Your “Open to Work” Doesn’t Move Me Anymore, But Your Story Might - The Globalpreneur

Your “Open to Work” Doesn’t Move Me Anymore, But Your Story Might

Do you post your lived experiences on LinkedIn? Here’s why you must use creative storytelling.

Imagine this. You crafted the perfect post last Monday. Nothing different from the ones before.

Font? In vogue.
Tone? On point.
Visuals? Sexy.

You hit that “post” button with confidence, happy to create something that your audience loves.

But then you get 5 Likes in 6 hours. If a pin dropped in the room, you’d hear it. Feels quite awful huh? And if it couldn’t get any worse, a bot leaves a “Great info, thanks for sharing.” Ughh.

Come the 7th hour and somebody posts, “I cried in the restroom stall today at work.” Booom. 2k Likes. 17 Shares. 48 Comments. All in 2 hours. One guy even wanted to know what font and tools were used. The difference was just wild.

The truth is LinkedIn today is a lot less “Corporate Lunch-and-Learn” and more a “Gather around, I’ve got a story to tell.” Because it doesn’t matter if you’re posting insightful content, quoting McKinsey, or doing everything by the book. If your content still feels hollow at the end of the day, know that it’s not because it’s bad, but because it’s bloodless.

Meaning, all of us have been told at some point that we must lead with value. But what nobody says is how vulnerability is valuable too. In a feed full of curated wins, sparkles, and success, your humanity is your competitive edge.

So here’s the secret to why stories and lived experiences hit differently today. And how you can tell yours minus sounding like you’re in therapy with 1,000 followers watching your every move.

Stories = Human Stickiness

As we all know by now that LinkedIn’s algorithm adores consistency. And we humans? We love a good connection.

For instance, if you told someone now that you increased your productivity by 37%, they’ll nod politely.

But if you told them you had a meltdown over a Zoom call, and how you pulled yourself together and fixed the problem? NOW you’ve got their heart + their attention.

A Tip: Try something along the lines of “The day I almost rage-quit on a Zoom call, and what I did instead.” Write a post about your experience of that Zoom call, what you were frustrated about, and how you took care of the problem.

Vulnerability is Magnetic.

Perfectionism is boring. And vulnerability is the new black.

The umpteen number of “struggle hard” posts are cool and all, but frankly aren’t always credible.

And you know what is? Saying, “I was late to an important pitch, spilled coffee on my pressed shirt, and STILL got the deal.”

Real stories give off “main character energy” not because they’re refined, but because they’re relatable and human.

A Reminder: If you show up as the imperfect person you are, boldly and unapologetically, you have a better chance at building more trust than showing up as a LinkedIn superhero.

Stories Spark Comments AND Reactions

We know that you’d rather see a comment on your post that says, “Wow, same here pal!” over a polite thumbs-up from someone who scrolled past 3 seconds later.

You see, when you open up to people, even a tad, you invite them to say, “I’ve been there too buddy. I know what that feels like and I understand what you’re going through.”

Just human nature. A relatable and empathetic statement takes seconds to say and type with nothing to lose. LinkedIn is a place to connect and converse, like a two-way street. So start reciprocating what you’d like to see for yourself first.

Try This: Next time, give this a go: “Have you ever abandoned your own content because you felt too scared that it wasn’t good enough?” Relatable + a conversation starter.

Real Beats Theoretical. Everytime.

Sure enough, you’re free to quote Mahatma Gandhi or the Harvard Business Review. Or you could say, “Here’s how I fumbled an international client pitch and STILL managed to turn it around and land the deal.”

Theory informs, yes. But a story? That one transforms.

Because people don’t have the patience anymore to wait around just for a “what happened.” They want to know the full tea. All of it. From the whys and the hows, all the way to the oops.

What You Can Do: You can swap a headline or a blog on “3 Leadership Lessons” with “What I learned after leading a team of 10 that wanted to quit on me.” The tea’s right there, and a buffet awaitin’ within.

Memorability Comes From Being Human

People forget the statistics, but they always remember the goosebumps.

Your story is your personal brand’s emotional signature.

So if you want to be remembered in a sea of “thought leaders” on LinkedIn or other professional spaces, you need to start sounding like a person.

A Pointer: The next time you’re thinking of posting something, ask yourself, “Would my best friend screenshot this, upload it on social media, tag me, and caption ‘This is so YOU’?”