Woman With So Many Job Interviews She Had To Turn Them Down Shares 8 Genius LinkedIn Hacks
CrizzyStudio | ShutterstockThere's no doubt: the old ways of finding jobs are dead, and that doesn't just mean your boomer dad's suggestion to "just go down there and fill out an application."
Technological advances in recruiting, especially AI, have fundamentally shifted the system. One woman has developed key strategies to game that system, and they might help you crack the code.
Jesska (her last name is withheld), a content creator focused on job-search tips, recently shared a story most job seekers would kill for. "I found my job in one month," she said. "In one month, I had to stop applying to jobs because I had so many recruiters and people messaging me on LinkedIn."
Sounds like an absolute dream, right? Imagine just sitting back and letting the jobs come to you instead of shuffling 100 resumes a day into a black hole! Jesska said it ultimately comes down to optimizing your LinkedIn profile, which is nothing new, of course.
But these days, it also means optimizing it for the AI tools recruiters use to find needles in haystacks, and many of us aren't adept at that yet. "Literally, I have LinkedIn wrapped around my finger," Jesska said in her video, and she shared eight simple hacks to turn your profile into a recruiter honeypot.
The LinkedIn hacks that worked like magic for one woman who landed multiple interviews:
1. Use the 'open to work' sticker
Opinions vary on this simple tactic; some experts say it makes you seem desperate. Perhaps, but for recruiters, it's also a basic sorting tool for LinkedIn profiles that prioritize actively searching candidates. You can also set your profile so only recruiters can see the sticker, not your current employer or clients.
2. Consider leaving high-level credentials out of your name and title
This refers to how your name and title appear on LinkedIn, such as "Joe Smith, MBA" or "Jane Doe, Ph.D.," for example. "I'm so sorry, it's so impressive that you have an MBA," Jesska said. "[But] unless you went to Harvard," it often gets overlooked and can even work against you.
Unfair as it is, recruiters often brand those with high-level degrees as "overqualified." Some jobs and fields require these degrees, so your situation may vary. But it's worth considering whether that "MBA" in your name is making recruiters move on immediately.
3. Include two different job titles in your header description
Beneath your name on your LinkedIn profile is the space for your job title that sums up what you do. Jesska said to include two different titles: one you've already got under your belt and one you're aspiring to.
"I'm qualified for both of them," Jesska explained, "but one is a more senior position, and then one is something I'm definitely qualified for, if not overqualified." This broadens the scope of what you can be considered for, rather than pigeonholing you at the level of your current or last position.
4. Optimize the 'About Me' section for AI, and don't forget the 'Top Skills' part
"The 'About Me' section is so important for AI," Jesska said. "Literally, this is how recruiters find you because you have all those keywords in there." So if this field isn't filled out, or it's not optimized for AI, you're putting yourself out of the running for lots and lots of stuff.
Jesska said if you're not sure how to do this, upload your resume to an AI tool like ChatGPT and ask it to write you an About Me summary for LinkedIn. You can also prompt it to include keywords for the fields and positions you're targeting.
The summary you get may not be perfect, but it will at least be a launchpad for creating one. Also, don't skip the "Top Skills" part of the "About Me" section. Jesska said people often don't know this exists, and it's a great way to sum you up.
5. Keep your job experience descriptions succinct and optimized
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Many experts advise job seekers to fill their job experience section to the hilt to include as many keywords as possible. Jesska suggested a more streamlined approach: focus on the company, job title, dates, and the skills you actually used, rather than the job description. Instead, she recommended tailoring the verbiage to the kinds of jobs you're looking for or being considered for. AI tools can help with this, too.
6. 'Max out' your Education and Skills sections
Here is where you'll talk about that MBA you took out of your headline, of course, along with certifications and other coursework. The Skills section is another often overlooked part of a LinkedIn profile that gets you tons more keywords for the algorithm.
"This is where you max out," Jesska recommended. You can put up to 100 skills in this section, though it's important to remember that only the top three are shown by default. Some experts recommend keeping this limited so that your profile stays clean and organized, but Jesska said more is more. If you're having trouble thinking of skills, an AI tool can be a huge help.
7. Engage on LinkedIn as much as possible, but do so very carefully
If you're like a lot of people (me, I'm talking about me), you hardly ever even log into LinkedIn unless it's to send off a job application. Jesska said that is the opposite of how you should approach it. "Be confidently delusional" and pretend "you're famous," she said. "The more you engage with the platform, the more it engages with you," and the more oomph your profile will get in the algorithm.
However, it is vitally important to be choosy about what you engage with. "This is corporate America," she said. "You have to drink the Kool-Aid." That means avoiding anything remotely controversial, which, bizarrely, is a lot of the content on LinkedIn these days.
8. Don't wait to respond to LinkedIn messages
Finally, Jesska said that when you get a LinkedIn message, respond as soon as possible. Don't wait until after work or later when you have spare time. Jump!
"The minute a recruiter or an HR manager reaches out to you, head hunts you on LinkedIn in your messages, emergency! Stop, drop, and roll over to your laptop," Jesska said. "They reach out to you out of all the millions of people on LinkedIn! Stop what you're doing. Message them." Seize the moment, and you might land a new opportunity.
John Sundholm is a writer, editor, and video personality with 20 years of experience in media and entertainment. He covers culture, mental health, and human interest topics.
