Turn today’s learnings into tomorrow’s progress

Looking back at your professional journey over the past year, you can identify areas of success as well as opportunities for growth: new technology to try out, good habits to adopt, or challenging conversations to be had. Whatever your goals for the coming year, LinkedIn is a place to find partners and resources that can help. By bringing together diverse perspectives and expert guidance, today’s offers support for:

• Combating race-based discrimination 

• Getting started with AI tools

• Giving your career or business a boost

• Finding work-life balance in nature

• Crowdsourcing career insights

#BlackHairIsProfessional and LinkedIn Learning with Dove

Research shows that Black women’s hair is 2.5x more likely to be perceived as unprofessional, often leading to workplace discrimination during the hiring process as well as in daily interactions. With the #BlackHairIsProfessional initiative, LinkedIn and Dove have partnered to help end race-based hair discrimination in the workplace. This effort elevates and celebrates the real-life stories of Black women in the workplace to help redefine what society considers “professional.”

Education is an essential part of changing these cultural norms and all LinkedIn members can now access a suite of 10 free LinkedIn Learning Courses that support a more equitable work environment—with the ultimate goal of educating 1 million professionals by the end of 2023. Learn more about the actions you can take to support #BlackHairIsProfessional and explore the available courses here.

Empowering AI_in_Your Career

In today’s rapidly evolving digital world, understanding AI can have a major impact on your career development. The recent AI_in_Your Career LinkedIn Live event, now available to watch on demand, offers helpful tips on leveraging generative AI to achieve your professional goals. Hear from LinkedIn Career Expert Catherine Fisher as she joins Gloria Sun to share advice such as:

• The best way to get started with AI is just to start: Don’t overthink it, pick anything you could use assistance with and see what AI can do—writing agendas, drafting emails, or any other routine task. This hands-on experience lets you learn which of its practical applications are most helpful in your day-to-day work. 

• Get fluent in “AI-speak”: The AI space is not as technical as it sounds. By staying curious and using resources like LinkedIn Learning courses, you’ll be confidently using terms like “prompt engineering” and “generative AI” in no time. 

• Nurture your soft skills: Using AI can give you more space to focus on developing skills like creativity, empathy, and interpersonal communication. These are elements that technology cannot replace and developing them will amplify your impact as a leader in the workplace.

Mark your calendar for the next AI_in_Your_Career event on December 15th, during which Tomer Cohen, Chief Product Officer at LinkedIn, will discuss generative AI and highlight practical use cases. RSVP here or watch on-demand following the live presentation.

Supercharge your journey with new Premium benefits

Whether you're advancing your career or growing your business, new LinkedIn Premium tools are crafted for your success. Ora Levit, Senior Director, Product Management, Head of Core Growth + Premium at LinkedIn, shares the scoop in her blog on the latest Premium features like Top Choice, which boosts your chances of recruiter responses. Another feature uses AI to draft personalized messages to hiring managers, eliminating the stress of writing the perfect introductory DM. For businesses, benefit from new features like the Custom Button, which provides an option for a personalized link (i.e., Visit my website), and access to connect with other leaders and entrepreneurs directly. 

Explore the Nature of Work with Unyoked 

Connecting with nature is a powerful, but often untapped, practice for productivity. LinkedIn and Unyoked have partnered to better equip Australian members to unplug from their busy lives and find fresh inspiration in nature. The partnership kicked off with new research examining the benefits of spending time in nature: 8 in 10 Aussie professionals report feeling more creative and productive after nature-related experiences. Time spent in nature is also associated with reduced workplace conflicts, improved empathy, and more effective teamwork. Across LinkedIn, members have been moved to share the places that help them recharge:

Together, LinkedIn and Unyoked assembled content, resources and expert advice around switching off to help overcome the challenge of disconnecting from work. All members can now access The Nature of Work Guide here. 

“Out of Office” on TikTok

Wondering what people really think about some of today’s hottest workplace issues? In a new TikTok series for LinkedIn Australia, host Tommy Casha takes to the streets of Sydney to quiz commuters about everything from career advice to work faux pas to water-cooler topics. Hot takes abound, and you might just be surprised by what they have to say:

LinkedIn is always adding new research and resources, leave a comment telling us what topics you want to learn more about in 2024 📚 Stay on top of all the latest information by subscribing to In the Loop today!