The LinkedIn Memoir: How Gratitude Turns a Career Path into a Purposeful Narrative
- Nov 21
- 3 min read
By Phoebe Ng
The advice to “build a personal brand” often feels like a hollow echo in the halls of career coaching. It conjures images of perfectly curated content and the immense pressure to present myself as a flawless expert when, in reality, I am just a young professional trying to figure things out. So, I choose to try something different. Instead of building a brand, I choose to simply share my story.
Using my LinkedIn profile as a living memoir, I document my journey through corporate, academia, a scale-up, and now a startup by sharing wins, rejections, and lessons. My goal isn’t to chase “thought leadership,” but to write from a place of gratitude for the path itself. This simple shift transforms writing from a source of performance anxiety into a source of purpose and genuine human connection.
The Mindset Shift: From Brand to Story
Building a brand is a performance focused on external validation, forcing you to ask, "What makes me look successful?"A storytelling mindset, however, looks inward with gratitude, asking, "What am I learning from this experience, even the difficult ones?" This shift is liberating, replacing the need for perfection with a desire for connection. I see my time at Samsung as a masterclass in structure I am grateful for, and my LSE Master's as a chance to build an academic foundation in human behaviour, not just a degree. Gratitude gives you permission to be human, and that humanity is what makes a story compelling.
The ‘Gratitude Framework’ for Writing Your Narrative
To turn this mindset into content, I use a simple gratitude framework to mine my journey for meaning, not just accomplishments.
First, I identify transformations, not just triumphs. I’m grateful for the initial chaos of my first startup role because it teaches me resilience in a way success can't. Ask yourself: What difficult experience am I now thankful for?
Second, I spotlight the people I’m grateful for. Our journeys aren't solo. A post about a specific lesson from a mentor is more engaging than a generic one about leadership because it honours those who help shape your path. This approach reveals your character and values.
Finally, I connect my past to my present with gratitude. My career isn't a random collection of jobs; it's an evolving story where each chapter informs the next. I’m grateful for my corporate experience because it gives me the structural knowledge I now use in the unstructured startup world. I’m thankful for my academic deep dive because it provides the behavioural insights I use to build our go-to-market strategy. Ask yourself: How does a past role, even one that seemed like a detour, prepare me for what I’m doing today? Weaving these threads together creates a cohesive and inspiring narrative of growth.
From Post to Impact: The Ripple Effect of Your Story
When you share your journey with gratitude and vulnerability, something incredible happens: you create a community. The goal is no longer to amass followers, but to foster genuine connections. The comments and messages I receive aren’t just networking requests; they are from students and young professionals who see a reflection of their own questions and ambitions in my story. They tell me that seeing my non-linear path gives them the confidence to forge their own.
This is the true impact. It’s not about going viral; it’s about making one person feel less alone in their journey. It’s about showing others that there is no single “perfect” career path and that the most interesting work happens where our skills and passions collide.
By gratefully sharing our authentic experiences, we give others permission to do the same. You don’t need a book deal to have this kind of impact. You just need the courage to start writing your own LinkedIn memoir, one story at a time.
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