Hadiatullah's reason for starting on LinkedIn was not ambition but survival. As a first child and the only daughter in a family of five, she wanted to be financially independent, give her parents a comfortable life, and be the best big sister to her younger brothers. When someone told her in 2021 that LinkedIn could help land her a job, she created an account.

However, she did not post anything until 2022 because she felt the people on the app were intimidating. Everyone seemed to have it figured out and seemed to be way ahead of her.

At some point, she had to confront her fears and tell herself the truth that if they could do it, so could she. She also decided that if opportunities were not finding her, she needed to become findable.

So she finally started posting and was consistent at it.

In 2023, she took a LinkedIn challenge and posted for 110 days straight. On day 100, she landed her first role. That was all the proof she needed that the platform worked if you actually showed up. Anyway, life happened; she got busier with school, and so she stopped using LinkedIn in 2024.

She resumed again in December 2025, while she was doing her NYSC, and she never looked back. She kept at it for months, growing her audience and visibility. Then she saw the Coachli LinkedIn Visibility Challenge. She saw the ₦500,000 prize and said YES immediately. But beyond the money, she knew what 21 days of intentional, consistent posting could do for her visibility.

Twenty-one days later, she finished in second place and won ₦200,000, so we sat down with her to ask her some questions.

Here is what she told us.

Tell us a little about yourself, who you are, what you do, and what your LinkedIn is about.

Hadiatullah: I'm Hadiatullah, the email girl. I'm an Email Marketer and Copywriter who helps brands turn subscribers into paying customers. My LinkedIn is basically my proof of work. I show up there to share what I know about email marketing, document my journey as a freelancer, and connect with people who are building their brands too. It's equal parts education, storytelling, and occasionally me being very honest about how this freelance life actually goes.

How did you get started as a creator on LinkedIn? What pushed you to start posting?

Hadiatullah: I'll be honest, survival. I'm the first child and the only daughter in a family of five, so I wanted to be financially independent, give my parents a comfortable life and be the best big sis to my younger brothers. I created my LinkedIn account in 2021 because they said I could get a job. I didn't make my first post until 2022 because the people on the app were so intimidating.

But I figured if they can do it, I can too and if opportunities weren't finding me, I needed to go be findable. So I started posting consistently. In 2023, I took a lot of LinkedIn challenges, and I posted for 110 days straight. I landed my first role on day 100, and that was all the proof I needed that this platform works if you actually show up.

And of course it wasn't easy because I was a student, and the University of Ibadan was after my life. So I stopped using LinkedIn in 2024 and just started again in December 2025 when I was serving Nigeria.

How did you find your niche, and how has your content evolved since you first started?

Hadiatullah: I came across copywriting in 2020 during COVID. I kept taking a lot of courses on copywriting and learned a bunch of skills together. But in 2022, I decided to niche down to email marketing. My niche found me more than I found it.

Early on, my content was all over the place. Motivational quotes were all I posted but now it's much more intentional. I post about email strategy, freelance life, personal growth, and the honest reality of building a career in this industry. It evolved because I evolved.

What made you decide to join the Coachli LinkedIn Visibility Challenge?

Hadiatullah: I won't lie, I saw ₦500k and immediately said yes. But beyond the money, I knew what 21 days of intentional, consistent posting could do for my visibility.

I'd been showing up on LinkedIn for over 200 days but not posting daily. This challenge was the push I needed to close that gap. I wasn't scared; I was just worried I wouldn't be able to keep up posting daily.

What was the hardest part of showing up every day for 21 days, and how did you push through it?

Hadiatullah: It wasn't even what to post. I wrote down 21 days of content ideas the day I saw the challenge. But you see, waking up in the morning to post and engage, OMG, I still find it so difficult. I wake up every morning and ask myself who sent me all this. I can't believe I have to go again today.

And also life was happening loudly in the background. I'm fresh out of NYSC, sitting in my father's house without an on-site job. Working remotely is hard to explain in an African home... you get my gist.

There were days I was tired, uninspired, and genuinely wanted to skip. What kept me going was knowing I'd already told everyone I was doing this. I'm too stubborn to let myself be the reason I didn't finish. Also, I had my eyes on that prize money, and that was very motivating. I got a lot of inbound leads, and the people cheering me on were massive, so I didn't want to disappoint them.

