I have just passed my Grade 4 singing exam and added it to my LinkedIn profile! Am I mad? Will I get teased/roasted mercilessly? Well, I did a bit more than just pass – I got 84% and a “merit” – that’s 3 points off a ‘distinction’! Plus, it took a LOT of work, about 9 months of lessons, every week, no weeks off, practising for a couple of hours a week (much to my family’s annoyance) and I really had to screw up my courage to go in and take the exam.
If people put their triathlons and ‘Tough Mudders’ on LinkedIn – which also take a lot of training, grit and determination, then why can’t I put my achievement on? It sort of relates to part of my work, but not one that I publicise on LinkedIn. I do acting jobs when I can – I enjoy it, it’s a bit more than a hobby and I get paid.
People also put volunteering on LinkedIn – it shows personality, values and character, and tells potential clients a bit more about you. We know that your social media doesn’t have to be rigidly on-message and corporate, so long as it fits with your brand/what you’re selling. For example, if you’re a Vegan Cookbook Writer, don’t post pix of you scarfing down steaks? Or if you’re campaigning for Black Lives Matter, don’t post photos of you on a White Supremacist march etc.
Anyway, part of my job as a broadcast news journalist/event moderator is performance. As I was saying to a Media Training client the other day, it’s all about performance when you are on zoom calls etc. Don’t slump with one elbow propping yourself up in an, “I don’t care, I am exhausted, you’re all boring, I’m boring,” posture, if you want people to take you seriously as a go-getting, enthusiastic, energetic problem-solver.
And the singing relates to that: I tackled something as a Lockdown activity that I had always wanted to try. I stuck at it, got over my nerves/self-consciousness, persisted and triumphed. And if you think learning 3 classical pieces in Italian, German (both of which I don’t speak) and Russian (which I do) is easy, then bring it on! I’d like to see anyone else’s efforts 🙂
And now it’s onwards to Grade 5…
