The 90 day LinkedIn Challenge – 30 day update.

From December 25 to March 25, I am going to post daily on LinkedIn. 

Why? 

The short answer is that it is free marketing for my upcoming new book. 

The long(er) answer is that since LinkedIn is the career and business social media platform and my book(s) are about career development, that is the best place I can get free exposure. And, by engaging on the platform in a strategic way, I can let my target audience know that I am a trusted and respected authority on the topics I write about.

You can learn more about the topics I write about and how I defined the challenge here.

Status update:

Challenge adherence (%) : 144%

Type of ContentCOUNT
Comment19
Original Content3
Original Content-in a private group6
Outside Info6
Poll2
Grand Total36

By around day 15, this activity went from being a burden to being fun. I became much more relaxed about engaging with the platform and reached my goal of taking less than 20 minutes a day to complete the challenge. As a result, I occasionally posted more than one thing in a day, hence achieving > 100% adherence. One tip I learned is that I can save posts for later. That was great because if there was a day that I couldn’t quickly find something to comment on, I could go to my saved section.  

Followers (#): +112 (+3.2%)

I don’t have a lot to say about this number. I didn’t really know what would happen or if this is a good metric to follow. I will keep watching it to see if I can correlate it to something important.

Leads (#): +3

  1. Podcast appearance in February.
  2. Guest speaker for National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) Charlotte Chapter in March.
  3. Guest speaker at Penn State in April.

Other observations

Different types of content get very different response rates. 

Original content was more popular (as measured by interactions after 1 week) than commenting on other people’s posts or commenting on outside content. However, I was more likely to get a connection request when I commented on someone else’s posts. This phenomenon is something to keep watching. And unsurprisingly, people love polls.

Type of ContentCOUNT of TypeAVERAGE of Interactions after 7 days
Comment191
Original Content346
Original Content-in a private group64
Outside Info618
Poll243

I am getting lots of positive feedback from colleagues about my LinkedIn activity.

Several times a week a colleague will either send me a note or mention during a meeting that they are enjoying what I am posting on LinkedIn. This is of course a nice feeling but I think it is more than that. Given that I am unable to “take a coffee” as they say in Europe, with my colleagues, being able to chat about LinkedIn has given us common interest discussion topics that aren’t related to COVID-19.  

What I am going to try next month

February will be about actively promoting the book now that it is on Amazon, trying to increase the amount of original content I post, and improving my efficiency on the platform. 

Why I am writing on LinkedIn for 90 days straight, plus a recap of week 1.

From December 25 to March 25, I am going to post daily on LinkedIn. 

Why? 

The short answer is that it is free marketing for my upcoming book. 

The long(er) answer is that since LinkedIn is the career and business social media platform and my book(s) are about career development, that is the best place I can get exposure. And, by engaging on the platform in a strategic way, I can let my target audience know that I am a trusted and respected authority on the topics I write about.

I know little about social media platforms and I don’t want to spend my whole life on them. So I did a bit of research and settled on this 90-day challenge which synthesizes what seems to be two key principles of social media engagement: consistent interaction + relevant content (1) (2).

Here is how I have defined my 90-day challenge:

What counts:

  1. Comments on someone else’s post.(Good)
  2. Bringing in outside articles and adding 2-3 lines of commentary. (Better)
  3. Writing original content.(Best)

Topics I will write about:

  1. Women in STEM
  2. Women in male-dominated industries
  3. Diversity and inclusion
  4. Career development
  5. Leadership
  6. Potpourri (not the dried flowers version, the jeopardy version, meaning any topic I deem interesting)

Stats I will track on a monthly basis:

  1. Challenge adherence(%): # of days I posted/#of days in the month. I will allow myself days off by doubling up. I think there are ways to schedule posts but I haven’t figured it out yet.
  2. Followers(#): # of people following me on LinkedIn. At the start of the challenge the number was 3,389. I hope that grows.
  3. Leads(#): I will consider a lead anyone who reaches out to ask me to collaborate, speak at a book club or conference, or any other activity that will cost me nothing but will promote my current book or future books. 

Week 1 recap:

The good news. It is actually fun. It is stimulating me to read more and form an opinion about different topics. Old friends and colleagues who I haven’t talked to in a while are reaching out. Someone even noticed that I have a book coming out. (I put a picture of it in my profile).

The bad news: I am woefully inefficient at this. It is taking me way too long to write a couple of sentences. I am concerned about grammar, syntax, what will my boss think if he sees it, etc. I am also preoccupied with following the number of post views and reactions I get. Hopefully this is due to the newness of it all. I will to monitor the amount of time I spend on the challenge and put in some controls to adjust it. Once I start back at work, I need to get this down to 10-15 minutes/day.

