What We Learned
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01
See Yourself as an Investment, Not a Cost Instead of just listing what you did, describe your career as a series of successful projects with clear benefits. When you clearly show how your work helped the company make more money or grow, you are seen as a profit source, not just someone who costs money.
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02
Show Proof Instead of Asking for Trust Don't expect employers to just trust your claims; give them the exact steps and logic you used to get results in the past. Being open about how you work makes you a safer choice because they can clearly see how you achieve things.
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03
Focus on What Makes You Special, Not What's Common To stay valuable, you need to show your unique way of thinking, not just common job skills. Keep adding new deep knowledge and getting praise from others. This constant improvement keeps your worth high and stops you from becoming easily replaceable.
LinkedIn Featured Area: More Than Just a Digital Folder
Most career advice says your LinkedIn Featured area should be like a digital portfolio—a place to show your personality and recent work. This is actually a big mistake. When you use this space just to show off projects, you miss the main point: recruiters can't tell if you are truly skilled or just good at writing resumes. When your profile looks like everyone else's with standard projects and nice pictures, you become a standard item, forced to compete on price (salary) instead of your true worth.
To gain real power, you need to look at this area using the idea of Signaling Theory. This idea helps close the gap between what you are truly capable of and what a stranger thinks you are capable of. Great candidates use this space to show proof that is "expensive" to fake—specific successes and proof from others that low-quality candidates can't easily copy. This isn't about making a "nice first impression"; it’s a way to prove your credibility and lower the perceived risk of hiring you.
The following steps will change your approach from hoping to get noticed to having a clear plan to show you are an expert. By sending the right signals about your value, you can get hired faster and ensure you are hired for your knowledge, not just for the lowest price.
Checking Your Career Story
Use this chart to see where your current professional profile stands. Figure out where you are now in each area so you can see how far you need to go to reach your career goals.
Your 'Featured' section is empty or just shows your standard resume. (You are invisible)
You don't know that your profile needs to actively sell you instead of just listing your past.
Your perceived value is low because there is no clear picture of what you can actually do.
Start showing things: Add any visual proof of your work to move from being unknown to being a basic candidate.
Your content is just standard certificates or updates about company events. (You are a typical person)
You are sharing things that are easy to get and don't prove you are better than others applying.
You look the same as other candidates who haven't brought much new or special to the table.
Stand out: Replace simple awards with your own ideas that show how you think and solve problems.
The section has detailed reports, media features, or praise from others. (You are a respected expert)
You are using proof that is hard for less qualified people to fake.
Your good name acts like a wall, helping you get past the first stages of checking candidates.
Use your credibility to skip the early screening steps and ask for a higher starting salary.
How to Make Your LinkedIn Featured Area a Credibility Tool
As an expert career coach, I see your LinkedIn profile as the main page for your professional image. To stop being seen as just another person applying for a job, use these seven steps to turn your Featured section into a powerful tool for building trust.
By explaining the exact problems you solved and the thinking you used, you fix the Information Gap between what your resume claims and what you actually deliver. This stops hiring managers from guessing how good you are because you provide the steps behind your success.
Putting up news mentions, podcast interviews, or industry awards acts as a strong Signal of Quality—proof that others recognize your value, which is hard for less capable people to copy. These outside approvals build trust quickly and confirm what you claim.
Showing a clear chart of money growth or costs saved makes employers care less about your salary (Price Sensitivity) and more about the money you will bring back. When you back up your results with clear data, you become a profit maker, not just a budget expense.
By sharing your special methods for solving industry problems, you show the Cost of Missing Out if they don't hire you. This makes your knowledge seem necessary for the company to stay competitive.
When important people or clients praise you on video, it triggers the fear of missing out (Loss Aversion) in recruiters, because it lowers their worry about hiring the wrong person. Showing that others have trusted you makes hiring you seem less risky for a big job.
Giving away a full report or summary of the industry shows you are a top thinker and increases the Negotiation Room (ZOPA) during salary talks. This high-level thinking proves you work at a senior level, naturally setting your pay expectations higher than others.
Regularly replacing old projects with your newest "big wins" keeps you from becoming common (Commoditization) by showing you are always improving. Keeping your Featured section new signals that your value is currently at its highest point, so you aren't seen as someone who can be easily swapped out.
Cruit Tools to Improve Your LinkedIn
For Proof & Memory Journaling Tool
A real-time log for your "big achievements." The AI coach pulls out key skills and your thinking process to create case studies.
For Clarity Standard Resume Tool
Changes vague job duties into proven results by making you clearly state the money-making impact (budget, team, results).
For Your Story LinkedIn Profile Builder
Creates one clear professional story, writing headlines and job descriptions that highlight your role as a leader.
Common Questions
If my work is secret (NDA), how can I show proof without breaking my agreement?
When you can't share real numbers or company names, you must change from "sharing results" to "showing your method." This is called showing proof indirectly.
Instead of a secret chart, feature a case study that explains the steps you took to solve a hard problem. You can use general terms like "a large tech company" but focus heavily on the specific system you created. By showing how you think rather than what the result was, you prove your skill is repeatable without breaking any legal rules.
My industry doesn't usually use portfolios. Will a Featured section make me look like I'm trying too hard?
In older fields like banking, law, or operations, a "portfolio" might seem strange. But the Featured section isn't a display case; it's a way to prove you are trustworthy.
If people in your field aren't using this area, you have a great chance to provide "expensive" proof that they don't have. Instead of creative projects, post a recommendation from a senior leader or a link to an article mentioning you. This doesn't look desperate; it shows you are a safe and valuable hire because other experts have already approved of you.
How many things should I show so I don't look like I'm just adding random items?
You want to make the recruiter's job easier, not give them more to look through. Having ten different things can cause "too many choices," making it likely the recruiter will skip them all.
Stick to three clear proofs: one showing a big success (a case study), one showing proof from others (an award or mention), and one showing how you think (an article). This "Rule of Three" gives you enough proof to be trusted without seeming like you're trying too hard to impress.
Focus on what matters.
Changing your LinkedIn profile from a basic online album to a strong tool for proving credibility is the best way to stop being treated like a standard item. When you replace "nice" pictures with proof that is "hard to fake," you solve the recruiter's biggest worry: the danger of hiring someone who can't perform. By using this space as a key filter instead of a casual gallery, you change the discussion from what you cost to the unique value you bring.
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