LinkedIn-fluencers find new ways to connect

By Hugo Gerbich-Pais     4/8/25 11:08pm

From wellbeing content and making new friends to half marathons on the beach, LinkedIn feeds are becoming increasingly populated by things other than the usual job announcements and internship offers. 

Baker College senior Jacob Straube said many students now use the career-oriented social media site to connect with others, develop personal brands and express their personality. 

“I started off writing these formal posts about my company, but they felt kind of empty and I wasn’t really proud of them,” Straube said. “Now, I drop a post and random people that I never would have connected with will connect with me and talk about my posts.”

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Straube said that one of his most controversial posts is a shirtless photo of him, posted after he had run a half marathon on the beach during a spring break trip to Corpus Christi, Texas. 

“I’m just experimenting,” Straube said. “Sometimes a post that I didn’t expect does super well. Who cares if it’s embarrassing, who cares if you get haters on Fizz – it doesn’t matter. See what works, and have fun with it.” 

Although some reacted negatively to his spring break post, telling him it was cringe and unprofessional, Straube said taking the risk paid off. Some of his posts have received over 400,000 reactions on LinkedIn.

“I didn’t even think about it at the time; it was just something I did and wanted to share,” Straube said. “But that post led to a lot of people from the fitness world reaching out, and that’s really expanded my network.”

Felicity Phelan, a peer career advisor, said she still sees LinkedIn primarily as something to help students research positions and find opportunities. 

“I don’t necessarily feel like everyone needs to be a LinkedIn-fluencer,” said Phelan, a Duncan College junior. “It’s an important part of having a professional presence, the same way that an artist is going to have a portfolio.”

Tyler Strothman, a Duncan College senior, said he used LinkedIn as an invaluable tool for finding mentors and to help with founding his running shoe company, Veloci Running. 

“Even before I started Veloci, I knew I wanted to get into the running industry, and LinkedIn made it incredibly easy to connect with people,” Strothman said. “People love speaking to college students because we are the next generation.” 

With over 13,000 followers, Duncan College alumna Sydney Rodman ’23 said she uses LinkedIn to grow her network and keep in contact with collaborators in the industry. As the founder of sustainability startup Green Revival, she said LinkedIn allows her to find opportunities and potential clients.

“You can use Linkedin to grow your following [and] your network and increase opportunities,” Rodman said. “Or you can prioritise using it to leverage your already existing network.” 

Rodman said she is also open about her Jewish identity on LinkedIn and often uses the platform to combat antisemitism and disinformation around Judaism by commenting on posts she deems problematic or incorrect. 

“A lot of people shy away [from confronting hate] because they think it will impact their success, but it’s really important to be the black sheep,” Rodman said. “There could be 10 comments that disagree, but people will see what you say and respect you for having the courage to advocate against hate.”

For Phelan, the conversation around LinkedIn is reflective of a broader conversation about work. 

“Should we have these ‘Severance’-like ‘worksonas?’” Phelan said. “When we’re on LinkedIn, should we just be professional and not talk about emotions, feelings or struggling? Or is it good to normalize that and be vulnerable on LinkedIn?”

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