Obama on post-White House job plans: 'I'm gonna get on LinkedIn'

President Barack Obama endorsed LinkedIn as a job search tool Monday, joking that he would use the professional social media network to seek employment after he leaves the White House.

America is “an extraordinary place to do business,” Obama said, after ticking through a list of facts that support that statement.


As he frequently does when speaking to younger people, Obama made the case that if given the choice to live in any era — not knowing what your gender, ethnicity or class would be — “you would choose right now.”

“You would choose this moment, when the world is wealthier, better educated, more open, more tolerant, more connected than it has even been at any time in human history,” he said in his keynote address at the Washington Hilton for the annual SelectUSA Investment Summit. “Less violent. Less driven by division. You’d choose today.”

Obama touted the country’s steady rate of private sector job growth, high school graduation rate, percentage of Americans insured under Obamacare, slow growth of health care costs and “high-standard free trade agreements that level the playing field.”

“Our rule of law, our mature capital markets — all of these things contribute to an extraordinary place to do business,” Obama added. “Now that’s a pretty good sales pitch. I don’t mind being America’s pitchman, and in seven months or so — in seven months or so, I’ll be on the job market, and I’m glad I’m gonna be here. I’m gonna get on LinkedIn and, you know, see what comes up.”

In February, the president posted on LinkedIn about his first summer job scooping ice cream to announce a summer job initiative for young people.

“My first summer job wasn’t exactly glamorous, but it taught me some valuable lessons. Responsibility. Hard work. Balancing a job with friends, family, and school,” Obama wrote. “We’re kicking off a Summer Opportunity Project that brings together state and local leaders, community organizations, schools, and businesses — including LinkedIn — to get young people into their first jobs and create strong transitions between school years and from high school to college and careers.”