Showmanship or Showboating?
How LinkedIn Is Shaping Your Brand
Let’s get real.
LinkedIn used to be a digital CV. Now? It is a curated stage. A space where your presence, positioning and personal brand are all on display. But with so many voices competing for attention, a new question arises....
“Am I showcasing my career story… or just showboating?”
Let us explore the fine line between confident visibility and ego-driven noise and how to stay grounded in your brand while navigating the performance culture of LinkedIn.
The Rise of Showmanship
Visibility With Purpose
There’s nothing wrong with wanting to be seen. In fact, career showmanship is a skill.
It is the ability to articulate your value.
It is sharing your wins without sounding self-congratulatory.
It is using your platform to teach, lead and inspire.
When done with intention, showmanship is strategy. You are not just posting for likes, you are building a narrative that supports your career goals, connects with your audience and attracts aligned opportunities.
Showmanship looks like:
Sharing lessons from failure, not just polished success
Spotlighting your team and mentors, not just yourself
Talking about the “how” not just the headline
When Confidence Turns to Cockiness
The Showboating Trap
Showboating is different.
It is performative. Loud. Attention-seeking without depth and it often lacks context, connection or credibility.
A daily stream of humblebrags
Vague success stories with no insight
Engagement-bait posts that offer no value.
Here is a truth, showboating gets attention, but not always respect and in leadership, entrepreneurship or mid-career transitions, respect matters more than reach.
What Does Your Brand Really Say?
Before you hit “post,” ask yourself:
Am I building community or just collecting claps?
Is this content aligned with my values or my vanity?
Would I respect this post if someone else wrote it?
When your content flows from mission, not metrics, your brand becomes magnetic.
CareerTalk Takeaways
LinkedIn is a platform, not a performance.
Showmanship is confidence in context.
Showboating is ego in overdrive.
Thought leadership isn’t about proving, it is about providing.
If you are ready to lead with intention, showcase your brand without selling your soul and be seen for the right reasons, remember this.
You don’t have to shout to be heard. Speak with clarity. Act with purpose. The right people will listen.
We’d love to hear your thoughts.
Do you think LinkedIn is becoming more performative?
Have you ever struggled to find the right balance between being visible and staying grounded in humility?
Until next time.
CareerTalk | Where strategy meets story.
If this message resonates with your experience, share your perspective in the comments and forward it to a colleague or professional who is working to build their brand with purpose.
Let us open up a meaningful dialogue about what authentic leadership really looks like in the digital age.
