LinkedIn & Offline Networking: Unlock Hidden Opportunities

In this week’s Work It Like a Mum podcast, we’re sharing the third session from our Momentum Career Summer Series, designed to help women build their confidence, increase their visibility and unlock new career opportunities.

Elizabeth Willetts is joined by career advancement coach Leanne Cooper, founder of You First Coaching, to explore how LinkedIn, networking and personal branding can help you access the hidden job market and create opportunities that never make it onto job boards. 

Together, they share practical strategies to help you overcome visibility fears, strengthen your personal brand and use LinkedIn with confidence to attract promotions, new roles and meaningful professional connections. 

What we cover:

•  Why around 80% of jobs are never advertised, and how networking helps you uncover hidden opportunities. 
•  How limiting beliefs and mindset can stop you from becoming visible in your career. 
•  Why your personal brand matters and how to define what you want to be known for. 
•  Practical ways to optimise your LinkedIn profile so recruiters and hiring managers can find you. 
•  The four key habits that build visibility: Comments, Content, Conversations and Connections.
•  How small, consistent actions can lead to promotions, new opportunities and stronger professional relationships. 

Key takeaways:

•  Opportunities often come through people and conversations, not job adverts. 
•  Your thoughts shape your actions—and your actions create your career results. 
•  A strong personal brand helps others understand your value before you even meet them. 
•  LinkedIn is more than an online CV—it's a powerful tool for building visibility and credibility. 
•  Confidence grows by taking action, showing up consistently and putting yourself out there—even when it feels uncomfortable. 

Why listen:

If you've ever wondered how to make LinkedIn work for you, felt uncomfortable talking about yourself or struggled to build professional connections, this episode is packed with practical advice to help you grow your visibility, build meaningful relationships and unlock career opportunities you may never have known existed. 

Show links:

Connect with  Elizabeth Willetts on LinkedIn here

Connect with Leanne on LinkedIn here

Visit Leanne’s website here 

Boost your career with Investing in Women's Career Coaching! Get expert CV, interview, and LinkedIn guidance tailored for all career stages. Navigate transitions, discover strengths, and reach goals with our personalised approach. Book now for your dream job! Use 'workitlikeamum' for a 10% discount.

Transcript

Welcome To Work It Like A Mum

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hey, I'm Elizabeth Willis, and I'm obsessed with helping as many women as possible achieve their boldest dreams after kids and helping you to navigate this messy and magical season of life. I'm a working mum with over 17 years of recruitment experience, and I'm the founder of the Investing in Women Job Board and Community. In this show, I'm honoured to be chatting with remarkable women, redefining our working world across all areas of business. They'll share their secrets on how they've achieved extraordinary success after children, their boundaries and balance, the challenges they've faced, and how they've overcome them. Find their own versions of success. Shy away from the real talk? No way! Money, struggles, growth, loss, boundaries and balance. We cover it all. Think of this as coffee with your mates, mixed with an inspiring TED talk, sprinkled with the career advice you wish you'd really had at school. So grab a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, make sure you're cozy, and get ready to get inspired and chase your boldest dreams. Or just survive Mondays. This is the Work It Like a Mum podcast.

Finding Flexible Roles With Investing In Women

SPEAKER_01 1:20

Investing in Women is a job board and recruitment agency helping you find your dream part-time or flexible job with the UK's most family-friendly and forward-thinking employers. Their site can help you find a professional and rewarding job that works for you. They're proud to partner with the UK's most family-friendly employers across a range of professional industries. Ready to find your perfect job? Search their website at investinginwomen.co.uk to find your next part-time or flexible job opportunity. Now back to the show.

Why Most Roles Are Not Advertised

SPEAKER_01 2:00

Hello and welcome to the latest event in our momentum masterclass series. Today I am chatting with the brilliant, lovely Leanne Cooper, um, who is an expert in career coaching and coach for women from UFOs Coaching. Um we're doing this masterclass today on LinkedIn and offline networking um and how to unlock those hidden opportunities because there's a really scary start that about 80% of roles are not advertised. It's how to uncover the hidden job market. If people are logging on, let us know if you can hear us all okay. Please pop any questions in the comments. Anything you want to say in the um the comments is always really good when we have an interactive session. Um, but our momentum master class series this is a six-week online program. We're about halfway through now. There are loads of events still to come. Um brought to you by investing women. It's designed to help you main um maintain momentum in your career development and job search during what is sometimes traditionally the quieter summer months. So each week we're joined by the UK's leading career coaches to guide you through practical and empowering strategies that will help you move forward with clarity and confidence, whether you're actively job searching or just planning your next step. So thank you so much, Leanne. We always have a really, really good session. Um and today we're talking about LinkedIn and um how to unlock hidden opportunities. So I guess as people logging on, do let us know your thoughts on LinkedIn. If you're on LinkedIn, do you use LinkedIn? What do you like about LinkedIn? What do you find scary about LinkedIn? Please pop them in the comments and we will do our best to answer those as well. Um that's all right. Do you want to give people a bit of an intro to who you are? Because I've just like introduced you, like everyone everyone knows who you are, but if you're not on LinkedIn, you might not know.

