In May 2023, I made a decision that would change the course of my career and life: I quit the job market entirely.
For three years, the idea of starting my own business had been pestering like “Gollum” in my mind, and I finally decided to take the plunge. Little did I know that this decision would not only lead to the creation of a valuable product but change my entire outlook of LinkedIn as a platform.
LinkedIn as a Founder’s Journal
As a new founder, I knew that building in public would be crucial. LinkedIn seemed like the perfect platform to share my journey, connect with fellow entrepreneurs, and potentially attract future customers. I set a goal for myself: to post consistently and authentically about my experiences as a first-time founder.
However, the reality of consistent posting quickly set in. For the first three months, I struggled immensely. Coming up with ideas for posts was time-consuming, and crafting those ideas into well-written, engaging content felt like a Herculean task.
I found myself spending nearly 10 hours each week just to maintain a consistent presence on the platform.
When I lost my mind
Two months into my journey, I onboarded a co-founder. To my surprise (and slight relief), I saw them struggling with the same LinkedIn challenges I had faced. That’s when it hit me: this wasn’t just my problem. It was a problem faced by countless entrepreneurs and professionals trying to build their personal brand.
As a software engineer by training, I saw an opportunity. One of my goals as a founder was to create products that solved my own problems, believing that if it was a problem for me, it was likely a problem for others too. I set myself an ambitious target: to reclaim up to 80% of the time we were dedicating to LinkedIn content creation. WHILE MAINTAINING MY AUTHENTIC VOICE. And writing content that is for my target audience.
6+ weeks of coding sprints later
That’s how LiGo was born. I leveraged AI tools heavily (Cursor, Claude 3.5, v0.dev, AudioAI Chrome Extension, to create a tool that would generate ideas for LinkedIn posts and even craft ready-to-publish content.
Using AI for this made it possible to speed up the process significantly, allowing me to focus more on strategy and engagement rather than getting stuck in the content creation phase.
LiGo wasn’t just a solution for me; it was the first product in my mission to create tools that make entrepreneurship more accessible, especially for students and aspiring founders who might not have access to significant funding.
Tell us the numbers already!!!
Since launching my business in May and consistently using LiGo (since late August) to maintain my LinkedIn presence, the results have been pretty good (I’m aiming for much higher but these are pretty good for the first 6 months).
As of October 12th, 2023:
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I’ve made close to 100 posts
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One post went viral, garnering over 700 engagements and 200,000+ impressions
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+10 posts have received 100+ reactions and 10K+ impressions.
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My LinkedIn profile has seen north of 5,000 profile views
All of this in just about 4–5 months of consistent posting.
But the numbers aren’t important - connections are!
I regularly receive DMs from people looking to connect me with investors (though I’m committed to bootstrapping for now). More importantly, I’m building real relationships with fellow entrepreneurs, potential customers, and industry leaders.
Lessons learned and advice for the 5 months younger me
Whether you’re a job seeker looking to advance your career or an entrepreneur trying to build your brand, here’s what I’ve learned:
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Consistency is Key: Show up daily. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but it has to be present.
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Be Authentic: Share your real experiences, challenges, and triumphs. People connect with authenticity.
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Engage Genuinely: Don’t just post and ghost. Comment on others’ posts, send thoughtful connection requests, and treat LinkedIn like any other social platform you enjoy.
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Leverage Tools: Don’t be afraid to use tools like LiGo to make your life easier. Efficiency doesn’t mean inauthenticity; it means you can focus more on engagement and less on the grind of content creation.
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Think Long-Term: Building a personal brand or a business takes time. Be patient and focus on providing value consistently.
A Final Word
For those of you still hesitating to put yourself out there, remember this: your skills, experiences, and insights are valuable. Whether you’re a seasoned professional or a student about to graduate, your perspective is unique and worth sharing.
And if you find yourself struggling with consistency or content creation, know that tools like LiGo are here to help.
LiGo offers $5 worth of free credits when you sign up, allowing you to experience how AI can streamline your LinkedIn content strategy.
Your LinkedIn journey doesn’t have to be a solitary struggle.
