<\/p>\n
You ever notice how LinkedIn<\/em><\/span> has only one plot line? Yeah, it\u2019s called: \u201cI\u2019m happy to share that I\u2019m starting a new position as<\/span>\u2026\u201d <\/em>I tell you this line has more reruns than Friends<\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n If you smell a sense of authority in the caption above, let me tell you that I am trepidation personified as I draft this. And if you see this as some kind of forensic investigation, you might be partly right.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Caveat Emptor<\/em><\/span>(Reader Beware): This is an honest attempt. And as I experiment with that, thought might as well do a\u00a0deep dive into the peculiar psychology of professional announcements.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n So there I was, scrolling through LinkedIn at 2 AM (as one does when one’s life choices need serious examination), when I stumbled upon the 27th “I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position as…”post of the day. And suddenly, like a caffeine-fueled anthropologist discovering a new tribal ritual, I found myself asking: What’s really going on here?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Let’s get on with it and break down this fascinating specimen( no lab coats required):<\/p>\n <\/p>\n ” I’m happy to share that I am starting in a new position as XXX at XXX “.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Translation :<\/em><\/span> “I’m contractually obligated by the unwritten rules of professional networking to appear ecstatic about this career move, regardless of whether I was headhunted by Google or just escaped a toxic workplace that made Chernobyl look like a wellness retreat.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n (This one comes from the Republic of Gratitude<\/em><\/span>)- “I want to thank [previous company] for the incredible journey…”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Translation<\/em><\/span>: “I will now perform the corporate equivalent of thanking the Academy, even though my previous boss once made me rewrite a two-line email seventeen times because the font wasn’t ‘strategic’ enough.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Yet another one that is competing for The Humble Brag Finale<\/em><\/span>– ” “Excited for this new chapter…”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Translation<\/em><\/span>: “I’ve successfully convinced someone else to pay me money. In this economy. Please validate my existence.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n This one comes straight from the Valley of Nostalgia Overture-\u00a0<\/em>” My time at [Previous Company] was invaluable. I learned so much, especially how to operate the microwave and which meeting rooms have the best Wi-Fi. I want to thank everyone, especially Brenda from Accounts Payable who once smiled at me in the elevator.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Some seem to seeking validation like an Insecurity Vanquisher<\/em><\/span>– This post is a cry for help wrapped in corporate jargon. They\u2019ve just left the comfort of a job they knew how to do, where they knew which coffee mug was theirs. Now, they\u2019re adrift in a sea of new acronyms. The LinkedIn post is a life raft. Every \u201cCongratulations!\u201d comment is a flare of validation, a tiny hit of dopamine that whispers, \u201cYou didn\u2019t make a catastrophic error. Probably.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The subtext here isn\u2019t arrogance; it\u2019s vulnerability masquerading as confidence. They\u2019re not telling you they\u2019re great; they\u2019re asking you to tell them they\u2019ll be okay.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Then there are these bunch of corporate hostages<\/em><\/span>. Which is why we must consider and rope in the unwilling participant<\/em><\/span>. You can almost taste the coercion in the text. It\u2019s too polished, too full of branded hashtags (# <\/p>\n This post was clearly drafted by Marcia in Marketing, who cornered them by the printer and said, \u201cWe need you to post this. Gary in Sales only got 12 likes on his, and we need to beat that. It\u2019s for the brand.\u201d The employee\u2019s own personality has been surgically removed and replaced with key messaging points. They\u2019d rather be anywhere else than writing this post. Probably updating their actual, private, anonymous Twitter account with: \u201cFirst day at the new gig. Help.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Welcome to the post that is a philosophical take-letting go of a previous self<\/em><\/span>. Every exit is an entry somewhere<\/a>. Perhaps the most beautiful interpretation is that this post is a funeral for a former version of oneself. They are publicly closing a chapter. It\u2019s a ritualistic shedding of skin<\/em><\/span>. The \u201cthank you\u201d to the old company is genuine\u2014it\u2019s an acknowledgment of the person that job helped them become, for better or worse.<\/p>\n They are announcing the death of the \u201cSenior Executive, Operations\u201d and the birth of the \u201cHead of Delivering Awesome.\u201d It\u2019s a rebirth. With slightly better health insurance.