SPEAKER_00 3:53

Yeah, oh thank you for the um for the introduction. I'm really looking forward to this session as well. We've done a few, haven't we? And I always really enjoy them. In fact, before we were backstage, we nearly didn't start, did we? Because we're having a chat about holidays and all sorts of stuff, but we're here now and we're ready to get serious, aren't we, Liz, about this? So thank you for um for joining us. Thank you for being here today. For those that

Meet Leanne Cooper And The Goal

SPEAKER_00 4:15

don't know me, if we haven't met yet, my name is Leanne Cooper. I am a career advancement coach for women. So I work with senior female leaders who are ready to secure their next internal promotion or to land a new exciting role elsewhere. I'm really excited to get into this topic. It's something I'm really passionate about and I really, really believe in. Um, so we're gonna talk all about networking, visibility, personal brand, and I'm not talking like the fluffy, wishy-washy stuff. I'm talking about the real practical stuff that's gonna get you poached, promoted, and paid what you're worth really fast. So if you're new to my sessions as well, here's what you need to know. So I'm not here to dazzle you with a shiny, glossy presentation that's full of like vague Googleable tips that you'll forget tomorrow. We are all about high impact here, we're all about tangible action steps and doing stuff that's gonna actually make a difference. So my approach is very straight talking, very no nonsense, and it's designed to get you to move forwards and not stay stuck where you are now. Because if you keep showing up to sessions like this with you know, booking your pen and making a load of notes and then not doing anything with them, you'll still be in the same place in three months, in six months, in a year, and you'll feel more stuck, more frustrated, and more invisible. And I don't want that for you, and I don't think you want that for you either. So, to get together today, we're gonna lift the lid on the stuff that works when it comes to online and offline in networking. So, this is not just theory, this is stuff that really works, and I'm really proud of the fact that I've supported over a thousand women now to secure new roles and to advance their careers. So, if we roll our sleeves up together and get stuck in this afternoon, you could be next. Before we dive in though, um I just want to say, I just want to say something before we get stuck into the actual um workshop this afternoon. I want to acknowledge with you up front that this work is gonna ask a lot of you, it's gonna stretch you outside of your comfort zone because I'm gonna be asking you to do stuff beyond what's familiar to you at the moment, and I'm gonna be asking you to take some action steps after this session that you perhaps haven't taken before because the outcome that you want lives on the other side of that comfort zone, on the other side of that fear. Um, so I know it's scary, but I'm here to give you a bit of a shove. But I promise I'll do it with love because I can see your potential. I know how capable you are and how experienced you are and how talented you are. And you weren't put here to stay hidden, you were here to make an impact and to do brilliant work that lights you up and to build a career and a life that you're excited to wake up for, not to tolerate less than what you're capable of or deserve. Um, so I want real tangible change for you by the end of this year. I want you celebrating that real momentum, not kicking yourself for still being the best kept secret in your industry. So there is going to be some hard work following this session. So make sure you've got a pen, some paper. So I'm gonna set you some action steps as we go through, so you can go away and do some stuff differently. So, yes, this work is gonna stretch you, um, and I and I appreciate that, but I want to let you know that I get it, and I I understand that it can feel really, really scary when we're doing stuff like this and putting ourselves out there when we haven't done it before. Um, Liz, we've felt that fear before, haven't we?

SPEAKER_01 7:33

I always feel that fear, and I think that fear really leaves you. So I think if anyone's nervous, then you know, there's always that fear is sad.

SPEAKER_00 7:43

Yeah, it's normal, it's normal to feel fear when you're doing something that you haven't done before. And I remember like if I rewind five years ago, I didn't even have a LinkedIn profile, and then four years ago, I remember posting for the first time. So I set up my profile and I just like lurked on there for ages, didn't really do anything with it. Um, and after about a year, I thought, right, I'm gonna I'm gonna post something. Um, and I was absolutely terrified when I posted for the first time, like my hands were shaking, I felt physically sick. Honestly, I felt like I was gonna be sick. My little heart was pounding out of my chest, and I was terrified, absolutely terrified about how I'd come across what people would think. But do you know what I did it anyway? And I made a start and I built on it a little bit by a little bit, and I just kept doing the things that I was scared of, um, and and making making them more and more comfortable by doing them more and more. And honestly, hands down, it's been the most career-defining decision that I've made, and you can do it as well. Um, so let's get stuck in together. I'm gonna go through three sections with you of things that are gonna really make a difference to help you in this area. As we go through, like Liz said, I want to hear your thoughts, your questions, your comments, your reflections. Um, have a chat with us as we go through and get away.

SPEAKER_01 9:00

And Leanne is a real her post, if you're on LinkedIn, are amazing. Oh, thank you. No, they're really, really good. I guess um, I know you're going through, but I suppose just to warm people up, um, let us know are you on LinkedIn? Because um, it'd be good to know how many people are on LinkedIn at the moment and whether you post or not. So please, please do pop your um pop whether you're on LinkedIn and whether you post in the comments, and I will let Leanne crack on.

SPEAKER_00 10:15

Yeah, let us know where you're at at the moment. Um, I think a lot of people are on LinkedIn but they don't post. I was scared to even get on there for ages. So, yeah, let us know where you're you're at at the minute. Um, it'd be good to know what sort of stuff. Marina says she's on LinkedIn but doesn't post at the moment. Oh, yeah, thermos is the same. Yeah, you're not on your own there. Definitely not on your own. Um, so let's change that. So I said we're gonna talk about three key areas. Now, the first key area we're gonna talk about before we do anything

Mindset Shifts For Being Visible

SPEAKER_00 10:48

practical and in terms of going out and connecting with people and networking or optimizing your LinkedIn profile, the very first step, and this is a step that a lot of people skip past, is to focus on your thinking. So, we are gonna dig into the personal brand and the LinkedIn optimisation and the networking, but I want to talk to you about your thinking first because the thing that's holding you back from visibility and from that momentum that you're wanting is not your ability, it's your mindset and it's your thinking around getting yourself out there and posting and networking and connecting with people. So it's you thinking that LinkedIn is too cringe or that you're not a social media person, that's the same reason that no one knows you exist when a role comes up. You thinking, oh, I'll go away and I'll update my profile when I've got something impressive to say, is the same reason why you're not getting found for those opportunities today.

SPEAKER_01 11:41

Yeah, very interesting. Rachel, sorry, someone said I'm on LinkedIn Post occasionally, but she doesn't know what to say, it can feel quite cringy.

