3 ms·
Ask HN: Should I use LinkedIn for blogging?
I'm a grad student in IT, but I'm looking to get a job as a front-end web application developer. I'm not sure if completing the degree is going to be worth it, so I've taken less credits this semester to focus on learning and building a portfolio project on my own.
I've been considering writing a blog about the research I've done while getting ready for the portfolio-project, such as cloud platforms, front-end frameworks (I think I'm going to indulge myself and use ClojureScript), etc. I just noticed that linkedIn has a blogging platform, so I'm wondering If I should use that instead of my blogger page.
Do you or your co-workers use LinkedIn for job hunting and/or networking? Would it be worth it to try and put an effort into building connections through the site? Any anecdotes are appreciated.
- freedomben 9y agoAny blogging is better than no blogging, but unless you yearn to be an "enterprise" dev I would blog on medium or something a lot more hipster than LinkedIn. There's obviously exceptions, but my general observation is that it's management types and enterprisey types that blog on LinkedIn. There's some good stuff on there to be sure, but you get an immediate brand by choosing one platform over another. Definitely start a blog tho. Every dev should have a blog. Use it to market yourself.
- zengid 9y agoYou've confirmed my suspicions about linkedIn. It feels very 'corporate' and stiff.
- brudgers 9y agoRandom advice from the interent: + The important part of blogging is blogging, not selecting a platform. It is more likely that a blog will die because it is not written for than because there is an issue with the platform. + Completing a graduate degree is likely to open more doors than a blog. Partially because that is just the way the world works. Partially because most blogs contain statements that are either outright errors or easily misunderstood so as to be an error. And people deliberately read blogs to find errors and are predisposed to misunderstanding blogs as containing errors. That's just the way the internet works. + Linkedin is useful for maintaining loose social/professional connections. Which is to say it is good for keeping up with your current and former classmates and coworkers. It is ok for research on individuals at companies where you want to work, but as a general rule it is a mediocre way to reach out on a personal level -- it achieves mediocrity because it is easy to use but that ease of use means recipients place a low value on communications within Linkedin. + A job will be more valuable in terms of future jobs than a portfolio project. In part because it will be validation in the world of work rather than academia. In part (and this is where Linkedin comes in) because it will expand your professional network to include the coworkers. I am not saying not to do a portfolio project. But slacking off on a degree in order to do one is not going to improve most people's attractiveness as a job candidate. On Linkedin the degree will still be on your profile five years from now. If a student project is there five years from now, that's probably not a good thing. In the end, Linkedin can supplement import relationships and achievements in the real world. It cannot replace them. Good luck.
- matchmike1313 9y agoI have used LinkedIn before for job hunting, it is a good place to connect with recruiters. I would agree with freedomben's comment, its very corporate though. If you are looking to go the "get hired by my work" route I would say your energy is best spent blogging on another platform. Since you are working on getting ready for your portfolio project I would sue something like GitHub pages, Ghost, or Medium to host your blog for now. I think it's great to blog about your journey, I would also consider tweeting about your experience as well! Best of luck to you though!