I have noticed that some of the most popular people on LinkedIn regularly recycle their content. I find this interesting.
Insightful or funny or worthwhile content deserves a second look, yet I am not fond of this practice. To me, it is a cheap trick that is more harmful than helpful. For the content poster of course it is helpful. They have to write fewer posts, and if they find a post resonates they can run it again. Posts that don’t work can just be deleted. I am not a hypocrite here. I delete posts that I don’t like either. However, I delete posts not based on likes but based on they don’t fit the current intention of my site.
It is easy to write what people want to hear. We all know that people want to hear they are smart, beautiful, and innocent of the evils of the world around them. People want to be both victims and heroes, but they never want to acknowledge when they are villains. I wonder why?
It is never easy saying the hard-to-say truths. Those unpopular truths never get the attention they should, and people suffer because of it. I have often been the voice of the elephant in the room. I am not saying this to be the hero. It is also a fact that when I have done these companies have found reasons to lay me off first when economic problems occur. Which is fine. I need to be able to share my reality and if it’s not appreciated I will go somewhere that values my contributions.
Do not be naive or mistaken. If you talk truth to power you will suffer. No one likes to be told they are wrong, especially when they suspect you are right. No matter how humbly you do it, others will hate you. You will not get promoted, and you will not be trusted. Telling the truth in business is a no-win situation. You have been warned.
Recycle old content and never push people to grow. To me, that isn’t a service, it’s a disservice.