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n There it is. We have enough evidence, don’t we? The most crowded temple of modern worship. Not Tirupati. Not Mecca. Not the Vatican. You guessed it- LinkedIn<\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n And the loudest chant in this holy shrine of professional self-expression? <\/p>\n A line so standardised it deserves its own ISO certification. And the coveted blue tick.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n But what\u00a0is it<\/em><\/span>, really? A declaration? A confession? Therapy disguised as gratitude? Corporate Horlicks for the soul? Or a notice to ex-colleagues:\u00a0\u201c<\/em>Guess who moved on first?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The jury is still out on why the unflinching emphasis on \u201chappy<\/em><\/span>\u201d? Nobody says \u201cI\u2019m moderately okay to announce a new position.\u201d Or \u201cI\u2019m borderline depressed to let you know I\u2019ve accepted employment.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n It\u2019s always \u201chappy<\/em><\/span>.\u201d As if happiness is written into the KPI of the announcement. Maybe HR slips it into the offer letter:<\/p>\n Position<\/em><\/span>: Vice President, Market Expansion<\/p>\n CTC<\/em><\/span>: Respectably above cousin\u2019s salary<\/p>\n Condition<\/span><\/em>: Must announce with happiness on LinkedIn<\/p>\n <\/p>\n I shouldn’t miss out on telling you that there is one variety that stands out, hands down. The master tagger<\/em><\/span>. Ten mentors, three previous managers, the chaiwala from the parking lot\u2014everyone is name-dropped, because gratitude is LinkedIn\u2019s legal tender<\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n And of course the poets in residence<\/em><\/span>: \u201cThrilled to begin a new journey, turning pages in my life\u2019s career novel.\u201d Gulzar, watch out!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Which is when you notice unabashed neutrality which goes something like this, a stoic monk<\/em><\/span> if you will: ” Starting a new role. That\u2019s all.\u201d (This guy is fried but refuses to admit it.)<\/p>\n <\/p>\n You would have already seen the paradox here. On one hand, it\u2019s insecurity covered in confetti. On the other, it\u2019s a coded hug. A way of saying: \u201cI survived. I still matter. Clap for me.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n And maybe that\u2019s not such a bad thing. Because for every roll-eye inducing \u201cI\u2019m happy to share\u2026\u201d, there\u2019s someone reading it at 2 a.m. thinking, maybe I\u2019ll get out too<\/span>.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n So next time you see that familiar phrase, resist the snark for a second. Click the like. Clap along. Comment positively. Because in its own awkward, templated way, it\u2019s just humanity leaking through LinkedIn\u2019s algorithm.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n And if you really want to shake things up? Post this instead: <\/p>\n So, the next time you see that post, don\u2019t roll your eyes. Hit like. Because behind every \u201cI\u2019m happy to share\u2026\u201d is one brave soul battling FOMO, EMIs, and imposter syndrome\u2014armed with nothing but Canva graphics and hashtags.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n And yes, one day you\u2019ll see me post it too. \u201cI\u2019m happy to share that I\u2019m starting a new position as\u2026 The World\u2019s First Chief Officer of Pretending To Look Busy On Zoom.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Thank you, good day, and don\u2019t forget to endorse me for Strategic Sarcasm<\/em><\/span>!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n PS: Human beings are rough drafts that continually mistake themselves for the final story, then gasp as the plot changes on the page of living.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" You ever notice how LinkedIn has only one plot line? Yeah, it\u2019s called: \u201cI\u2019m happy to share that I\u2019m starting a new position as\u2026\u201d I tell you this line has more reruns than Friends. If you smell a sense of authority in the caption above, let me tell you that I am trepidation … Continue reading ““I’m Happy to Share That…” – Decoding LinkedIn’s Most Mysterious Ritual”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2324","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2324","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2324"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2324\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2325,"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2324\/revisions\/2325"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2324"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2324"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2324"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\u201cI\u2019m happy to share that I\u2019m starting a new position as<\/em><\/span>\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\u201cI\u2019m happy to share that I\u2019m still unemployed. Please endorse me for resilience.<\/em><\/span>\u201d<\/p>\n