66. Blogging allows you to leverage Linkedin more effectively

Linkedin is great for networking online, but at some point, your connections will wonder: "What exactly is your expertise? What valuable knowledge do you have?"

Whether you have 800 connections or only 20, they will ask themselves that question. Indeed, your value lies in the knowledge you have.

And if you don't have a blog, then people will just assume that a) you don't know much, b) you might know a lot, but you are not interested in sharing your knowledge, or c) you know a lot and are willing to share, but don't have writing skills.

Neither of the above conclusions can do much good for your professional reputation!

And yet, the overwhelming majority of Linkedin users do not have a blog, and that is a career mistake.

"Who you know" only matters AFTER you've taken care of "What you know."

It's like owning a radio station. What good is it if your song is not good? If your song is bad, people will turn off the radio the minute you begin singing.

In other words, "what you know" is your VALUE, and "who you know" is the way to LEVERAGE that value.

The following equation can help you see things more clearly:

Return = Value X Leverage

The return on career activities is equal to your value (or knowledge) times the number of people who benefit from it (or the number of channels through which you deliver valuable knowledge to people who are interested to receive it).

If you don't have a blog, then your value is 0. Any number multiplied by zero still equals zero.

In short, the return you get from your career development activities is:

Return = What you know X Who you know