SPEAKER_00 11:47

Yeah, yeah, and I and I get it, and I totally get it. Um, so in terms of you thinking as well, like you thinking, oh, somebody wouldn't want to connect with me, that's the reason that you're not front of mind for opportunities with key decision makers. You feeling like you have to water yourself down or keep yourself vague and be like low-key about your results that you've worked really hard to achieve, that's the reason why hiring managers for your dream role are skipping past your profile today. So it's your thinking that is really impacting your results. So you thinking to yourself, oh, it doesn't matter, my opinion doesn't count, or my take's not important, and skipping past that post and not adding your comment or not joining in the conversation, that's why people don't see you as an expert in your field, and that's why your name isn't getting mentioned in the rooms that matter. And I know it can be really hard to hear that, but it's so so true because our thoughts create our feelings, our feelings create our actions, and our actions create our results. So when your thinking is small, your actions shrink in line with that, and when your actions shrink, so do your results. Um, so it's really important to start there. Like, don't skip past this work. Can you repeat that again? Your thinking. Yeah, so your thoughts create your feelings, yeah. Feelings then create the actions that you take, and the actions you take then create the results that you get. So it all starts with your thinking, and most situations can be improved by better thoughts because better thoughts will then result in better feelings, actions, and and results. So I really want to challenge you to start here and start uh thinking about how your thoughts might be um be standing in your way of you the success that you want. So I'm going to share a couple of action steps for you that you can make a note of and go away and do moving forwards. Um, the first thing, the first sort of activity is around shifting a thought up to shift the outcome. So, how we start with this is we become aware of those unhelpful thoughts. So, when a thought pops up into your head, be really aware of that thought, write it down even and ask yourself what story am I telling myself here? And is it is it actually true? What evidence do I have? So if you if you say, Oh, I'm not gonna post because nobody's interested in what I've got to say, but what evidence have you got? There's um there's over a billion people on LinkedIn. Have you spoken to every one of them and asked them if they're interested in what you've got to say? You haven't, so you've got no way of knowing that nobody's interested. So you really the step one is becoming aware of those unhelpful thoughts, and then I want you to do a piece of work where you ask yourself, what are my thoughts costing me? So, what opportunities am I missing because I'm staying silent or staying small? So, make a note of that question because when we finish the session, I want you to go away and sort of have a little bit of quiet time to reflect on this stuff because this this really really matters. If we don't tackle this foundational piece around your thinking, it's going to impact the next steps that we we're gonna work on and moving forward. So, yeah, ask yourself what are these thoughts costing me? Um, and then sort of step three to that little activity is how can I choose a more helpful thought? Now it doesn't have to be a wildly positive thought, it but it does need to move you forward. So if you say to yourself on repeat, I'm terrible at networking, that's not going to serve you and support you. But if you say something to yourself that's a slightly different to that, which is I'm learning to be better at building connections, that will serve you and support you. If you say I'm not one of those online people, then you will continue not to show up online. But if you switch that for I'm someone who's building a career and I know that visibility is part of that, that will serve and support you. So I really want you to think about those thoughts and what impacts those thoughts are having for you right now. So if you're having those thoughts that I uh I shared there around showing up on LinkedIn, around networking, around posting, around connecting, around joining conversations, and you're talking yourself out from doing it, then all you're doing is robbing yourself of brilliant opportunities, and I and I really don't want that for you. Um so that's the the first action step, the activity around your thoughts. The second thing, still on the same theme around thinking, is I want you to be mindful about what shapes your thinking. So if you surround yourself with people who play small, you'll stay small. If you surround yourself with people who are ambitious and have got the say the same sort of objectives as you, you will step up. So I'm part of a community of other other business owners, and I'm forever hearing stories from them of how they've secured success on LinkedIn. So that's the norm within the communities that I'm with. People do that every single day. So that makes me aspire to want to do that, and that was the thing that made me think, do you know what? I'm missing out here. Like I need to step up. So I'm friends with people like Liz, for example. So I I choose to surround myself with people like Liz. I know if I post, Liz is going to support that post. I don't surround myself with with people who are going to go away and slag me off for posting. That that's not who I want in within my network. Um, so be really intentional about who you follow, what you consume, who gets a seat at your decision-making table. Get the right people in your ear, like people who model expansion. Ask yourself like, are these situations, are these people expanding me or shrinking me? Is this situation keeping me safe or is it helping me grow? So I really, really want you to make a note of that action step around being mindful about who and what shapes you thinking, because that's really, really important. Um, so that's the first area you think in. Have we got any questions or thoughts around that from anybody? Quite hard hitting to start with. It's quite hard.

SPEAKER_01 17:31

I know I've actually repeated twice, but I that's something that is really resonating in me. What you think?

SPEAKER_00 17:35

Yeah, yeah, yeah. It is important, and and you know what? It is it's quite hard to hear because you like I remember the first time someone saying to me, What? What you're saying that my thoughts create my feelings, my feelings create my actions, and my actions create my results. I I don't like that, and it was quite hard to hear, but actually, when you think about it, it's a positive thing. It's really true, though. You're in control of it, yeah. You are in control of it, and you can choose a better thought at any time. Yeah, and so it's important to do that work. It doesn't happen overnight. Like, I'm not gonna say that go away and do that exercise once and um you you'll get over it. It's something that you have to work at, and like Liz mentioned before, sometimes you do have that feel like you might post a certain thing, or you might show up in a certain situation, you might think, Oh, how am I going to be received, or is that going to be all right? You you still do it, but it's uh it's about not letting it hold you back, um and choosing a positive positive.

