A few things on LinkedIn have been troubling me for some time, so I thought I’d put the main ones out here for clarity, feedback and/ or comments (if any):

1. Organisations (vis-à-vis individuals) inviting me to connect
2. New requests that have phrases like “actively looking out for…”, “ready to relocate”, “seeking new opportunities.”, etc.
3. People viewing my profile in private mode (whatever that is), or simply an unnamed “LinkedIn user”
4. Folks employed at “confidential”, “incognito”, “private”, etc.

Allow me to elaborate…

#1 Organisations v/s Individuals: The main purpose of my being on this platform is to network with peers, and other individuals with similar professional interests. At the same time, I might choose to *follow* organisations of my interest. As far as I am concerned, networking happens between individuals and not brands (rhetoric aside). To that end I have been ignoring [almost all] invites from everyone other than individuals.

Should I accept these invites and inflate my count of followers or does anyone else do this?

#2 Job Hunting: When some seeking a job (an active job hunter) sends me an invite, it puts me under immediate [and unwanted] pressure. It is like holding a gun to my head right away. Does he want me to find him a job? Will I disappoint him if I cannot help? God forbid, but, maybe I am in a similar (or worse) situation myself.

I agree that LinkedIn is a wonderful platform for jobs, head hunting, professional growth, etc. but for goodness’ sake, let’s establish common grounds first. Believe me, I am always keen to help when I can.

#3 Stalking? Again, for goodness sake, grow a pair! Reasons for this kind of behaviour, I can only imagine include:

1. You are a hiring manager with a resourcing firm and are afraid that I’ll hound you for your reasons for visiting my profile and/ or demand a job
2. You are a competitor lurking around at to find out what I am up to
3. You are a jealous peer or [worse,] a former employer (!) – who can’t digest the fact that I’m still alive
4. A mole?
5. A tax official?

#4 Employer unknown: Too ashamed of your employer or outright lying? Do I really care?