  1. https://www.terryrice.co/blog/i-posted-on-linkedin-90-times-in-90-days-heres-why-you-should-too
  2. https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/linkedin-marketing-strategies/

ARE YOU A SMART, TALENTED, TRAILBLAZER? (QUIZ)

Early in 2020, I asked 80 women from my own personal network to join my newly created LinkedIn group for women in male-dominated industries. If I can brag for just a moment, the women in my network are awesome.  Whether they just finished their degrees as the first one in their family to go to college, they are the CEOs of major companies, or somewhere in between, they are all bright, purposeful, and driven women. I was pleasantly surprised that all but  one person joined my group.

What surprised me even more was their enthusiasm about having been asked to join . Some told me they were honored that I would consider them. Others said they were so happy, they were crying.  I was shocked by the outpouring of emotion that came from my invitation.

I think I touched on an important realization. Despite how successful we may seem to the outside world, our day-to-day lives in male-dominated workplaces can be a struggle. We can feel underestimated, sidelined, and overwhelmed. In the midst of all of those feelings, we can forget that in reality we are smart, talented, trailblazers.

According to McKinsey, women in male-dominated fields are three times likely to feel as if  they have to provide more evidence of their competence than others do.[i]

Is this you?  Let’s find out with the quiz below.

Read the following list and note any that apply to you.

  1. I have been accused of only being a diversity hire.
  2. I have been assumed to be someone with fewer credentials.
  3. I have been interrupted or had my ideas stolen in a meeting.
  4. I have been excluded from after-work social activities because, “it’s just the guys”, or “we assumed you didn’t like that kind of music/activity”.
  5. I have been subjected to inappropriate comments about my hair, clothes, or shoes.
  6. I have had to leave a meeting and walk to another building to find a bathroom.
  7. I have been told I am too ambitious.
  8. I have been told I am too direct, or not direct enough.
  9. I have been told not to be so hard on a male peer because it will hurt his ego.
  10. I have been told to smile no matter how I actually feel.

Did you note any?

Yes? 

Congratulations!

You are a smart, talented, trailblazer!

How do I know?

Because you have already figured out how to get to where you are today despite having to go through the adversities I listed above, and probably many, many more.

Not convinced? Of course, you are not. Women in male-dominated fields are three times more likely to feel as if  they have to provide more evidence of their competence than others do.[i]

But here is the thing, you’ve already demonstrated that you are smart, tenacious, thoughtful, and resilient. You’ve already persevered through rigorous training in what was likely a challenging and sometimes isolating environment. 

Don’t get me wrong, you might have some gaps in skills or experiences that you need to close in order to reach your next goal. In my book and in my blog, I write about how to diagnose what those gaps are and close them. 

But most importantly, I write to remind you:

You already have what it takes to do anything you choose to do.

You are a smart, talented, trailblazer. 

In case you’re interested, my score is 10/10.

[i] “Women in the Workplace 2020,” by Sarah Coury, Jess Huang, Ankur Kumar, Sara Prince, Alexis Krivkovich, and Lareina Yee, McKinsey.com, September 30, 2020, https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/gender-equality/women-in-the-workplace-2019.

Announcing the first book in the You’re More Than A Diversity Hire™ series. Coming January 2021

Where do smart, talented, trailblazers feel underestimated, sidelined, and overwhelmed?  

Today’s male-dominated STEM workplaces.

You’re More Than A Diversity Hire™ Women in STEM  fills the gap left by HR programs, well-intentioned mentors, and general career books for women.  Inside, you will find proven, actionable advice for women just like you.   

Innovation executive and MIT graduate, Dr. Angelique Adams leverages her own 25 years of experience and interviews from dozens of accomplished women, to reveal the five keys to a successful career in this challenging environment.

  1. How to tell if you’re truly good enough to reach your goals.
  2. How to command respect, with scripts for tricky situations.
  3. How to develop a career roadmap that you control.
  4. How to take on new challenges and still have time for what you care about with the A3+5Y formula.
  5. How to handle the haters, what to do when your colleagues, friends, and family decide that you are too ambitious. 

You’re trained in STEM so you know trial and error is inefficient. Why are you using it for something as important as your career? With over 20 exercises, scripts, and checklists as well as a free companion workbook, you can the answers from insiders who have lived it and succeeded.  

Jumpstart your career now.

Get notified when the book becomes available.

You’re More Than A Diversity Hire 10-Point Manifesto

  1. We are smart, talented, trailblazers (Is this you? Check here?). 
  2. Our workplaces aren’t designed with our well-being in mind; it’s understandable that we feel underestimated, sidelined, and overwhelmed.
  3. We use our frustration constructively, to promote positive change.
  4. Starting in ourselves. 
  5. Then in others.
  6. Then in processes, policies, and systems.
  7. In doing so, we unlock our full potential.
  8. And we help others, unlock theirs.
  9. We know this journey is filled with ups and downs, and stops and starts.
  10. We do it anyway. Why? See point #1.