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All LinkedIn with Nowhere to Go

thebaffler.com

61–70 of 71 posts

Re: All LinkedIn with Nowhere to Go

#61
post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have never received that sort of offer. Maybe your resume isn't competitive for the better jobs.

I am sure this is a carefully considered opinion backed by an analysis of the anonymous user's work history, connections, technical competence, geographical location, and personality. And that you have offset this against your own to arrive at the observation that you are more "competitive for the better jobs" than him. Apologies for the snark, but all of this is anecdotal data. Your analysis is unwarranted.

The point is that recruiters also don't do that. They often do stupid keyword searches for people without really understanding them.

Re: All LinkedIn with Nowhere to Go

#62
post #9
post #2

A few years back, I found myself saying to a friend "I have no choice but to have a LinkedIn account". I realised how ridiculous that was, and within days, I deleted the account. I have not suffered in any way since, and have definitely benefited from not having constant spammy job offers.

> I have not suffered in any way You don't really know that, maybe you missed out on interesting jobs and you'll never know. At the very least, receiving recruiter emails from LinkedIn allows me to do networking and meet a lot of influential people at various companies, even if I don't end up landing a job there. It also builds my recruiter network, which is never a bad thing: if I ever need a job one day, I am plann…

Perhaps purely anecdotal, but in the years I've been working, I can't say I or anyone I've talked to has perceived an opportunity cost in not having / ignoring LinkedIn (especially the folks who had one and then got rid of it)

I've really only ever received an inordinate amount of entry level recruiters "connect" with me using the same canned email they send everyone. I thought the references feature was nice, but the past few places I've been at have officiously discouraged using the feature because of PR issues (I might personally give someone a recommendation which could then not actually represent the company's perspective of the person)

In my opinion, LinkedIn is just a very creepy and annoying service.

Re: All LinkedIn with Nowhere to Go

#63
post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The best time to interview is precisely when you're happy with your job. You have zero pressure, you can practice interviewing, network and you can make extravagant requirements. If it doesn't work out, no big deal, you like where you are. But if it does, your career can make quantum leaps.

Free time is limited. I'd like to spend it doing something more rewarding than job hunting.

Job hunting can be a life changing moment. Something that will, literally, affect the rest of your life. If only because salary increases compound over an entire lifetime of working.

In other words, a $10k increase in salary might not seem much but it will add up, and not only will raises compound as well but future jobs will start at a higher negotiation level as well.

Of course, spend your time wisely but I think it's really short sighted to think "I'm happy at my job, I am going to completely block out all the recruiters out there".

Re: All LinkedIn with Nowhere to Go

#64
post #53
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I have not suffered in any way You don't really know that, maybe you missed out on interesting jobs and you'll never know. At the very least, receiving recruiter emails from LinkedIn allows me to do networking and meet a lot of influential people at various companies, even if I don't end up landing a job there. It also builds my recruiter network, which is never a bad thing: if I ever need a job one day, I am plann…

I'm very happily employed anyway, and at no point in the 4 years since I quit LinkedIn have I struggled to find meaningful, well paid employment. If I had stayed on LinkedIn just maybe some amazing job offer would have appeared that otherwise hasn't - but I doubt it. For 8 years as a member of LinkedIn I never had one interesting conversation. And I could say "what if I moved to New York?" or "what if I learned to sp…

Don't underestimate the network effort. Maybe that recruiter you just connected with won't find you something interesting but they will share your resume with their colleagues. Present and future. And these colleagues will look for things on your behalf. And so on.

Re: All LinkedIn with Nowhere to Go

#65
post #9
post #2

A few years back, I found myself saying to a friend "I have no choice but to have a LinkedIn account". I realised how ridiculous that was, and within days, I deleted the account. I have not suffered in any way since, and have definitely benefited from not having constant spammy job offers.

> I have not suffered in any way You don't really know that, maybe you missed out on interesting jobs and you'll never know. At the very least, receiving recruiter emails from LinkedIn allows me to do networking and meet a lot of influential people at various companies, even if I don't end up landing a job there. It also builds my recruiter network, which is never a bad thing: if I ever need a job one day, I am plann…

I don't buy your line of reasoning. There's also an opportunity cost to wasting time on LinkedIn instead of focusing on other avenues of finding employment. The end-result is the same, these are unknowables that you can never account for. The only real question is, does LinkedIn provide you value? Y/N and proceed from there.

