The Hidden Cost of Trying Too Hard to Look Hireable

Hey reader,

Have you ever sat with your LinkedIn profile open for hours, tweaking one line over and over, wondering…

“Is this what they want to see?”

“Should I add that certification?”

“Do I sound impressive enough?”

If so, you’re not alone.

Most jobseekers I speak with today are doing everything right on paper. 

They’ve got experience. Skills. Motivation.

But no offers.

No traction.

No one reaching out.

Why?

Because in the pursuit of looking “hireable,” they’ve started performing instead of connecting.

Let’s unpack that.

The Trap: Performative Professionalism

Here’s something no one told us during school or even in our first few jobs:

Being good at what you do isn’t enough.

People also need to believe in you.

And that belief doesn’t come from a beautifully optimized profile.

It comes from resonance.

But what happens when everything you share online is curated to impress?

You start to sound like everyone else.

You remove the “you”, your tone, your beliefs, your stories, and instead, you replace it with what you think recruiters and hiring managers want to hear.

And in doing so, you fall into the trap of performative professionalism.

You show up looking polished, but you don’t feel real.

You look like a great candidate, but not a memorable one.

And that’s the cost most people don’t see.

The illusion of looking “perfect”

Let’s be honest, it’s tempting to only post about wins.

You see others talking about their promotions, new roles, interviews lined up, and offers received. So you feel pressure to post something equally impressive.

Your updates start sounding like:

→ “Thrilled to share that I’ve completed XYZ certification!”

→ “Grateful to be part of this amazing project at [Company]”

→ “Excited to connect with like-minded professionals in [Industry]”

It’s not bad. It’s just… expected.

It blends in.

The problem is, people can’t feel you when you only perform for them.

They can read your words, but they don’t remember them.

Because deep down, they know it’s just another polished post on their feed.

The energy people actually respond to

Let’s zoom out.

Think about someone whose content has ever made you stop scrolling.

What was it about their post?

Chances are, it wasn’t perfect.

It was probably real. Vulnerable. Insightful. Maybe even a little messy.

Maybe they shared:

→ A moment they almost gave up

→ A lesson they learned the hard way

→ A reflection on how rejection shaped them

→ An honest perspective that no one else was saying

And in that moment, you didn’t think “Wow, how impressive.”

You thought, “This person gets it.”

That’s the energy that opens doors.

That’s the kind of post that makes a hiring manager say:

“I want to talk to this person, they feel grounded. They feel real.”

Because trust is built through truth, not polish.

What jobseekers should do instead

So if trying too hard to look hireable backfires…

What should you do instead?

Here’s what I tell the people I coach (and what I did myself when I went through career transitions):

✅ Speak like you would in a real conversation.

Drop the corporate tone. Show your voice.

✅ Share what you’re learning, not just what you’ve achieved.

People love learners. Progress is powerful.

✅ Post like you're helping someone who's 3 steps behind you.

This shifts your energy from “look at me” to “here’s what I’ve learned.”

✅ Let people see your thinking.

When you break down how you solve problems or make decisions, it builds massive credibility, without needing big wins.

✅ Be visible for your values.

You don’t need to go viral. You just need to be visible to the right people, and values are a magnet for that.

The post that might change everything

Let me leave you with this:

Your next opportunity might not come from your most polished post.

It might come from your most honest one.

I’ve seen it happen again and again.

Someone shares a story about their layoff, and a hiring manager messages them with an opening.

Someone posts about their learning curve, and a founder reaches out saying, “I love your mindset.”

Someone finally shows up with their actual voice, and suddenly, their inbox gets active.

It’s not a trick.

It’s just truth in public.

When people feel your story, they’re more likely to believe in your potential.

So here’s your challenge:

This week, write one post that feels more like you, not your résumé.

Talk about a moment. A mindset shift. A lesson.

Skip the big words.

Say what you’d say to a friend.

And then watch what happens.

To your success,

Ahmed

P.S.: If this newsletter hit home and you’re ready to stop performing and start progressing, I built something for you: 👇

“Tawdheef.com”

A full-stack career platform for job seekers across the Gulf.

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Because getting hired shouldn’t feel like guesswork.