In my last post, I wondered if people considered LinkedIn a learning platform given their immense collection of online training for the workplace.

Now I’m thinking about the flip side: is LinkedIn a teaching platform? Could it be?

One of my LinkedIn contacts frequently teaches in his updates. He stands out from the rest of my contacts in that he’s not just promoting himself (or sharing those terrible #humblebrag stories.) Instead, he teaches and when he does, I learn things.

Most of his content is related to data analytics, a subject I’m super interested in. I’m currently studying Python for data analysis and contract for an AI startup. So I found it mighty helpful when he shared this:

And I really enjoyed learning new vocabulary and concepts from the post below, even though it’s still quite advanced for me.

He also shared a helpful tip for job seekers:

His content stands out from everyone else in my network.

I thought about him as I was writing the post on LinkedIn as a learning platform. When I asked in a Facebook group whether or not LinkedIn is a learning platform, two responses reminded me of him:

I learn a lot from my connections on LinkedIn but it’s their content, not the platform, that initiates this. LinkedIn needs a lot of work!

You can find people from which you can learn but it’s not the main focus of the platform

I wondered: could LinkedIn be a teaching platform? And would it be a more valuable place to spend your internet time if it were?

I’m not referring to teaching a course on LinkedIn learning. I’m interested in using LinkedIn to teach a subject using updates, videos, and shared content. What would it look like? Would people engage? How would they engage? I teach a variety of subject in workshops, webinars, and online courses. I’m curious what it’d look like to teach using LinkedIn.

This isn’t a new concept. I see career coaches occasionally teaching on LinkedIn.

I’ve just never tried it. I’m a power user on LinkedIn and I share articles of interest frequently. But I’ve never tried using it as a teaching tool. I’m interested in intentionally tried teaching a subject, planning a curriculum, and seek out diverse resources for people to explore on a given topic.

So I’m going to try an experiment on LinkedIn. For the month of August, I’m teaching people how to upskill.

The term upskilling is a phrase thrown around casually in organizational development and future of work circles. Upskilling is mostly focused on managers who are deciding between hiring new people or training existing employees to adapt to new business models. However, there isn’t much coaching for the actual workers who are trying to figure out how to reskill. From evaluating bootcamps, to selecting online courses that build digital skills, to finding ways to up your skills at work, upskilling is still a relatively new concept to many.

So I’m going to teach it. I spent a third of my book teaching people how to upskill. I’ll use that as my framework and content for teaching the subject on LinkedIn.

Since this is an experiment, I’ll document along the way. If you’re curious, follow me on LinkedIn and participate.

You can check out the syllabus for Upskill Yourself here.