Another Joy of Retirement...

ExFlyBoy5

ExFlyBoy5

Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Joined
May 29, 2013
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While I was sitting on the deck enjoying some coffee and pursuing the news of the day, I came across and article that talked about LinkedIn profiles. For the record, since I am retired, I don't have a need for LinkedIn, but apparently, it's almost a "necessity" in the w*rking world. I wasn't going to read it, but something in the title caught my attention, so I took a gander...and I am GLAD I did. It was a not so subtle reminder that being retired and not w*rking is truly a wonderful thing. So, if you would like a reminder about how GREAT retirement is...then take a gander!

https://www.fastcompany.com/4047387...these-5-things-from-your-linkedin-profile-now
 
I used LinkedIn simply as a way to have a contacts list that would always be up-to-date "just in case" I ever got laid off and needed to do a job search. Who knows if Megacorp would have escorted me to the door before I could copy my Outlook file?

Now that I'm retired, I've updated my LinkedIn profile to show me as "retired" with a job title of "Head Bottle Washer." Still, I get emails occasionally from headhunters.
 
I signed up with a very minimal profile and a photo so any of my old w*rk colleagues could contact me if they wanted to. Only a few have, but Linkedin has populated my possible contacts in an amazingly scary way, evidently making all kinds of connections from information they have on me. I find it amusing to see the profiles of the more self promoting people I w*rked with still out there puffing up their image.
 
I got tired of getting requests for connections and deleted my LinkedIn profile within a year of ER.
 
I have a LinkedIn profile that shows my current position as "Retired." I still get quite a few inquiries from head hunters. I do have some fairly specialized experience that not a lot of people have. So, when an opening pops up, I think I usually get included in the head hunter's search results.
 
My profile says "never contact", but I still get emails. It feels GREAT to delete those without opening them! That's one good reason not to close the account for good.
 
I'm leaving my LinkedIn profile active because people who used to report to me still need references from time to time, and I want to make it easy for them to find me. I did change the description to say that I'm retired and am not looking for new opportunities, but recruiters still email me a few times a month. I assume that'll taper off as time passes.
 
Looking at LinkedIn reminded me of grim days, 1960 to 1993, holding on to a job or looking for the next one. I deleted my LinkedIn account. Good riddance.
 
ExFlyBoy5 said:
I came across and article that talked about LinkedIn profiles....

https://www.fastcompany.com/4047387...these-5-things-from-your-linkedin-profile-now
Click to expand...

Sigh. Like so many business articles, it's all about how to appear a certain way to other people. Just like all the talk in the corporate world of "leaning in," establishing one's "personal brand," etc. As distinguished from, let's say, sincerity, focusing on honest interactions, and accomplishing tasks of real value.

Not RE yet, but FI, or close to it, and one of the benefits of financial independence - also one of the few and perverse perquisites of aging - is not having to pay as much attention to the nonsense of managing others' perceptions, in order to survive. Also, being able to focus more clearly on what actually matters in the remaining years.
 
Two years agree ER I'm still getting job offers from my LinkdIn profile. It was scary how they dug up people I knew and haven't thought about for 20 yrs. I got tired of people asking for endorsements. I don't even have access to my account anymore.
 
I have a LinkedIn profile with over 500 contacts, including relatives and a few old boyfriends. My title is "Private Portfolio Manager" at "Home Office". I genuinely like many of the people I worked with and I'm still interested in what's going on in the business and who's moved where.

Endorsements are just silly. I've gotten endorsements from well-meaning relatives who probably don't even understand the meaning of the specialized skills for which they're endorsing me. Several are from a guy who didn't have the cojones to stand up to the owner of the small consulting firm where we worked when the owner decided I was incompetent. NOW he endorses me? I do see a lot of self-promotion from people trying to drum up business of one sort or another and I'm very glad I don't have to worry about that.
 
Last edited:
I never had a linkedin account, and set an email filter to just junk any from them as I got tired of getting invites.
 
I have a linkedin account but I can't access it as it was my employer's email and that changed and I never updated and I could care less if any of those people can't solicit me for referrals or anything else for that matter. I was always amazed at people (lots of them) who I never knew or met or even had an interest in, wanting to "connect"

Where do all these people come from? And why would I want to know anything about them? I left them all hanging and "blowin' in the wind"

I'm retired and could care less about any work related issues anymore. I don't want to be linked in, I want to be signed out - :)
 
TimeMeasure said:
Sigh. Like so many business articles, it's all about how to appear a certain way to other people. Just like all the talk in the corporate world of "leaning in," establishing one's "personal brand," etc. As distinguished from, let's say, sincerity, focusing on honest interactions, and accomplishing tasks of real value.
Click to expand...

I had some reason to skim some business article earlier this week, and it too had elements of 'do this to be sure you appear this way'. It made me realize that this was one of the things I like best about retirement - not having to worry about this kind of BS anymore.
 
LinkedIn is like Facebook for business. I get zillions of requests weekly to connect with people everywhere with a zero chance of ever even wanting to know me or about me. They are just trying to UP their connection rate to look good. I look forward to Linking OUT!
 
W*rking at the same MegaCorp for 36 years (well, the name changed a few times) means I missed the whole "LinkedIn" scene. To be honest, I never actually missed it.

Many of the requests I've gotten have been from people I barely knew, in an unrelated field, and with whom I had no work experience in common. Sort of made me wonder what the whole point was.

In the (distant) past, I'd always fine-tune my resume for the job I was applying for. Back then, half the battle was knowing the "buzz words" the hiring manager was looking for, even if you didn't know exactly what they meant until you got the job. And they didn't play silly games at the interview; they asked pointed questions and assessed your suitability for the job in question.

I'm so glad I didn't have to go through a job search in recent years. It all seems so phony!

I've been toying with the idea of doing some part-time or free-lance gigs, just to try out some things I always wanted to do.

Even now, I can't imagine putting together ONE on-line resume that covers all my interests and abilities, without watering down the one I'd be applying for at any given moment, or appearing over-qualified for it.

Maybe I just can't pick ONE identity for myself. That's also why I'm still avoiding Facebook.
 
I was on LinkedIn as well, and never saw any value in it. In fact, it was more annoying that useful. Those Connection requests became nagging. I often got such requests from people I didn't know, so didn't reply. But LinkeIn was sure to remind me every few days. In any event, it was never of any help the 2 times I was between j*bs.
After ER, I got some really strange connection requests from former co-workers who either disliked me or the opposite (and the person knew it).
 
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