306: How to Turn LinkedIn Into Your #1 Business and Career Growth Tool
Release Date: 04/17/2025
Finding Brave
What if the very traits you’ve been told to soften, like being collaborative or agreeable, are actually essential to your success, not obstacles to it? In this episode of Finding Brave, we explore why so many professionals, especially women, feel trapped between being liked and being respected, and what it really takes to be both. In this episode, Kathy Caprino speaks with , an organizational psychologist, professor at the University of North Carolina Kenan-Flagler Business School, and bestselling author of . Drawing on her extensive research on status, power, negotiation, and influence,...
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What does it really mean to be yourself at work without hiding, performing, or shrinking to fit expectations? In this Finding Brave conversation, we explore why authentic presence is not a soft skill or a personal indulgence, but a powerful leadership practice that builds trust, connection, and impact in today’s fast-moving, emotionally complex workplaces. Today’s inspiring guest is , the world’s first Chief Heart Officer at VaynerX, where she partners with CEO Gary Vaynerchuk to shape culture and leadership at scale. A sought-after speaker and the author of , Claude brings a...
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The world around us has transformed dramatically—but has philanthropy kept up? For our Finding Brave guest today, , American-British investor and humanitarian and the author of the new book , this question isn't academic—it's deeply personal. His philanthropic journey began humbly, volunteering at a soup kitchen as a teenager. Today, he's recognized globally for transformative work addressing homelessness through London's Passage Day Centre and championing emerging artists through the . In the U.S., he serves on the boards of The J. Paul Getty Trust, St. Patrick's Cathedral, and the...
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Everybody wants to believe in something, but the truth is, if you're a leader who shies away from asking tough questions, you're making it harder for people to believe in you. In this Finding Brave episode, we are joined by , known as the Rapid Growth Guy and storytelling expert responsible for five multi-million dollar business success stories. He is the author of and has been featured in Forbes and listed by Global Gurus as one of the Top 30 Sales Professionals. In this conversation, we explore what it truly means to lead through authentic, compelling story, not spin. Matthew unpacks how...
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Protecting your ideas is a critical step for attracting excellent aligned investors. In this episode of Finding Brave, I sit down with intellectual property expert and attorney , senior partner at , to demystify what it really takes to secure funding and safeguard innovation. Drawing on his extensive experience helping inventors, entrepreneurs, and creative professionals, David shares how a strong IP strategy serves as both protection and proof of your business’s credibility. A registered patent attorney and professor at Temple University, Parsons School of Design, and Radzyner Law School,...
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Why would someone walk away from a lucrative, 15-year career in software engineering? For , it came down to one thing: learning to prioritize the "spirit mind" over the "material mind.” That perspective shift gave him the inner clarity—and the bravery and courage—to finally move into a life and career of deeper purpose. Jeffrey is a spiritual teacher and energy healer whose work has empowered thousands of people, through ’s Healing Programs and through his own courses, trainings and years of individual and group work with thousands of people around the globe. His mission is to make...
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On the surface, you may look like the model employee, partner, or friend: always dependable, always agreeable. But beneath the surface, you may be carrying a lifetime of survival strategies that keep you invisible in your own life. This is the story knows both personally and professionally, and it’s the story she helps so many of us begin to rewrite. Dr. Ingrid Clayton is a licensed clinical psychologist with advanced degrees in transpersonal and clinical psychology. She has maintained a thriving private practice for more than fifteen years and writes the popular Psychology Today blog, ,...
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What if the parenting behaviors you dislike most in yourself aren’t really “you”? What if they’re trauma responses your brain learned long ago to survive, and what if you could change them? In this episode of Finding Brave, explores how trauma shapes our parenting and what we can do to change the cycle. Dr. Koslowitz is a trauma expert, child psychologist, and author of the new book . She treats children, adolescents, and families at the , and hosts the Post-Traumatic Parenting and . In this conversation, she explains how trauma responses can surface in family life through yelling,...
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Uncertainty has become the defining condition of our time, yet most of us still struggle to find our footing in it. What if you could reframe change itself as a source of strength? Today on Finding Brave, we’re joined by global change advisor, futurist, and author to uncover how to cultivate a “flux mindset” and discover the hidden opportunities within constant change. April, a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader and one of Forbes’ 50 Leading Female Futurists, is a trusted advisor to organizations from Airbnb and Nike to the World Bank. She is the author of , a book that helps...
