😂 Let’s be honest: LinkedIn Premium is like the Costco membership of career platforms — sounds useful, looks exclusive, marketed as “necessary” — but deep inside YOU KNOW you can survive without paying $59.99/month just to see which recruiter stalked your profile at 3AM.
Most of us are already barely affording Starbucks, rent, therapy, AND emotional coping mechanisms… we do not need another subscription draining our bank accounts.
So yes, you can absolutely get a job on LinkedIn WITHOUT going Premium. This platform is literally built to make everyone feel professional and mildly superior — even if they haven’t had a full-time role in 8 months and are currently living off caffeine and panic. 😭☕
Let’s hack LinkedIn the chaotic, sarcastic, strategically broke way. 💀💼
🏠 Step One — Your Profile Is Real Estate. Give Zillow-Level Renovation Energy.
If your LinkedIn profile looks like you built it in 2017 during your “motivational restart era” after watching a TED Talk — fix it. Immediately.
Bold Truth: Before recruiters message you… they stalk. HARD. 👀
So make your profile look expensive even if your bank account is giving… survival mode.
Checklist to glow up the free version:
Headline should be clear, job aligned, keyword-aligned
About section should sound human (not an AI resume template that died inside)
Experience should show impact, not vague task dumping
Add skills that match industry roles
Add featured work links (your portfolio is your flex weapon) 🔗
Your LinkedIn profile should feel like the corporate version of a dating app profile — attractive, competent, interesting, but not cringe.
Also:
DO NOT put “seeking opportunities” in your headline.
Put VALUE not desperation energy.
📣 Step Two — Content Posting Is Free. Use It To Become A Silent Threat.
You can literally get recruiter reach FOR FREE by posting.
LinkedIn rewards people who drop knowledge, observations, frameworks, random corporate memes, etc.
Content types that WORK:
industry observations
mini threads with tips
breakdowns of brands doing something smart or dumb
personal stories with sarcasm (viral fuel)🔥
niche insights
short POVs on market trends
career lessons that hit borderline therapy vibes
People think you need Premium to get discovered.
No babe.
You need consistency.
Act like a micro-influencer in your niche.
Your future job is literally scrolling this feed daily pretending they’re checking market trends when they’re actually procrastinating emails like everyone else. 😂
Post 3x a week minimum.
Even mid-level content beats silence.
💬 Step Three — DM Strategy = Be Short, Smart, Polite, and Non-Thirsty
Premium tries to sell you “InMail,” but newsflash:
You can DM literally ANYONE who is a 2nd or 3rd connection after connecting.
Just click “connect” → add note → then DM after they accept.
📩 THE DM TEMPLATE THAT WINS (non-premium edition)
Hey ___, I’ve been following ___ space and I really liked your recent post on ___. I’m exploring opportunities in ___ this quarter. If you ever hear about a role BEFORE it’s posted online, I’d appreciate a heads up or referral possibility.
The phrase “before it’s posted online” works like psychological black magic. 🪄
This is how you access secret hiring pipelines without Premium.
Most of the best roles are referral-based and never go to public job boards.
🔍 Step Four — Use LinkedIn Search Filters Like A CIA Agent On Zero Budget
LinkedIn is a treasure map.
You just have to dig. 🗺️
Use search to find:
Hiring managers
Directors in your target dept
Recruiters at target companies
People recently hired (rewarding networking category btw)
Founders posting about hiring plans
Search job title → filter by “past month” → then connect with people who got hired (they know EXACT pipeline).
Search “hiring” AND your job role → you find posts BEFORE roles get published.
Search “referral” AND job role → 3x quicker access to people actively opening doors.
This is the kind of low-cost-high-chaos energy that LinkedIn Premium DOES NOT monopolize. ⚡
💥 Step Five — The “Comment Section” Is Where Free Organic Exposure Actually Lives
No one talks about this enough:
LinkedIn comment threads are where you get noticed FOR FREE.
Respond thoughtfully under:
Hiring manager posts
CEO posts
Recruiter tips
Posts people are arguing about career trends on 🥲
VC funding announcements (post-funding = they WILL hire soon)
Anyone posting “we’re growing our team”
Commenting gets more visibility than posting sometimes.
It lets you show personality.
It lets people notice you repeatedly.
It lets you become top-of-mind without paying $59.99/mo to stalk who viewed you.
You become a recurring name.
A consistent presence.
The “oh I saw them everywhere this week” person.
This is how jobs come to YOU.
Without Premium.
🧭 Step Six — Use Job Alerts, Then Apply WITH A HUMAN Instead Of Just Button Clicking
LinkedIn job alerts are free.
USE THEM.
But don’t only apply through the quick apply black hole.
Find a human first.
Steps:
Find job posting
Identify hiring manager / recruiter / team employee
DM them BEFORE or right after applying
Mention 1 hard metric you achieved relevant to the role
Ask if they can flag your resume internally
This hack = 4-7x more interview conversions. 📈
LinkedIn Premium tries to make you think you need paid filters to “stand out.”
NO.
You stand out when you act human + targeted.
🌟 Step Seven — You Need A Brand. Not A Subscription.
LinkedIn Premium markets itself like:
Pay so people will magically care about you.
Reality:
People care about VALUE and identity — not subscription icons.
Build brand perception free:
share proof of work
share wins
share lessons
share insights
share results
share mistakes (the relatable kind not felony level) 😂
share experiments
You don’t need to be loud.
You need to be consistent.
Brand = the reason someone thinks of YOU when an opportunity pops in their inbox.
Premium cannot make someone like you.
Premium cannot make someone respect your skill.
Premium cannot make someone refer you.
Brand can.
🏁 Conclusion (under 120 words)
If you made it this far, congrats — you now officially know more LinkedIn strategy than half the “LinkedIn Gurus” selling $297 courses recorded at 2 AM in badly lit apartments. 😂
You do NOT need Premium to get a job through LinkedIn.
You need intentional positioning.
You need content consistency.
You need smart networking.
You need keyword clarity.
You need DM finesse.
The platform rewards strategy not subscription status.
So go hack the system the broke-but-still-professionally-dangerous way. ⚔️
Build your presence.
Comment with power.
DM with grace.
And watch recruiters slide into YOUR inbox — Premium-free. 💌