SPEAKER_01 19:37

We've had some comments on like the LinkedIn. So uh Michelle says she um she hates posting, always worries about what to say. She posted a lot but not sure what hits the mark. Another person, Donna's on LinkedIn but hardly post. Jane reposts occasionally but only very occasional posting. Amy's on LinkedIn but hardly posts. Tario is on LinkedIn but doesn't post. There are V A There's a lot of people that seem to be on LinkedIn but not posting. I'm I'd be interested to know what's holding you back from posting. I know that some people are saying volunteered why they're not posting, but it'd be good, you know, what's holding you back if you're on LinkedIn and you don't post, let us know in the comments why.

SPEAKER_00 20:17

Yeah, what thoughts are coming up for you? Yeah. If you think about the idea of posting on LinkedIn, what what pops into your head?

SPEAKER_01 20:24

Yeah, so Michelle said she thinks when you post and no one engages, it can be disheartening, difficult to work out how to get engagement. I'll just say one thing about that. I when I first started posting four years ago, I got zero zero engagement. I think it's like you kind of need to find your try, basically. Until you get going with it and start posting, then you'll sort of then find your community and you know, if your stuff resonates with other people and their stuff resonates with you. But I think if you post occasionally, it's quite hard to get traction on your posts.

SPEAKER_00 21:01

Yeah, it it is, it definitely is because as well, like the alg from an algorithm point of view, I'm definitely not on a LinkedIn algorithm expert, but it rewards people who are active on the platform. So if you are consistently commenting on other people's posts and sharing your own content, it it favorably posts yours out. If you don't really do that, and then every now and again you pop a post out, it it's probably not you're probably not going to get anything in terms of engagement. But just because you're not getting engagement doesn't mean that people don't see it. Yeah, like there's certain stuff I'll post about, and people don't want to engage publicly and say, Oh, yeah, that thing you can do.

SPEAKER_01 21:39

That is true, because I also do utility warehouse on the side, and the amount of times I post on that and don't get much engagement, but then I get so many private messages. So it's quite interesting. That um well, Luke is saying finding the right topic in a way to engage people. Um Amy said, um, Amy and Helen have both said worried that they don't have enough interesting content to post. Um Helen has said hard to while looking for a job to brag, talk about interesting projects you're working on. She used to um post all the time what they were doing as a team, events and new content. So I think that's something maybe a top pick if you're working currently in a job. How to use LinkedIn to your advantage. And then Tario has said something that I think will really resonate with people that she um they're scared of family friends seeing posts and if they're no engagement because they will feel embarrassed. I remember that as like you post and you think, oh no.

SPEAKER_00 22:32

I remember that as well. I still sometimes have that though. Yeah, do you know what I I've got you've got loads more connections than me, Liz, but I've got like probably about 12,000, and I'll still do some posts sometimes. I'll think it's really good that like there'll be nothing, don't you come back with anything? So yeah, it it does happen, and I and I understand that, and I think what we're gonna get on to in a minute around um the personal brand stuff will will help you come up with ideas and um and content um and stuff as well. I I would been working with one of my clients actually, and she's been having some of these sort of fears, and we we talked about this, and um she we talked about the fact that even if she just gets the post number one out and nobody replies to it, nobody engages with it, nothing comes of it. The win is getting out of her own way and getting post number one out. It's still a success, isn't it? Um so yeah, it's one of those things you you get out from the platform what you put in. So the more you put in, the more you'll um more you'll get back. But um, let's have a look then at moving on to the next piece because this will this will help people with um the the ones that are wondering about what to post. Um and this comes up such a lot. Um so this is before we we think about going and touching LinkedIn and changing anything in your profile or starting to create content or anything, the second steps we've covered the thinking piece, um, and that's the foundation of. Where

