Ariel Lee, LinkedIn Coach
After a long, successful, but draining career in the car business, I made a career shift in early 2020. Great timing to go into a business commonly built on face to face prospecting ability, as Covid completely shattered all of those options. I decided to dive headfirst into LinkedIn, sporting a whopping four hundred connections from my previous industry. I did things the icky way. First, cold connection requests, immediate sales spam upon connecting, couldn't figure out why no one wanted to talk to me?! And then the lightbulb went off 💡. I was doing a terrible job showing up as who I really was; no one wanted to talk to this crap form message I was sending out; that wasn't me. Pivoted to my current "strategy", if you can call it that, of being human, in October 2020 and have built a highly engaged network to this point that sustains my primary business with exclusively inbound clients, I decided to try to help others figure out the path to success on LinkedIn (and have fun while doing it!).
What is your favourite social media platform, and why?
LinkedIn without a shadow of a doubt! There is nowhere else like it. The ability to build meaningful relationships with complete strangers and then see the web of your network grow and grow is just phenomenal.
Tell us about you and your current role or area of interest.
As a LinkedIn Coach, my area of focus is empowering people to show up authentically, engage with their networks to build a tribe around who they actually are versus putting on a perfectly polished professional mask every day. My goal is to make sure they leave our meetings with an understanding and appreciation for the value of human connection and that engaging with others is equally as important as creating content of their own.
What do you like about your career or area of focus?
My network (friends and clients) are so diverse, from all over the globe, but I feel that I have truly met some of my dearest friends on LinkedIn… being able to help other people walk that same path is an amazing feeling!
What is the best advice you have ever received?
Cheesy, but "Enjoy the Journey", so many years wasted on "I'll be happy when, new house, new car, engagement, marriage, lose 10 lbs, new job title, etc." Happiness is a choice, and you'll find as you tick off those accomplishments, there's always something next, so if you don't enjoy the process of getting to those goals, you won't enjoy life once you've reached them either.
What inspires you, motivates you, or helps you to move forward?
I generally think, just making a positive impact on peoples' lives in whatever way I can give me the fuel to keep going.
What are you proud of in your life so far?
My daughter, 1000%. She's an incredible human, and I'm so grateful she's mine; she's nowhere near the karma I deserved for how I was to my mother at her age.
What is your preferred way to meet new people/network?
LinkedIn by far! In-person networking is amazing, but I feel like I forget to pair names and faces in my memory; with LinkedIn, those things are never separate so, when you eventually meet in person, it's perfect!
What skills or qualities do you feel have helped you?
I moved around a ton as a kid so, and I think that sort of forced natural outgoingness has helped a lot; I can literally make conversation with a brick wall.
What do you wish you had known when you started out?
That it's ok to show up on LinkedIn as a human with a sense of humour and flaws, I spent too much time trying to be something I wasn't.
Who do you most admire in business, academic or creative circles and why?
Lea 🌈 Turner is one of my favourite people ever; she is such an inspiration, just a complete business genius wrapped in an amazingly fun package!
Outside of your professional/work area, what hobbies or interests do you have or what other areas of your life are of real importance to you?
Since my first career was very high stress and long hours, I'm really passionate about just relaxing and enjoying my family now. Nothing too regimented in terms of hobbies, just spending time together.
Has the pandemic had a positive or a negative effect on you and/or your business, and how have you managed it?
Complete positive (I hate to acknowledge that), but I don't even know if I would have wound up on LinkedIn at all had it not been for Covid.
Do you have a mentor, or have you ever mentored anyone?
Not "officially", but there have been countless people who've supported me over the years, and I've learned from, and I hope that I've provided a similar level of support to others.
What advice would you have for someone looking to get into the same area of work or interests?
Just get crystal clear on who you are and who you aim to serve, and then show up as that person, don't try to craft some personal brand that's not actually you!
What do you feel is the most common reason for people failing or giving up?
Nothing in life worth having comes easy, and (unfortunately) most people are lazy and need instant gratification.
Is there a phrase, quote or a saying that you really like?
"Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right!". - Henry Ford.
How do you define success, and what lessons have you learned so far that you could share with our audience/readership?
Success for me is enjoying how I spend my days, whether that's work or time off, I just want to enjoy every aspect of my life, and I have reached a point where I truly do.