According to the “social” tab of your Gmail inbox, that one intern you never talked to would like you to join his professional network on LinkedIn.
While you don’t recognize his name, his profile picture helps you confirm that ‘Preston Baker’ was indeed an intern you passed several times in the hallway. Preston never bothered to introduce himself, even after attending an hour long Q&A session you moderated with your boss on the importance of forging lasting relationships in this industry.
When reached for comment, your co-worker Christina said, “Preston? Oh, yeah. He was great. Super helpful and a positive attitude.” When pressed for additional information, Christina admitted she may have mistaken him for “that other kid,” a former intern who was recently hired in the mailroom.
The LinkedIn invitation came as a surprise due to your infrequent use of the website, which advertises itself as “The World’s Largest Professional Network.” Upon further inspection, your own profile indicates you haven’t kept it up to date with your current job, raising questions about how Preston found you, and creeping you out a little.
Checking your notifications reveals that he first viewed your profile at 3:30 a.m. on Sunday, but would not send his invitation until nearly a week later. At press time, Preston was hoping you would endorse him for the skill of “networking.”