Personal Brand That Feels Like You

SPEAKER_00 23:56

you need to start your work. The second bit is around personal brand. So most people skip this, but it's a really key foundational piece. Um, it's right at the beginning of the programme that I run through with my clients for a reason, and sometimes it can feel uncomfortable to do this work, so they skip past it, but then later on they come across because when they're like creating the CV or the LinkedIn or the prepping for interviews or they're wanting to post on LinkedIn, they're struggling to know what to say because they haven't done this foundational piece around personal brand. So it's at the beginning because it's important. If you jump into updating LinkedIn without any clarity on your personal brand or posting stuff, what happens is you get inconsistent messaging, missed opportunities, and loads of wasted effort. Um, so we want to make sure that you're really intentional about what you're posting on LinkedIn, how you're showing up on there, and how you're portraying yourself moving forwards. Um personal brand is one of those topics that gets banded about a lot now. And it's one of those things that when I say it to people, I can tell the face changes and they're like, oh, I don't really want a personal brand, or that feels a bit that feels a bit uncomfortable. With personal brand, though, um, we don't get to choose whether we've got one or not. We've got we've all got one right now. People are looking at us, whether it's online or in person, and they're making assumptions about who we are, what we're good at, what we stand for, what our skills are. Um, what we do get to choose is whether or not we're intentional about how we shape that brand and whether we make the decision to be really intentional about what we want to be known for. Um, so before you hit edit profile or send a connection request, I want you to grab your pen and paper and sit and reflect on well, what do I actually want to be known for on LinkedIn? What roles or promotions or collaborations or opportunities do I want to be found for? What do I want my profile to represent in terms of my potential, my authority, my ambition? We need to think about this stuff, um, and it's really, really important. So there's a few key areas to focus on when you go away and sort of think about this stuff. So the first area is I want you to think about well, what's your unique value proposition? Like this is the core of your personal brand. Why you? What makes you stand out from other people in your field? So it could be like a non-linear, like unusual career path that you've had, you might have some niche industry knowledge, you might have like a standout leadership style or approach, you might have specific lived experience or technical skills, and you might have a certain way of delivering things that other people don't have. Um, if you can't think of this off the top of your head, then you need to go away and do some work to dig into this because it's really, really important that you position yourself in the light that you want to position yourself in. The second area that I want you to think about with personal brand is your direction. So your personal brand should point towards your future and what is aspirational for you. So ask yourself like, where am I headed in my career? What kind of opportunities do I want to attract? What would I love to be approached for? The answers to this are then going to determine what you put on that profile, who you connect with, the content that you share, the conversations that you join. If you do it without any intention sat behind it, you're not going to get the results that you want. So think about your direction and alignment. Um, the third area is your strengths, your legacy, and your reputation. So, how do you want to be perceived? Like, what do you want people to know you for? So, when they see your name or your picture, what do you want people to think about? Like, what do you want people to associate with you? Um so when you're not in the room, what do you want people to be saying about you? What do you want people to remember about you when they've left a meeting or an interaction with you? What kind of legacy do you want to build through the work that you're doing? Um, so that's really important as well. A couple more. Um, the next one is your target audience. Well, who do you want this personal brand to speak to? Um, is it line managers? Is it sponsors? Is it hiring managers? Is it new clients? Is it um that you want in to attract new new employers, like a mentor? Like what are you wanting to achieve through um through your networking or through your LinkedIn? Like, be targeted about who you your audience is, and then you can create content and and connect with the right people in order to help you to achieve your goal. And then the final thing that I want you to think about before you even start updating your LinkedIn is evidence of your impact. So, what do you want your personal brand to demonstrate in terms of the impacts that you've had in your career? Like, what results have you delivered? What changes or progress are you proud of driving? What values and behaviours do you want people to associate with your leadership, for example? What are the projects and the performances and things that you've done that you want to stand out as being the evidence of your impact? So it's really, really important that we do that foundational work, and it's not something that you can do in five minutes, it's something that you need to go away and and really reflect on and think about and potentially get insight from other people as well. That really works well with clients of mine, so they'll be like, Oh, well, I don't really know. Um, and they'll go away and they'll ask for feedback and be like, Oh, it's actually this, and people are saying that, and that's so true. And I need to make sure that comes across because that's really valuable for future employers. Don't skip this. Um, so yeah, I'm gonna pause there because there was loads that we went through. Um, who's done this work? Like who's sat down and really thought about being intentional about the personal brand? Um, who shies away from it and it makes them feel a bit awkward. Any thoughts?

SPEAKER_01 29:44

I think there's a lot of personal branding experts, isn't there, on LinkedIn? And it makes you it doesn't give it a bad rep.

SPEAKER_00 29:51

Yeah, it's like it's a bit of a buzzword at the minute. Like, I feel like nobody was talking about it five years ago. No, but it was still happening, people just weren't talking about it, were they? Um it is it is so so important. And a lot of the time, like when people say to me, Oh, yeah, I'm just not getting opportunities, and we work backwards and we'll like we'll look at the LinkedIn profile, um, and I'll say to them, like, well, it's not obvious, you're selling yourself short, like it's not obvious. We've just chatted now for half an hour about all of the stuff that you've achieved and the brilliant work that you've done. But if I was if I was a headhunter and I landed on your profile, I wouldn't know any of this.

SPEAKER_01 30:28

Like it might as well, from a recruiter perspective, this is my uh that people's profiles are actually very, very vague. Yeah, you know, people might just put manager or something, you think, well, manager of what? You know, you know, I mean, this is like an extreme example, or they'll just put passionate about change, but they're actually not a change manager or something, something completely ra different that they do. So you know, recruiters are searching on keywords as well, so make sure you think you've got your profile is optimized with keywords, the roles you're targeting. Um, but yeah, Helen's done this, Helen's done the exercise, Rachel is definitely in the awkward camp, and Michelle awkward personal brand feels cringe. Yeah, Raluca has done it, just not sure if they've uh done a good job about it.

SPEAKER_00 31:13

So a bit of a mix, bit of a mixed bag, and uh yeah, I know what you're saying about it feeling cringe because I remember the first time someone saying it to me, and I I was like, Well, I don't really well, I'm not an influencer, I don't want a personal brand. And and the penny dropped for me when uh someone explained to me that we it's not optional, you've got one anyway. Do you want to control it or not? Like people are people are deciding about you. Do you want to make sure that they decide the right things? And I was like, Well, yeah, I do actually, like it is important that they decide the right things, um right things about me. Um, so we'll get we'll get on to optimising the profile and and stuff in just a second, and the things that um that you can do. Um, but yeah, it only when you've done this foundational work around your p your personal brand can you then go intentionally and update your um update your profile. So, yeah, the next action step once you've um reflected on that is to audit your profile. So you've got clear on who you are, what you stand for, what your strengths are, who your target audience is, how you want to be remembered, all of that stuff. So, what we then need to do is audit your LinkedIn to see whether it's it's reflecting all of that. Like, is it in alignment? Most of the time it's not. So, most of the time, you'll have written down that you want to be remembered as being an expert in this area, and you nobody knows that, like Liz Liz said. Um, so it's important to do the audit piece and have a look at well, if this is how I want to be perceived, where are the gaps? Then you can have a look um at making those changes and going into edit mode and optimising um optimizing your profile, which leads us on to the third area, which is finding the opportunities. So we want to find opportunities, and the first way that we're going to be able to find those opportunities is to optimize your LinkedIn profile from top to bottom in line with your personal brand. Um, so I'm going to do a quick run-through of um of things to

