If no—if you truly had minimal or only positive contact—then assume it wasn’t about you. Maybe they’re blocking everyone from a past company. Maybe they’re going through a career transition and want a clean slate. Their reason doesn’t need to make sense to you. This is the most professional thing you can do. Someone drew a line. Stay on your side of it.

You’re scrolling through your feed, or maybe you’re trying to look up a former colleague, a recruiter, or that person you met at a conference six months ago. You type their name into the search bar, hit enter… and nothing.

Then reality hits:

No profile. No “see all results.” Just a blank space where their headshot and headline should be.

And if you ever hit the block button yourself someday? Remember how this felt—and extend the same grace you wish you’d received. Have you ever been blocked on LinkedIn (or blocked someone yourself)? The comments are open for respectful, anonymous sharing. Let’s normalize talking about digital boundaries without the drama.

Some doors close without a final conversation. This is one of them. Let’s get this out of the way, because adrenaline and ego make us do stupid things.