Once you’ve built your LinkedIn profile, you might wonder what on earth you should post. If you struggle to talk about yourself, LinkedIn can be a nightmare. Although the platform is increasingly becoming a vital part of your academic web presence, it feels dominated by attention-seekers and show-offs. But you don’t need to toot your own horn. In this guide, I’ll discuss ways you can post on LinkedIn without feeling grubby or pushy.

What to post on LinkedIn

Instead of sharing what you’ve had for lunch, you could:

  • Describe how you solved a problem or fixed a mistake: “I spent weeks wrestling with [methodology issue]. Here’s what finally worked…”
  • Champion someone else’s work: “X is doing valuable work on [topic]. This is going to make a big difference to how we deal with Y.”
  • Recommend a book/article/website: “Just read [colleague’s] paper on X - it brilliantly addresses…”

This improves the signal to noise ratio. And you earn a reputation as someone who is up-to-date with what’s happening in their field.

Think about who’s in your network and what they’d like to see.

Crafting a LinkedIn post

Avoid just posting a link without any context. Your connections need to know why they should stop what they’re doing and click.

  • Make it a story with a beginning, middle, and end (see the OCAR structure for an example)
  • Keep it concise - this isn’t a journal article.
  • Use white space to make it more readable - on phones a long paragraph will fill the screen and make it look indigestible.
  • Include images to make them more engaging - people are scrolling through, so an image captures their attention.
  • Or use video, if that’s a better format (include subtitles for accessibility and people who have the sound off).

Your LinkedIn posts are also showcasing your communication skills to potential funders and employers.

Before posting, ask yourself …

  • Would I find this post interesting or useful?
  • Is this engaging people, or is it just a sales pitch?
  • Am I adding value?
  • How would I feel if a publisher/friend/employer/relative/funder saw this post?
  • Is this post a reflection of me, or am I trying to be something else?

Think twice before sharing personal struggles, criticising institutions, or entering political debates. LinkedIn makes you highly visible, so consider who’s looking at your profile and what they can see 👀

Conclusion

It’s much better to lurk on LinkedIn than to add a lot of noise. Although posting on LinkedIn makes many of us feel vulnerable, occasional thoughtful posts establish your expertise and also strengthen the academic community. And there’s no magic posting frequency - quality matters more than quantity. Other users are much more likely to share your posts if they contain valuable content. Above all, use LinkedIn in way that feels manageable for you.

👉 LinkedIn without Tears: A Guide for Academics

This content is part of my workshop on Creating a Strong Academic LinkedIn Profile.