LinkedIn Profile Optimisation That Gets Found

SPEAKER_00 33:04

consider um that's really important. So if we start at the top, you've got a banner, you've got a space to add um a banner. Most people leave that grey um and don't do anything. It's a mistake because that's prime real estate. So don't waste it, don't use it as an advert for your existing employer, don't leave it blank. You can get some nice free templates as well from Canva. Yeah, you can. You can go on tap Canva, it's free, and you can put um put something on there, um, a banner on there, so that when it cat so it stops the scroll and it catches people's attention and it makes you look serious about it, doesn't it? Yeah, it looks like you've bothered, it looks like that you're taking it serious and you've put a little bit of effort into um because it's your shop window, isn't it, LinkedIn? Like it's you should your shop window. Um so you know, if you've if it's a shop that's all decorated nicely and like it looks like they've put people have put some effort in, probably going to get more footfall, isn't it, than than one that's a bit uh unloved and out of date and um and not being taken care of. So yeah, it's a big mistake to miss that off because we want people to land on your profile, we want them to instantly be drawn to you and and to and for that banner to communicate who you are and what you do. Um, so don't skip that bit. Then moving down, we've got your profile picture. Um, it still surprises me how many people haven't got a photo um on there. People buy into people, people hire people, not silhouettes. You don't have to have a professional brand photo shoot, but you do need a decent um photo of you looking professional and approachable and um and confident. So that again. And smiling. And smiling, yeah, like look like a real person. Um so yeah, have a look at your profile picture. Like, does that need a bit of a refresh if you're honest? Um, second thing is your headline. Liz touched on this, so so important. These are really valuable, like 220 characters, um, and they follow you around on LinkedIn. So every time you comment, um that that headline follows you around. So it's important to make it count. Um so we want to know like who you are, what you do, like who you do it for, the result or the value that you create. And it's really important that you don't just put a load of vague words in that headline um and that you that it's searchable. So when recruiters, headhunters are searching for people, they're not searching for like I am available for an immediate start. That's something that I see people wasting the headline on. I see people putting like daft stuff in there, like they'll put like, oh, what is it? Um spreadsheet wizard or HR Ninja or something like that. Nobody's searching for that, like we need searchable keywords. HR manager is so much better than HR Ninja. Yeah, I know. Like if you were headhunting for a role, is you're not you're not typing in, you're not doing a search for HR Ninja, yeah. No, you might get HR Ninja, and you might want to tell us that it interviews us. Yeah, but please let us find you first. So, yeah, what roles do you want to be found for? Make sure that's clear in your um your headline so that we can find you and you come up in the right searches. Um, and when we land on your profile, it's really clear what you do. So um keeping it vague isn't helpful. Like a lot of headhunters and recruiters are super busy, aren't they? They haven't got time to sit and try and figure out what you bring to the table, they'll just move on to the next person, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 36:23

Especially in a flooded market like it is at the moment, yeah. A lot of applications, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 36:29

You've got to stand out, and then you're about section. So I see this um wasted opportunities so so much. So, this is your opportunity to promote yourself. Like, so let's say we found your profile and we scroll down and we start reading about who you are and what you've done. We want to be so impressed by that that we think we need to get her on the phone, um, we need to get her to interview, we need to find out more, like the experience that she's got, that she sounds brilliant. Um, so you want to share a bit about who you are, like a human approach, a bit about who you are. Um, talk to us about, don't just put platitudes on there. So I see a lot of the time people put I am results focused, but there's not a single result on the whole of their LinkedIn profile. So put a couple of key achievements in there, like what you what you're proud of. Um, if you're looking for work and you can openly say so, I know not everybody can, but if you can openly say so, put in your about section what it is you're looking for, who you want to be be connecting with. Um, if you can't say that you're open for work because you're working somewhere and you don't want them to see, you can still put a strong call to action in there about who you want to um connect with, you can still talk about your approach and your expertise and um and your results, like it's really, really important. This is your personal profile, um, and it's people's first impressions, um, and we want people to to see why you like what makes you different, and this is a real big opportunity that a lot of people miss out on. So, have a look at your about section. Is it online with your personal brand? That the things that you've got that you want to be known for, and the the people that you want to find you, is it aligned? Um, so that's really important. Set the next bit is your experience section. So this needs to tell a story. Um, this needs to be all about results. And the biggest mistake, Liz, I know you'll back me on this. The biggest mistake that people make here and on the CV is talking about the tasks that they've carried out, the jobs that they've done, the meetings that they've been to, but they don't talk about the results. We really need key achievements, we need any results to be backed up where possible um by metrics. We need it quantifiable. Um, we need to know about the projects that you've led, the results that you've got, like those high visibility things that you've done, the work that you've worked so hard to deliver. We need to know about that. So many people just put the name of their employee in the date.

SPEAKER_01 38:56

Um absolute waste.

SPEAKER_00 39:02

Yeah, put yourself in the shoes of a recruiter or a headhunter and they land on your profile. They've got the the the up against it time-wise is a million other people. Like, let them find you and let them think, wow. Yeah, like let me move heaven and earth to get her on the phone because she looks amazing. Don't let them skip on to the next person. Um, so yeah, don't miss that out. Really take some time to fill out all of your key achievements and the impact that you've made. Another bit that people miss off, and again, it's back to that it's cringe thing um for a lot of people, but it's recommendations. And you know what? It this is the stuff that is a difference of you getting the job that you want, earning the salary that you want, living the life that you want. So if it's a bit cringe for a minute, asking someone for a recommendation, cringe for a minute because it's gonna be so worth it at the other side when um when you get the the role that you want. So social proof really speaks for you when you're not in the room, and most people ignore the recommendation section of the LinkedIn again, wasted opportunity. Um, you get in the habit of it.

SPEAKER_01 40:10

And I've you know made decisions on who to hire, you know, whether it was yeah, based on recommendation. I've like literally gone seeing someone's recommendations because it is that social proof, isn't it?