Re: All LinkedIn with Nowhere to Go

#66
post #9
post #2

A few years back, I found myself saying to a friend "I have no choice but to have a LinkedIn account". I realised how ridiculous that was, and within days, I deleted the account. I have not suffered in any way since, and have definitely benefited from not having constant spammy job offers.

> I have not suffered in any way You don't really know that, maybe you missed out on interesting jobs and you'll never know. At the very least, receiving recruiter emails from LinkedIn allows me to do networking and meet a lot of influential people at various companies, even if I don't end up landing a job there. It also builds my recruiter network, which is never a bad thing: if I ever need a job one day, I am plann…

I don't buy your line of reasoning. There's also an opportunity cost to wasting time on LinkedIn instead of focusing on other avenues of finding employment. The end-result is the same, these are unknowables that you can never account for. The only real question is, does LinkedIn provide you value? Y/N and proceed from there.

Re: All LinkedIn with Nowhere to Go

#67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

...recruiters hitting up us coders a few times a week selling us on some new and better job... Let's not fail to mention recruiters that cold call you at your place of employment , and are too dense to understand why you might possibly be upset at this.

Why would u ever give them your work number, personal phone number or real email address? Give them your spam info...google voice number and spam email account. Further I've never experienced a recruiter calling my current place of work (wouldn't he or she be fired?) and I often am and or can be vague re: where I'm actually working. Especially if you note you are working for some random govt. or contracting company.

My LinkedIn lists my current place of employment. I see no reason at all that it would list contact details there. It also has me listed as "not current looking".

I've had two separate recruiters call my office, and openly tell reception they are calling "in regards to a job". I can only assume they Googled said workplace.

It could cause a strain in your current workplace and leave you more likely to need to jump - I find the whole premise incredibly offensive.

Re: All LinkedIn with Nowhere to Go

#68
post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Most recruiters are lazy and just blast emails by language keyword search. No, I'm not interested in a 6-month PHP contract. No, I'm not interested in a junior IT role. I've found that removing any mention of specific languages and technologies has dramatically reduced the number of job offers, all of which were a complete waste of my time. Now if only recruiters would stop offering me my same title at a 20% pay cut,…

I have never received that sort of offer. Maybe your resume isn't competitive for the better jobs.

No, I don't think that's the problem. But thanks for insinuating I suck at my career. LOL

Re: All LinkedIn with Nowhere to Go

#69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure, but I just find that focus incredibly uninspiring. Twitter, FB, Instagram...they changed the way we communicate to those circles. Not that an equivalent parallel exists for LinkedIn, but it's like they're not really trying.

A real world use can often be uninspiring. What would make solving a real world problem more interesting to you?

LinkedIn essentially has the graph of business professionals in the US and abroad. It's not the same as connection on FB or Twitter or elsewhere -- there is greater context.

And yet, the features of LinkedIn are essentially just the connection base, and marketing to the network.

It seems there is much greater depth that could be explored there, and that LinkedIn could be so much more than the Great Public Rolodex that it is.

Re: All LinkedIn with Nowhere to Go

#70
post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm very happily employed anyway, and at no point in the 4 years since I quit LinkedIn have I struggled to find meaningful, well paid employment. If I had stayed on LinkedIn just maybe some amazing job offer would have appeared that otherwise hasn't - but I doubt it. For 8 years as a member of LinkedIn I never had one interesting conversation. And I could say "what if I moved to New York?" or "what if I learned to sp…

Don't underestimate the network effort. Maybe that recruiter you just connected with won't find you something interesting but they will share your resume with their colleagues. Present and future. And these colleagues will look for things on your behalf. And so on.

LinkedIn didn't invent the network effect, nor do they exclusively own it. In my opinion, for my situation, they don't even have the best implementation of it.

I recognise that I could belong to LinkedIn as well as those other networks, but I get enough value out of my existing tools that LinkedIn isn't worth it.

The scummy data collection practises and the constant recruiter spam are what drove me away from LinkedIn. There is nothing pulling me back.

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