81. The LinkedIn Revolution: Making Networking Fun Again with Grace Ling

Isn’t it time we brought more fun, unfiltered energy to our professional online presence?

This week, we chat with Grace Ling, the founder of Design Buddies – a thriving community of over 60,000 designers. Grace shares her unique and unfiltered approach to using LinkedIn, where she brings an “unconventional,” entertaining, personable energy that’s often absent from the platform.

From posting dance videos to sharing candid stories about using dating apps for networking, Grace’s philosophy is all about being authentically herself. She argues that trying to fit a mold or template on LinkedIn misses the point entirely. Instead, Grace focuses on connecting with the people she wants to attract. She does this putting out her fun and vibrant energy. This way, she organically attracts an engaged audience that is aligned with her genuine personality.

Ultimately, Grace’s parting wisdom is simple: “Just do it.” Instead of overthinking, she encourages launching yourself out there, learning through iteration, and vibing with the people/opportunities that resonate with your authentic self. Her storytelling throughout illustrates how this mindset opens unexpected doors, from getting featured in major publications to landing her current UX job at Electronic Arts.

Topics:
• 05:22 – Grace’s origin story
• 12:54 – Ask for forgiveness over permission
• 13:49 – You attract the energy you put out
• 16:32 – Building community helps both the creators and the consumers
• 19:22 – Treating different social media platforms differently
• 22:13 – Don’t post on social media without a goal
• 24:02 – Dealing with trolls
• 27:11 – Don’t treat LinkedIn like a dating site
• 29:11 – On personal brand
• 34:04 – Ways to help foster your personal brand
• 35:52 – Use your personal brand to weed out poor fit
• 39:44 – Advice for juinor designers

Helpful Links:
• Grace on LinkedIn
• Design Buddies
• grace-ling.com

Grace Ling
Founder of Design Buddies | Speaker & Content Creator | Designer | World Traveler

About Grace

Grace, a UX designer, founder, and illustrator, leads the charge at Design Buddies, a thriving community she founded that boasts over 60,000 members dedicated to honing design skills and securing jobs. She brings her expertise to Electronic Arts as a UX Designer, where she develops products aimed at creators. 

A Silicon Valley native, Grace’s journey in design is self-taught, underpinned by her academic background in Bioengineering and Computer Science & Engineering. Before delving into the world of design, she was involved in creating virtual reality games, focusing on surgical training and making science education engaging. Her entrepreneurial spirit also led her to run an art business and tabled at anime events.

An avid traveler, Grace’s explorations have taken her to more than 30 countries. Her notable achievements and unique perspectives have garnered attention, leading to features in prominent media outlets such as New York Times Square, The Wall Street Journal, KTSF, KQED, the San Jose Mercury News and more.

Connect with Grace on LinkedIn

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