In partnership with
We’re all a little obsessed with follower counts, no matter the platform. Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, it doesn’t matter. There’s something satisfying about watching that number climb. I’m not immune to it either. But LinkedIn actually hands you two numbers worth paying attention to, and most people only ever look at one.
Followers vs. Connections
A follower hit the follow button on your profile because they liked something you said and now they see your posts in their feed. They’re not in your network, yet. A connection, on the other hand, is someone you’re linked to, someone you can message directly, whose updates you see, and who sees yours back.
I think of a follower like someone standing in your waiting room, flipping through a magazine, glancing up every once in a while. They’re there, but not engaged. A connection is the invitation into the actual room, and you’re usually the one who sends it.
Who’s showing up in that follower list matters more than either number on its own. It tells you something about your positioning. If the new names look like your ideal client, your industry, the kind of person you’d want reading your work, that’s a green light.
If a post takes off and the followers who show up have nothing to do with any of that, your hook did its job, but your positioning fell flat. Probably somewhere between your headline and your About section. Fixing that is its own newsletter…I’ve got some thoughts.
So once a week, or after a post has a good surge, I scroll through my new followers. Not just to admire the number (Let’s be honest…I’m human and I love seeing it increase just like anyone else!), but mostly to see who’s worth pulling into the room by sending a connection request myself.
These days, the real move is clicking into the list and finding the two or three people worth the invitation. Everyone else can keep flipping through their magazine.
Speak naturally. Send without fixing.
Wispr Flow turns your voice into clean, professional text you can send the moment you stop talking. Not rough transcription you have to clean up. Actual polished text — ready for email, Slack, or any app.
Speak the way you think. Go on tangents. Change your mind mid-sentence. Flow strips the filler, fixes the grammar, and gives you text that reads like you spent five minutes writing it.
89% of messages sent with zero edits. Millions of professionals use Flow daily, including teams at OpenAI, Vercel, and Clay. Works on Mac, Windows, and iPhone.