SPEAKER_00 40:22

It is, yeah, and it's an opportunity for for people to get to know who you are before you're even in the room having a conversation with them. So ask for recommendations from like former managers, colleagues, clients, mentees, anybody. Um, ask uh ask for recommendations and don't be scared to um to be really clear on what you want the recommendation to be about, and also do the same for other people, like think about your personal brand. What what do you want? Do you want to be known as a leader? Then what is one of the qualities of a leader and that's supporting other people? So show up on LinkedIn as somebody that gives feedback and recommendations and is supportive to other people if that's what you want your personal brand to be. Um, so don't skip the recommendation section, it's important um as well. So, summary about that then is your LinkedIn profile is your shop window, it reflects your brand, it tells your story, it shows your direction, it helps you build connection and it positions you as someone to know, hire, or promote. Um, so that's really, really important. But the final bit is um thinking beyond that profile, and again, something that a lot of you are missing right now. So, yes, your LinkedIn profile is important, but what moves the needle is your daily brand behaviour. So,

The Four Cs That Build Opportunities

SPEAKER_00 41:41

I want to talk to you for a minute before we wrap up about how you can maintain and amplify your presence and influence, not just on online but in real life as well. Um, and I want to talk to you about what will really build that traction and that visibility over time, and that's the four C's that's comments, content, conversations, and connections. So, this is what most people skip. They think, oh, I'll do the work on my LinkedIn, I'll get it updated, and then that's the job done, and opportunities will come to me. You will get more opportunities, and but you will get even more if you focus on all the elements of LinkedIn: the comments, the content, the conversations, and the connections. So, comments really quickly then. This is how you get visibility by contribution, this is where you get seen by new audiences, this is where you can get relevant in new circles without having to create your own content every day. So, those of you at the beginning of the call who are struggling with what to post, this is a really easy starting point because you can join conversations and comments that of people that have already posted. And if you're consistently commenting on the right people's posts and contributing something meaningful, that can do absolutely loads for your visibility. Um, so really think about thoughtful reflections and additional perspectives and personal examples and comments that you can that you can add and who you want to add them to. So, again, this comes back to your personal brand work. Who do you want to notice yet? So, are you going to comment on posts from hiring managers, from industry leaders, from organizations that you want to work for, from key decision makers, um, from peers that you want to be top of mind with. So, that's the first one comments, get that visibility by contribution and be really intentional and tactical about the comments that you add on the platform. The second thing is content. So, how to position yourself as credible and memorable, um, so how to show yourself as a thought leader. Um, and you don't need to be a LinkedIn like content creator to create content, you just need to show that you've got a perspective, a passion, and a presence. Um so you can share all sorts of stuff on there um, career lessons, leadership reflections, your take on an industry trend or a challenge, um, behind the scenes of an event you've been to or a project that you've run, um, or a lesson that you've learned. Like you can amplify other people so you can shout out somebody else or somebody's posts or article, you can share your personal insights that um are linked to your professional identity, but use your voice, be human, um, don't aim for viral, don't aim for loads of engagement, aim for valuable, like aim to share something, forget about the vanity vanity metrics, aim to share something that's going to help somebody, um, and let that be your win that you've shown up and that that somebody somewhere has read that and and um got something valuable from it. So, this really, really does work um to help you to be connected to new people and your content really positions you as a person of authority. The third C out of the four is conversations. So, this is how you move from being passive to proactive. Um, so your goal with this is to build connections, not just like collect connections, but build to get the connections and build relationships and plant seeds for future opportunities. So we can do this online and in person. So online you can do it in the comments, and then you can follow up in DMs, um, you can inbox people, so send a message to someone whose work you admire, or if their role aligns with where you're heading. Um, if someone likes or engages with your post, like send them a message and thank them, invite a connection and a conversation. If you've got somebody that you admire or that shares content that you love, um let them know that. And then in person, you can start really small with this as well, with um in person stuff. So, you know, if you're at a next team event or industry meetup, speak to somebody that you've not spoken to before. If you go into a panel talk or a training session, connect with the speaker or connect with somebody. There from like a different area of the business or a different company, um, ask genuine questions and like start the conversation with people. You don't need to be perfect, you don't need to have like a perfect pitch, you just need to get that dialogue started because conversations lead to connections, which lead to introductions, which lead to um opportunities. So it's really, really important because opportunities, like Liz talked about, they're not always in job ads, they come from conversations, and you can't be top of mind if you're silent and you're not having conversations. And then the last one of the four C's is connection. So this is your network, and it sounds really cheesy, and I and I'm feeling cheesy saying it, but your network is your net worth. Um I knew you were gonna say it's really important. I should really force myself to say that, but it's really important to have like a purposeful network that reflects where you go.

SPEAKER_01 46:52

It's a safety net, isn't it? Because if you lose your job, yeah, people then you can contact to try and get another job.

