and engagement and conversation on their threads shows as "activity" on your page. It gives perspective employers and other connections reason to believe you have a specific value to add to their own. When I see no activity that tells me the person doesn't really care much about what they have stated is their primary work.

LinkedIn shows it you are active. It also likes when you are active. Big PSA, scrolling on LinkedIn is not being active. Also, living in your inbox only replying to messages doesn't count. Comment, share, post, and connect with new people. That is being active and visible and will pay off immensely for your career.

If you turn your profile on to "Creator" mode, you can gain followers without them asking for your connection, and it activates the "PROJECTS" section. This is extremely useful for posting case studies that are linked to specific skills listed on your profile, and demonstrate examples of impact in your previous work. You can even link each project to individual connections who you worked with to collaborate on those.

I highly recommend to leverage the Featured section on your profile. You can highlight posts, media, newsletters, articles, etc and they show up right at the top of your profile. It's an extra branding opportunity to tell a consistent and powerful story.

Use the filters on job searches to narrow down as much as possible in your job search to increase the changes you're going to want and be selected for a job. But, I do generally disagree with not applying as much as possible. There is about a 2-5% hit rate for an initial phone screening when applying cold through a job board. If you are too selective and limit when you apply, you limit your chances to get a new job. If you are using job boards to apply for jobs then you have to focus on selective quantity.

I’ll add that it’s important to approach networking in an authentic way. While many people fail to use the features LinkedIn offers altogether, some also use them in the wrong way. For instance, if you’re applying for a position and the job poster is visible, you can (and should!) message them. However, don’t use the canned message that LinkedIn recommends you send. That’ll fast track you into “generic!” Create custom messages in your own voice and tone, and be thoughtful in how you approach networking. It’ll resonate better and help you stand out over others who are just click, click, clicking….