Maria LaMagna Morales, who spent three years running social at Andreessen Horowitz, joined me to break down whats actually working on LinkedIn right now and what founders need to stop doing. If youre a technical founder or early stage CEO who knows you should be posting but has no idea where to start, this ones for you. Want the full playbook with templates and examples? Grab it here or join our upcoming Catalyst webinars for more sessions like this.

What's Working Right Now

1. Zero click content is the move

Put the whole value in the post itself. No more teasing people to click out because the algorithms will kill your reach. Maria explained that platforms want you to stay on them so if youre constantly asking people to leave, your posts get deprioritized. Write like your blog post is the LinkedIn post.

2. Direct and scrappy beats polished

The super produced studio content is out. And the more intimate you can make it, the better. Maria said, "The more personal, the more intimate you can make it, the more you will stand out from just the flatness of what were seeing across the board." Think iPhone video at your desk instead of hiring a crew.

3. Hooks matter more than ever

Feeds are crowded now so your first line or first few seconds decide everything. Use the inverted pyramid from journalism, lead with the value first then add details after. Don't make people work to find your point.

4. Build an audience not viral moments

Maria was super clear on this. "I always advocate for building an audience over chasing virality." Because viral posts might get you likes from the wrong people who never convert to customers or hires or anything useful for your business. Consistency with the right audience beats one big moment.

5. Pick content pillars so you're not starting from zero

Choose three or four topics tied to your ICP and keep coming back to them. It gives you a framework so youre not staring at a blank page every week wondering what to post. And keep a running list of ideas in your notes app so you always have something ready.

6. Use AI as an editor not a writer This is huge. Maria said, "Currently chatgpt or other tools are better as an editor than they are as a writer." Use ChatGPT or Claude to tighten your copy or check tone but dont let it write the whole thing because it sounds flat. Also Fireflies.ai for transcription is clutch, you can talk your thoughts and turn them into posts later. 7. Strong takes only If your take isnt strong enough to have a real opinion, maybe dont post it. Maria said, "If your take isnt strong, it might just not be a strong social post and maybe you should just not write about it at all." Lukewarm takes dont land.

What to Stop Doing

Stop posting milestones without context. Nobody cares that you hit 10k users unless you explain why that matters for them. Stop using overly branded graphics with huge logos, simple screenshots and charts work better now. And stop posting too much just to hit a cadence. "Post when you have something to say, not just when you want to say something," Maria said. Also talking only to your bubble on X might be fun but it doesnt move the needle for your business. And the unhinged brand voice like Wendys Twitter is over, everyone does it now so its not special anymore.

How to Actually Do This

If youre a founder, you should own your content with some support. "The founder owns it with some support. They know their company the best," Maria explained. Dont hire someone to take it completely over because you lose control of your messaging. Start with one or two people posting consistently and let the results pull others in through FOMO.

For employee advocacy, make it worth their time. Light review process for compliance but give them bonuses or tracked links or some kind of incentive. Your company page still matters too because its basically your new landing page, people will search you there before they even hit your website.

This connects to why CEO ghostwriting often underperforms because when founders dont own their voice it shows. And in a world where AI makes everything sound the same, standing out when AI makes content feel the same means you need that personal touch even more. Maria also recommended Measure Studio as her number one tool for analyzing content performance, especially for companies tracking what works.

Where to Start

Time block a couple hours to draft content. Add 10 minutes daily to engage with others. Post once a week on LinkedIn to start. Use AI for transcription and editing. Keep your ideas list going. And check out the lessons from a16z on content-driven growth to see how they built thought leadership at scale. The founders who figure this out in 2025 are going to have a massive advantage in inbounds, hiring, and trust. Ready to build your system? Book a call with us to map out your 60 day LinkedIn strategy.