Opportunity doesn't happen on its own though. You need to develop a relationship with these connections and leverage those common interests.

A potential problem with reaching out to connections that share common interests with you could be that they respond that they don't know you. If you get too many of these responses the LinkedIn system may penalise you and restrict your ability to invite new connections to join with you.

One strategy in using LinkedIn is to determine your purpose. If your intent is to develop a network of like-minded connections, then perhaps there is value in reaching out to others with similar interests.

Another strategy or approach might be to reach out to people who have different interests than yourself. This too can provide an opportunity for growth and strengthen your network.

As originally answered on Quora.com