I’ve been running an experiment on LinkedIn for two years.
I’ve posted every single day for the last 603 days.
The last one I posted had something to do with my career and rebrand. I had my picture in it. I think I wore a t- shirt. Maybe it was a hoody. Most people would call it unprofessional. I would have thought so too, if we wound back the hand of time to six years ago – the first time I created a personal post on LinkedIn. Someone had to push me to do it. His name was Eric.
He was my publishing instructor. On our weekly coll as I drafted my first book, he said, “before next week guys, I want you to go to whatever social media you’re on and announce your book to
“Oh, hell no.” That was my immediate reaction. “I haven’t finished writing the book yet….it’s not that professional….what will people think about me….I’m not a writer.”
Excuses filled my being.
I wanted an audience but didn’t want an audience. Two conflicting needs in one mind is the recipe for stress.
As he wrapped up the call, he reminded us: “Don’t overthink it guys. Just do it.”
A day before the next class, I stood in my sister’s bathroom, pacing, telling myself “stop being a punk and just post.” I typed up something on my phone, posted it, and flung the phone away.
I laugh at my previous self but have compassion for that scared LinkedIn poster.
Now I write three draft posts before finishing my cappuccino.
It’s a reminder that we can be intentional about our growth or what holds is back.
Consistency against conformity
Here’s what nobody warns you about success: it creates new prisons.
You worked so hard to build a six-figure business, now you can’t enjoy it because all the new people in your network have seven-figure businesses.
You worked so hard to solidify yourself as a strong and respected engineer, but now you have to hide your painting hobby because it makes you look like a “messy artist.”
You’ve climbed high on the corporate ladder and you finally got the perfect Linkedin headshot with the laser-sharp one-line professional bio, so you drown that feeling that keeps popping its head telling you to build your clothing brand.
It’s success disguised as failure.
A failure to continue growing.
I remember when I published my first book, a childhood friend reached out and said “I know you and your siblings are all engineers, soooo where did the “whole music thing” come from.”
Me venturing into music had become “off-brand.”
I laughed it off but those words stayed with me. It made me doubt whenever I showed a newer side of myself. I’d ask myself: “Would this make me seem unfocused?”
It made me pause before sharing anything new because I felt people in my immediate network would judge me.
I saw my peers celebrate their steady and focused careers. It made me think I wasn’t doing enough. Perhaps I didn’t have anything to celebrate. No one wants to hear about my “little consulting business.” I didn’t talk about the music I made on the weekends. The book I was secretly writing on the side.
“Nifemi….so unserious” The little judge that sat on my shoulder, whispered in my ears.
When I caught up with friends, I realized they felt the pressure too. They were advancing in their careers but suppressing passion projects. Stacking up titles but fending off the intrigue of an unventured venture. “Ah, what will people say?” That’s what my Nigerian friends would interject as they justify why they can’t take on projects that are not guaranteed to succeed.
Why don’t you rebel?
The reality is that your achievements become comfort zones that stop you from growing.
These are the worst types of bondage. The ones we put on ourselves. It’s like the same growth mindset you adopted to get you far in your profession is then traded in for the comfort of “I’ve finally made it.”
But what is “finally making it.”
That’s why a lot of us struggle with authenticity in public – on social media, at a networking event, at the park.
We only want to show the BIG wins. The major announcements. The pictures on the big stage.
You don’t want to show the struggle of growth. The daily failures that humble you. The challenges you face with distractions, self-doubt, and overthinking.
Here’s what we all know: growth is hard.
You have to stay consistent to grow and learn to battle daily resistance.
That’s exactly why I chose LinkedIn, the least natural outlet for someone like me. I had learned about the importance of having an audience from selling B2B services and books. With something as front-facing as Linkedin “the social media for the buttoned-up professional.” I took a rebellious approach to posting.
I doubled down on discomfort.
Instead of stopping. I did the opposite.
Instead of slowing down. I went faster.
Instead of writing less posts. I wrote more.
Until I got comfortable with being uncomfortable doing it.
I moved from posts once every month to once a week to every single day. I’ve gone full Punk Rock now.
Now I developed a system to stay consistent and overcome persistent self-doubt. I get on social media with intention. What used to cause anxiety now seems like a fun place to study what other practitioners are doing. I ask: “How are they using this new technology to tell engaging stories with text, images, videos?”
Consistency is a systematic rebellion against comfort.
But you have to be an eternal student. Always learning.
It’s a way to break away from soul-draining conformity. You can practice a rebellious form of growth through consistency.
Every rebel needs their measurement
Measure progress, not applause.
One of the biggest roadblocks for people is the perception they have of what other people think about them.
One of the biggest ways to overcome this mental barrier is to reduce your need for immediate gratification. The easiest way to do that is having your own internal scorecard and measurement.
You are going to do a lot of things that people will not talk about. It’s not because what you’re doing isn’t good, but those people you care about are too busy caring about themselves. Don’t focus on the ups and downs of people’s perception. It’s too mind-dizzying to think about all that.
Focus on what you can control.
Your input, your measurements, your growth.
For instance, I check my stats on LinkedIn every 90 days. I measure the median impressions and reactions. Everytime I publish a new post, I see the impressions and reactions as a multiple of my previous average and median (2x, 5x, 0.2x). As long as I’m moving forward, even if it’s a 1% increase, then there is growth. Comparing my weekly posts to the performance of other people’s posts becomes a futile exercise.
Just measure against your past self. That’s real success.
Resistance is part of the game
You will feel the resistance. Just like I did when I was pacing back and forth to write my first post in my sister’s house. But then you’ll be rewarding yourself with a gift – a journey that breaks you away from the unwritten shackles holding you back from real success (one that you define for yourself). You will get there by reducing your need for immediate gratification.
Keep practicing.
Yours truly,
Nifemi
P.S. Know someone trapped by their own success? Forward this to them – sometimes we all need permission to rebel against our comfort zones.
