Mastering LinkedIn Growth and Personal Freedom
How to transform your expertise into impact and achieve your dream career.
Hello Producers,
Marina is one of the creators I’ve been following, learning from, and looking up to since my early days on LinkedIn – and rightfully, I still do! I just wanted to illustrate what it meant to me to welcome her on the show. She’s a big creator with a lot to share, so I was honoured to have this opportunity. As you know, I’m a geography geek, so I couldn’t resist asking her about her homeland, North Macedonia. I was really curious, as I can’t remember if I’ve ever met anyone else from there. Spoiler alert: you should visit!
Growing Brands and Big dreams: The Power of LinkedIn Strategy | #88: Marina Panova
Marina Panova is a social media strategist and leading LinkedIn creator helping businesses and freelancers grow their brands online. With years of experience crafting effective content strategies and eye-catching designs, Marina knows how to turn audiences into loyal clients. Her expertise has empowered countless professionals to establish their authority, attract clients, and build sustainable freelance businesses.
In this episode, discover the beauty of North Macedonia and what it was like for Marina to grow up there. Tune in for professional tips on building your LinkedIn brand, creative insights for crafting content strategies, and the motivation to pursue your passions and achieve your biggest dreams.
Lessons:
Speak Up and Spark Your Journey
Thrive Where You Belong
Turn Your Expertise into Impact
Engage Authentically – Ditch the Shortcuts
Define Your Vision and Take That First Step
Lesson 1: Don’t Be Afraid to Speak Up
When Marina moved to Paris and started working as a nanny, she discovered the power of LinkedIn – and with it, the first seed of her social media career. But how did this happen while she was a nanny? It was one of her clients who suggested exploring LinkedIn to build their brand and attract clients. It was Marina’s own initiative to make that suggestion. Sometimes we’re afraid to speak up because we think our ideas will be dismissed or aren’t valuable. I’m sure we all have memories of such moments, whether at school, work, or elsewhere. But if you don’t ask, you don’t know. Imagine if Marina hadn’t spoken up – who knows how her career might have evolved?
Lesson 2: Find the Right Environment
We didn’t have time to discuss this on the episode, but I spoke with Marina briefly before recording. I knew she was from North Macedonia, but I thought she lived in Paris – which was wrong. She lived there and in Spain, but her heart belongs to her homeland, North Macedonia. As someone who moved to a different country myself, I understand her choice. Marina moved back because that’s where she feels happy, sees herself growing, and feels at home. Of course, she may move again to explore in the future – and that’s the point. Find the right environment where you thrive, enjoy life, and keep growing. You don’t have to travel if you’re happy where you are, but don’t underestimate how powerful the right environment can be.
Lesson 3: Benefit From Your Expertise
Had Marina planned to start her business with her partner all along? Not really – but she had the skills and knowledge, so why not use them to help others? Her journey involved years of trial, error, experimentation, and continuous learning. So she took that expertise and turned it into a way to help others – and get paid for it! If you’re passionate about something and good at it, that’s the ultimate win. And if you do it with a friend, that’s just the cherry on top. So, what are you an expert in? What are you passionate about? Think about how you could offer that to others. I genuinely hope this helps people realise their passion and pursue it as a meaningful career.
Lesson 4: Don’t Look for Shortcuts
When discussing LinkedIn, there’s no doubt that engagement plays a huge role. But not just any engagement – it should be meaningful. I couldn’t resist asking Marina about her experience with AI commenting, something that’s increasingly common. Marina’s take? Don’t do it – it damages your brand. Why do people do it? Who knows. Do they realise the negative effects? Probably not. If you use AI, don’t make it obvious. Take the time to engage genuinely. It doesn’t need to be an essay; a supportive comment, sharing your opinion, or having fun works just fine. Trust me – people notice, and it makes a difference.
Lesson 5: Keep Working Towards Your Goal
Final words of wisdom: have a vision and keep working towards it. What’s Marina’s vision? Freedom – to work where, when, and with whom she wants. What else could you need? That’s the power of LinkedIn. But your vision doesn’t have to be the same. The message is to define what you want to achieve, visualise your ideal scenario, and work on it. Don’t wait – take that first step today. Progress, even little by little, counts. If the goal seems too big, imagine where you could be a few months or years from now if you started today. If there’s one takeaway from this episode, it’s this: take that first step!
Of course, we continued talking about Marina’s journey as she revealed the pivotal moment when she discovered the power of LinkedIn and things took off. She shared some tips and tricks, and I didn’t forget to ask about her unexpected achievement of hitting 1 million impressions on her reel! Crazy, I know. So how did she manage it? Was it all planned and thought through? Well, tune in to find out. On top of that, expect some helpful inspiration and a dose of positivity. Enjoy!
Keep producing,
Tommen