Why Most LinkedIn Growth Advice is Dangerously Bad

It's really easy to sound smart when predicting the past.

Our brains struggle to understand the complexity of something that is so incredibly abstract and intricate as modern social networks.

Firstly, because they’re enormously sophisticated—as I mentioned in a previous newsletter, it’s highly unlikely even LinkedIn’s engineers fully understand its algorithm.

Second, because success on LinkedIn, individually, is largely random.

(While people hate to hear that (because it moves the locus of control outwards), “consistency” is so important because it gives you back that control by brute-forcing the visibility of your content to a growing audience)

So, to make sense of this chaotic landscape, we rely on mental shortcuts and biases.

This helps us make decisions faster without constantly analyzing what works and what doesn't.

While this is generally helpful for daily life, it can be disruptive when trying to find a “signal” in the LinkedIn “noise.”

This is why you've probably seen endless posts about:

• The "perfect" posting time

• The "ideal" content format

• The "killer" engagement strategy

Here's the truth: 90% of it is nonsense.

And I'm going to show you why.

Why You're Getting Bad Advice

The biggest problem with LinkedIn advice isn't that it's wrong (though it often is).

It's that it's based on fundamentally flawed thinking patterns that lead people to draw the wrong conclusions from what they see.

Let me break this down with a real example.

Recently, I posted two pieces of content for a client in one week:

1. A detailed breakdown of SaaS pricing strategies (took hours to create)

2. A quick thought about leadership (took 20 minutes to write)

Guess which one got more engagement?

The leadership post crushed it.

100+ likes, dozens of comments, and tons of shares.

Most "LinkedIn experts" would look at this and tell you: "See? Quick, simple posts about leadership perform better! That's what you should focus on!"

This is exactly the kind of shallow analysis that's killing people's LinkedIn growth and monetization.

Here's why:

The Problem With Pattern-Matching

When people analyze "what works" on LinkedIn, they typically fall into three major traps:

1. The Success-Only Trap

They only look at what worked, never what failed.

It's like studying only lottery winners to understand how to win the lottery.

This is why you see advice like:

• "Just post two times a day!"

• "Always use these two emojis!"

• "Write exactly like [insert influencer]!"

But here's what they miss: for every viral post following these "rules," there are thousands of similar posts that got zero traction.

2. The False Attribution Trap

People love to attribute success to things they can control.

It makes them feel safe. It makes them feel like they can replicate success.

And, most importantly, it makes LinkedIn gurus look smart when predicting the past.

This is why you see endless posts breaking down "why this post went viral":

• "The first line hooked people"

• "The formatting was perfect"

• "The CTA was strong"

But here's what actually matters: did you say something worth paying attention to?

3. The Correlation Confusion

Just because something happened before success doesn't mean it caused success.

• I've seen posts go viral at 6 AM and 11 PM.

• I've seen long posts crush it, and short posts crush it.

• I've seen pro-designed carousels convert like crazy, and plain text win just as big

Why? Well…

The Format Doesn't Matter (Much)

Here's what actually drives success on LinkedIn:

1. Credibility (Do people trust your expertise?)

2. Value (Are you saying something worth hearing?)

3. Clarity (Can people understand your point quickly?)

4. Luck (Will the algorithm pick it up? Will it show it to the right audience?)

Everything else is just optimization.

The Real Way to Analyze LinkedIn Success

Instead of falling for shallow metrics and false patterns, here's what you should actually look at:

1. Market Fit

Does your content match what your target audience actually wants? Not what you think they want, but what they actually engage with consistently?

2. Unique Insight

Are you sharing something they can't find anywhere else?

This is why generic "hustle culture" posts are dying—they're everywhere.

3. Professional Relevance

Does your content help people solve real professional problems?

LinkedIn isn't TikTok—people are here to advance their careers.

A Real Example of What Works

Let me show you why this matters with a real case study.

One of my clients, before working with us, was posting "thought leadership" content daily for months.

Lots of engagement, lots of likes, zero business results.

Why? Because they were playing the wrong game.

We shifted their strategy to focus on their actual expertise (enterprise sales operations) and started sharing specific, actionable insights from their experience.

The engagement numbers actually went down. But you know what went up? Inbound leads. High-quality connections. Real business opportunities.

This is the difference between vanity metrics and actual results.

How to Actually Grow on LinkedIn

Here's what actually works:

1. Build Real Credibility

• Share specific experiences, not generic advice

• Back claims with real results you’ve created

• Admit when you don't know something

2. Focus on Your Lane

• Pick your specific area of expertise

• Stick to it consistently

• Ignore trends outside your focus

3. Create Value First

• Share insights that help solve real problems

• Focus on actionable takeaways

• Skip the motivational fluff

The Metrics That Actually Matter

Forget about likes and comments for a minute.

Here are the real metrics you should track:

1. Inbound Connection Quality

Are the right people trying to connect with you?

2. Direct Message Relevance

Are you getting messages about your actual expertise or just generic networking requests?

3. Professional Opportunity Flow

Are you getting speaking invites, client inquiries, or job opportunities related to your expertise?

These matter infinitely more than your engagement rate.

What This Means For You

If you're trying to grow on LinkedIn, here's what to do:

1. Ignore most "LinkedIn growth" advice

2. Focus on sharing real expertise

3. Measure what matters (real opportunities, not vanity metrics)

4. Build genuine professional relationships

And most importantly: stop trying to game the system. It doesn't work long-term.

Your Next Steps

1. Audit your recent posts - are they showing real expertise or just chasing engagement?

2. Look at your last 10 inbound connections—are they people you actually want to connect with?

3. Review your content strategy—does it align with your professional goals?

A Final Note

Remember: LinkedIn isn't a game to be hacked. It's a professional platform where real expertise and value win in the long run.

If you're leading a business doing over $1M in revenue and want to cut through the noise, book a call with me here. I'll show you how to build a LinkedIn presence that actually drives business results, not just likes.

For everyone else, I offer coaching calls here.

See you in the next newsletter (coming when it's ready, not when the "optimal posting schedule" says it should).

Thanks for reading.

PS: I'd like to give a hat tip to wono via X/Twitter for inspiring the content here. He is one of my biggest inspirations in the creator economy, and I highly recommend his work.