LinkedIn hiring post templates for early-stage startups

Honest hiring post templates for first hires: how to describe the role, the downsides, and the ask without 'rockstar' language.

What candidates actually want to know

What will I do in my first month? Who will I work with? What's hard about this job? Generic hiring posts answer none of these, which is why they get likes from friends and applications from nobody.

Template: the honest first hire

“I'm hiring our first [role]. Here's the honest version. You'll [main job]. You won't have [thing big companies have]. You'll get [real upside]. If that sounds fun rather than terrifying, [how to apply].”

I'm hiring our first designer, and I'll be honest about the job. You'll be the only designer for a while. Some weeks you'll talk to customers more than you open Figma. You'll get to delete my bad UI. There is a lot of it. Reply here or email me.

Template: the problem-first post

Lead with the problem the hire will own, not the title. “Our onboarding loses 40% of signups in step two. I'm looking for someone who wants to fix that” attracts people who like the problem — which is who you want.

Words to delete

Rockstar, ninja, fast-paced, work hard play hard, family. They signal a template, and the best candidates skim past them. For more structures see post templates by role.

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