What does winning the Coachli LinkedIn Visibility Challenge mean to you?

Hadiatullah: It means consistency pays, literally and figuratively. I came in second place and won 200k, but more than the money, it means that 21 days of showing up fully with real stories, real vulnerability, and real value actually resonated with people. That's the validation that sits deeper than any cash prize.

Have you been able to make money from your LinkedIn presence, and if so, how did that first happen?

Hadiatullah: Yes, this was in 2023. I joined Haoma's 21-day LinkedIn challenge, but I didn't stop at 21. I did 110 days consecutively, and on day 100, got a lead in my DM.

Funny how all the jobs I got on LinkedIn, I never applied for any. Inbound leads started finding me as I kept showing up consistently. People would see my content, see my comment on people's posts, check my profile, and slide into my DMs asking about my services.

The first time it happened, I genuinely did not believe it was real. A closed mouth will never get fed, and LinkedIn taught me that louder than anything else.

How do you see yourself contributing to the African creator community going forward?

Hadiatullah: I want to be proof that you don't need to be based in Lagos or have a fancy setup or go viral to build something real on LinkedIn.

I stay in Ibadan, and I started with zero followers. I have no fancy setup, no laptop, but I built this through consistency and audacity. If my story makes one African professional take their first step, that's contribution enough for me. But I also want to keep sharing what I know — email strategy, content, freelancing — in a way that's actually accessible.

How has Coachli supported your journey as a creator and what would you say to someone who hasn't tried it yet?

Hadiatullah: Coachli gave me structure when I needed it most.

The challenge wasn't just about posting. It created accountability, community, and a real reason to show up every single day. To anyone who hasn't tried it, stop waiting for the perfect moment to start. The platform meets you where you are.

Just show up.

What's one thing you'd tell an African professional who has been sitting on their expertise and hasn't started posting yet?

Hadiatullah: The world doesn't benefit from expertise that stays in your head. Someone out there is googling the exact thing you already know.

Someone is paying for knowledge you're giving away for free or worse, not giving at all. Start before you're ready, post before it's perfect. A closed mouth will never get fed, and right now your silence is costing you more than any bad post ever will.

The Lessons Here

Hadiatullah's story teaches us something fundamental about how real careers are built: they are built on the unsexy work of showing up when nobody is watching. First, survival is a legitimate reason to start. Hadiatullah did not start because she wanted to be a creator or chase some dream of influence. She started because she needed to be financially independent and take care of her family. That survival instinct was not a weakness. It was fuel. It kept her going through 110 consecutive days of posting when she could have given up.

Second, intimidation is not a reason to stay silent. She thought the people on LinkedIn had it figured out. She thought she did not belong. But she decided that if they could do it, so could she. And she was right. Three years later, she is the one people are learning from.

Third, showing up matters more than having it figured out. Her early content was all over the place — motivational quotes and random posts. But she kept showing up anyway. Her niche did not find her because she planned it perfectly. It found her because she showed up consistently and people responded to what actually worked.

Fourth, consistency beats everything else. Hadiatullah has been on LinkedIn for over three years. She has posted for 110 consecutive days. She shows up every single day for the Coachli challenge. And inbound leads keep finding her. Not because she went viral. Not because she had a fancy setup or lived in Lagos. But because she kept showing up.

Fifth, life will happen loudly in the background. But that is not a reason to quit. Hadiatullah was a student dealing with university demands. Then she was fresh out of NYSC, living in her father's house, trying to explain remote work to an African family who did not understand it. There were days she was tired, uninspired, and wanted to skip. She showed up anyway.

Sixth, accountability and community are not luxuries. They are necessities. What kept Hadiatullah going was knowing she had told everyone she was doing the challenge. She was too stubborn to let herself be the reason she did not finish. And the people cheering her on gave her a reason to keep going. When you are building in public, you do not build alone.

Most importantly, Hadiatullah's story proves that a closed mouth will never get fed. She started with zero followers, no fancy setup, no laptop, sitting in Ibadan with nobody paying attention. Today she is the email girl who won ₦200,000 and is helping thousands of African professionals build visibility.

The only difference between her and someone still sitting on their expertise is that she started. So if you have been sitting on your expertise, waiting for the right circumstances or the right setup, Hadiatullah's story is permission to start anyway.