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Managing a day job with getting your startup out there on LinkedIn...W/o tipping off your employer?

Vlad Serban
9 replies
Hey everyone! I'm currently juggling a relatively new day job (less than a year in and going great!) while working on a startup in a completely different industry. I'm eager to leverage social media and LinkedIn to connect with potential customers and build my brand, but I'm hesitant to tip off my employer. I know many of you have probably faced similar challenges and I'm curious how you've navigated this. 1. Did you create a company page to engage with customers and build a following directly? I feel like this is much harder when not tied to your personal profile 2. When is the right time to start promoting your startup from your personal profile? Is it better to wait until you're working on it full-time? Appreciate any thoughts / feedback

Replies

Anas Riad
Alterfy
Alterfy
I'm in the same situation and I'm building everything under the hood with my associate. You can't risk jeopardizing your main source of income while there's no certainty. Unless you have a decent budget that can sustain you for 12+ months minimum.
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Vlad Serban
@anas_riad Yea that headache of not having a constant source of income is scary and so threatening to mental health - staying stealth for now : )
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Aaron Hays
Alterfy
Alterfy
@anas_riad This right here.
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murph
BodySherpa
BodySherpa
Without knowing anything, I think you'd be wise not to promote your startup on your personal page if you're not yet comfortable risking your day job. Most employers probably don't want to feel like they're subsidizing your side quest... That said, separate industry might give you some daylight if you have a great relationship with your superiors if you get ahead of it and frame it properly.
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Vlad Serban
@duffdevone I'm leaning that way as well. Don't think it's worth ruffling any feathers at this point, even if it's in a separate industry
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Aaron Hays
Alterfy
Alterfy
@duffdevone This 100%, couldn't agree more.
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murph
BodySherpa
BodySherpa
@vserban24 totally. avoid unnecessary risks 💪
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Aaron Hays
Alterfy
Alterfy
This IS the question. We are waiting until revenue is enough or we get funding before tying our LI profiles to our company. This is a shame as I have a fairly decent LinkedIn following, but it has no reference to my startup (same for my co-founder). And we have mostly ignored doing the LI company page for now, as like you said, if its not tied to a face, it will lack authority. LI is an amazing resource and probably the best social for getting customers (for our space).
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Vlad Serban
@aaron_hays I knew someone could relate! Waiting until funding or at least a point where I'm closer to committing 100% of my time to the startup seems like a good bet. Plenty of ways to drive traffic outside of LI
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