SPEAKER_00 46:58

Oh, yeah, absolutely. And it's one of those things, again, the more you put in, the more you get out. So I'll I'll see people and they haven't posted on LinkedIn ever, and then they must have lost a job, and they're like, they'll put a post that if anybody wants to connect, and then they'll probably be disappointed that people haven't, but they haven't been building those relationships, they haven't bothered with people until they've needed something. So it's really, really important that this is something that you do proactively, not just when you need something, to create that purposeful network, connect with peers, mentors, industry leaders, recruiters, ex-colleagues, um, and and build those relationships like in person. If you go into like um an event, like make sure that you connect with new people there, like volunteer for stuff, join different communities and organizations, add more people into your circle. Um, don't just like have like an echo chamber of people that are the same as you, like get that diverse perspective from other people. Um, who know a question to ask yourself like who knows you outside of your existing organization? A mistake I see loads and loads is people they're really well known within their job and then they're made redundant, um, and suddenly they don't have a network outside of that organization. So it's really, really important. Your next opportunity will likely come through someone that you know um or someone that you you're about to get to know. Um, so the those four C's are your like career accelerators, and they're the things that'll get you get you the traction. Um, so if you do all four of them consistently and with intention, you'll get seen, you'll get remembered, you'll get recommended, and then you'll get hired and promoted. Um, and I'm just going to finish off with a couple of examples. I've got so many examples, but we're out of time of people that I work with, clients, people that I know that do this stuff and it works. Whether that's reaching out to people who work in organisations that they want to work with, headhunters and hiring managers, um, the opportunities are endless. In fact, this morning I had a group call, um, and one of the women in my group, she's been daring herself for about a week to put a post out. Um, it was a brilliant post as well, just sharing what she could add to her industry and explaining that she was looking for a new role. Um, and she was so frightened to do that, and she and she'd got like lots of lovely supportive comments, and she'd had somebody reach out to her, one of her old contacts, and said, Saw your post, really great post. I've actually got a job in mind for you. Can we have a chat? So that was this morning on our call this morning. I don't know if anybody, any of my clients are watching this now, but uh they'll they'll vouch for that. But yeah, it it happens all the time, the opportunities are endless. Um, but you've you've got to help yourself get found, you've got to meet people halfway. Um, but if you if you do those those three things that um I talked about there, address your thinking, get intentional about your personal brand, and go out and create those opportunities for your LinkedIn profile from connecting from conversations and sharing that um that valuable content, then you will find that that massively, massively pays off. So that's everything from me. I've gone about three minutes over. I'm sorry, Liz.

SPEAKER_01 50:12

The webinar is recorded, so everyone that's signed up will get the um the webinar. Amy, just before we had one question, if that's all right.

Headline Questions And Masterclass Line-Up

SPEAKER_01 50:20

Um, can the headline be types of roles versus the actual current job title, especially where your job title might be a bit more specific to your employers' need?

SPEAKER_00 50:32

Types of roles.

SPEAKER_01 50:33

So do you mean like if you're saying I don't know, just use it an example. If your your company uses like a marketing lead and you're really wanting a marketing manager role, is that what I'm guessing potentially that's what you mean is how to phrase. I do think it's obviously helpful from your perspective to um to try and use the words of the job titles you are targeting because that's what recruiters will be searching on. Yeah, I I I agree with that. And not to use some funny internal job title that doesn't mean anything to anyone outside of your business.

SPEAKER_00 51:05

Yeah, I would echo those sentiments, Liz. Absolutely. Like, think before you you you do it, think about well, what you what do you want to happen? If it's that you want to attract hiring managers, put yourself in their shoes. What are they going to be looking for? What are they going to be searching for? And how can you make sure that you find them? So I would agree with you um on that one, Liz.

SPEAKER_01 51:25

Um, Terry Oak says, Opportunities are endless. That's their new thought mantra.

SPEAKER_00 51:30

Yes, get on a post-it note, shove it up on your desk.

SPEAKER_01 51:32

I'm liking the one how you think you feel, you feel is that what you think?

SPEAKER_00 51:38

I'm gonna write that one down. Next time Liz does um next time Liz does a LinkedIn live, it'll be a neon sign like behind her on the wall.

SPEAKER_01 51:45

I'll have to give you credit. I've not made that up. That was Leanne's.

SPEAKER_00 51:48

I don't think I made it up. I don't know where I've got it from. I think it'd be a lie if I said I'd made it up, but yeah. Um it's yeah, it's a it's a big one, and like whatever problems I have or situations, I always think to myself, like, what better thoughts could I have that had helped me here? Um because as soon as I start doing that, I start I start moving in the right direction. If I stay with the unhelpful thoughts, I say I stay stuck.

SPEAKER_01 52:14

Tario has said, Are we able to get the first two weeks recording? Feels like missed out on a lot today was great, thank you. Yes, you are. If you email me, I will send you through the others because we've had two. Um we've had one, it's been like a series. So the first one was gaining clarity, and with Kim Holland, who is a career transition coach. That was to discover how um not career direction, how to move forward with a purpose. And then last week we had building confidence with Nicholas Semple, um, who's a career confidence coach. Obviously, today we've had a brilliant Leanne. Next week it's me. Um, don't miss next week when I'm gonna be doing the TVs and interview prep. And then week five, which is Tuesday the first of July, we've got the Gifted Enright about overcoming imposter syndrome, and then week six, which I know is your friend Beth Hocking, um, who is going to be talking about promotion and pay negotiation on Wednesday, the ninth of July. So everyone has can go into the summer with full momentum.

SPEAKER_00 53:08

You know what? This is an amazing series that you've put together, Liz. Like you've you've got some brilliant, brilliant people, and you've got so much effort like to create these brilliant sessions. So yeah, it'd be really great that you've done that.

SPEAKER_01 53:18

Well, I've I've found them very inspiring. You know, I've got your mantra now.

SPEAKER_00 53:23

Yeah. Oh well we've helped you, Liz, if nobody else.

SPEAKER_01 53:28

Oh, well, thank you so much to everybody that has watched today. Everyone said that it's really useful, um, and they have a really good now-to-do list. Someone's gonna rewrite the about section. Um, so there's been so much food for thought report. So thank you so much, Leanne, for joining us today. Um, we will send a replay out to everybody that has registered. So don't worry if you've missed the parts of this session, you will get the full replay, including all of Leanne's contact details. Um, so you can get in touch with her if you want to explore further.

SPEAKER_00 54:02

Oh, brilliant! Thank you so much, everybody, that's come today. And Liz, thanks for having me. Thank you. See you soon. See you later. Bye.

SPEAKER_01 54:14

Thank you for listening to another episode of the Work It Like a Mum podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe. And don't forget to share the link with a friend. If you're on LinkedIn, please send me

Closing Actions And How To Connect

SPEAKER_01 54:27

a connection request at Elizabeth Willet and let me know your thoughts on this week's episode. You can also follow my recruitment site, Investing in Women, on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram. Until next time, keep on chasing your big stream.