A lot can happen in 3 months.
You can end the year strong.
BTW, calendars are an artificial construct.
But the psychology of a season and a 90-day time frame is powerful.
Here are a few questions that can help you define your autumn intentions:
👉 How do you choose to lead?
👉 What do you want to change?
👉 What are you saying “yes” to?
👉 What are you saying “no” to?
In July I did an experiment.
I posted daily on LinkedIn to see what would happen.
My mission? To answer questions about content creation:
On Saturdays, I posted weekly interim reports. Questions people asked as a result:
WHAT THE DATA SAYS
Key Metrics for July
Top Performing Posts
Why did “Don’t Apply for Stuff” do so well? It was a contrarian view on the job search. The statement was an attention grabber. It offered knowledge and advice. People engaged with the post by commenting and reposting right away. LinkedIn seems to reward early engagement, in the first hour, with more impressions.
And along those lines, it’s okay and even advisable to like your own posts and comment on them. You can add more info in a comment. It’s also good to reply to as many comments on your post as possible, to foster dialogue. Include a question to keep the conversation going.
WHAT THE DATA MEANS
During the first half of the year, I posted monthly or less. Impressions were higher, in the range of 3,500 to 10,000.
The LinkedIn algorithm did change in mid 2023, to reward posts that share knowledge and advice.
But because my posts have always shared knowledge and advice, that may not be the reason impressions are lower in July, generally in the range of 250 to 2,500. Perhaps my content quality isn’t high enough. Or maybe posting daily has resulted in fewer impressions per post.
Logically, that means I should post less frequently.
BUT, this data suggests otherwise:
The quality of my relationships and conversations on LinkedIn have dramatically improved in July. And that speaks to my goals of serving people through my content, improving the quality of my network, and enhancing my personal brand.
ADVICE FOR YOUR CONTENT
Lastly, don’t give up. It takes time to build a professional reputation through content creation.
Briana Sharp expressed it beautifully in a comment on one of my posts. She wrote: James Clear in his book Atomic Habits references the period when nothing seems to happen but is, citing the example of “Bamboo can barely be seen for the first five years as it builds extensive root systems underground before exploding ninety feet into the air within six weeks.”
What root systems are you building with YOUR content?
As a leader, do you email or text employees on the weekend? 📩
Here’s why you shouldn’t.
When people think a work email could arrive during their time off, it’s hard to fully relax. People remain in an alert state of “ambient anxiety,” wondering and worrying what might come next. It’s hard to enjoy the time away from work and the refreshment and enjoyment that a weekend can provide.
Even if your email isn’t urgent and doesn’t need an immediate response, the damage is still done. The message interrupts the recipient’s day, wherever they are and whatever they are doing.
They see the message, wonder (or panic over) what it’s about, and read it. Then they may feel compelled to consider right away what action needs to be done, information needs to be digested or provided, or perspective needs to be shared in a timely response.
That process takes both physical time out of the day and exacts an emotional toll on the employee.
In my experience, here’s what works better.
1️⃣ It’s okay if you choose to process email on the weekend. Just don’t apply your choice to employees’ personal time.
2️⃣ Set your email to send later. Think about the ideal time for the employee to receive it. Perhaps it will be an hour to two into the workday on Monday. Balance being timely with your message with consideration about when it will be received.
3️⃣ Have a conversation with employees about weekend emails. Share your philosophy and expectations. Ask for their feedback. Find a protocol that works for everyone.
One exception is a true emergency that happens on the weekend. As a leader in the corporate world, I generally did not email or text employees on the weekend for routine matters. Because of that, if an emergency arose on a weekend where I needed my team’s involvement, they were responsive and helpful.
A level of trust and respect built up between us. They didn’t need to wonder if my message was urgent and needed immediate attention. Because an emergency would be the only reason I’d email them on the weekend. And other than that, they knew they weren’t going to hear from me. Hopefully that created more space for enjoyable time off.
What’s YOUR weekend email protocol?
P.S. This also applies to late-night and middle-of-the-night emails. If it’s not an urgent message, set the email to send later, during the workday in the recipient’s time zone.
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