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Thank you for listening to our Finding Brave show, ranked in the Top 100 Apple Career Podcasts! “Whether you’re on an athletic team, a sales force, or a symphony orchestra, you better be honest about what you think about yourself. What you think about yourself and what you think about all the things that happen day by day, that’s what constitutes your confidence.” – Dr. Nate Zinsser Confidence is a character trait that has relatively little to do with what happens to you, but rather it’s a function of how you think. Today’s Finding Brave guest reveals how you can change your...
info_outlineIf you still think of LinkedIn as nothing more than a job site or somewhere you go to upload your online resume, now is the time to update and expand your approach! Today on the show, we welcome LinkedIn insider Jon Lyndon for a deep dive into the evolution of LinkedIn and why we should all be using it as a human connection tool and a pathway to opportunity at scale.
Having spent nearly a decade at LinkedIn, Jon is an expert in how to leverage the true power of the platform. He is the founder and CEO of Lyndon Consulting, where he works with global companies and executive leaders on their LinkedIn strategy, helping them rethink how they show up, connect, and lead in a digital world. He also advises professional athletes transitioning out of sport, guiding them in building strong personal brands.
In our conversation, Jon breaks down the biggest misconceptions about LinkedIn. He unpacks how only using it as a job search leads you to lose out on key opportunities and explains powerfully why we can all afford to share more on LinkedIn — and why sharing doesn’t need to be inauthentic or boastful. Jon also offers his expert guidance on how to navigate LinkedIn when you’ve been let go from your job, and how to build greater trust, credibility, and clarity, so you’re connecting with inspiring people and learning from them, while building a mutually supportive and enriching community.
We also discuss the power of LinkedIn recommendations, how trust equals consistency over time, the importance of getting clear on the outcomes you want to achieve on LinkedIn, and Jon’s transformative personal branding work with athletes. To hear the full scope of our conversation about LinkedIn and discover its full power as a human connection tool, be sure to tune in!
Key Highlights From This Episode:
- A breakdown of the biggest misconceptions about LinkedIn. [04:31]
- Jon’s career at LinkedIn and how the platform has evolved. [09:06]
- How to get more comfortable and confident with sharing your achievements and experience on LinkedIn. [13:36]
- How to tease out the “20 facts of you” - the 20 accomplishments that you are most proud of and why these matter greatly to you, and how to share those in exciting ways [17:28}
- Why you should keep your LinkedIn updated even if you have job security. [20:06]
- Advice on how to navigate LinkedIn and share after being laid off. [23:44]
- Language one can draw on to potentially consider sharing on LinkedIn about a layoff they’ve experienced, and what they’re looking for next. [24:16]
- Suggestions for reaching out to people you want to connect with more. [27:27]
- The power of helping others and utilizing recommendations on LinkedIn. [32:20]
- Getting clarity on the outcomes you want to achieve on LinkedIn. [40:29]
- How Jon serves professional athletes through personal branding. [45:49]
- Final thoughts on how to prepare for and navigate your next chapter. [45:49]
For More Information:
Jon Lyndon on LinkedIn
Lyndon Consulting
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Quotes:
“The way that I think about LinkedIn is [as] a human connection tool. It creates a pathway to opportunity at scale.” — Jon Lyndon [0:05:01]
“When we are sharing facts and stories, and things that we've accomplished — if we have an outcome that we want to come from that, it helps us be authentic, and it helps us to be confident about those things because it leads into something rather than just sharing to share.” — Jon Lyndon [0:18:33]
“When you begin to share those in the right way, other people then attach to those things, and they're relevant because they say, ‘Oh, I didn't know that about you, but this applies [to] my life because I'm going through this as well.’” — Jon Lyndon [0:19:14]
“You never know when [LinkedIn] might become relevant, it might not be a layoff, but you might want to start a new business.” — Jon Lyndon [0:22:59]
“If you're working in corporate and you're trying to sell products and services, there [are] ways that you can do it in a human, authentic, thought leader way that is still pretty much an untapped opportunity on LinkedIn for a lot of people.” — Jon Lyndon [0:43:43]
“If you know the outcomes, and you're clear about what they are in any area of your life, then creating the pathway to get there becomes so much easier.” — Jon Lyndon [0:50:18]
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