How To Write Your LinkedIn Profile Summary Like A Pro

Writing your LinkedIn profile summary can seem like a tedious task, but it is a necessary one for anyone who cares about networking and wants to have a professional resume online. Indeed, anyone from freelancers to business owners will benefit from having a LinkedIn account.

That being said, having a LinkedIn account is part of the job – you should also maintain it properly, and a key element of this maintenance is writing a good LinkedIn summary that will help you rank high in search results and attract prospective employers. Hence, here’s everything you need to know about how to write your LinkedIn profile summary like a pro.

The Basics of LinkedIn

Before getting into the tips themselves, it’s worth mentioning some basics about LinkedIn that you may not be familiar with. Try to keep your profile summary under 2,000 characters and definitely upload a profile picture to let other LinkedIn users see what you look like. Format your texts with bullet points to let hiring managers skim through your profile and go through your work history, cover letter, and so on.

#1 Write About What Motivates You

First and foremost, you need to write about what motivates you. As you start filling out your profile summary, you will mostly focus on your current position and your experience, both of which would go in your experience section. You will probably be writing about your skills and education, but another thing you should do is write about what motivates and inspires you when it comes to the work you do and the role you play in your company (and beyond it). When recruiters search for candidates on social media like LinkedIn, they will find your profile if it stands out – and this is exactly what will help you do this.

Business owners and remote workers alike will benefit from explaining what drives them to do what they are doing – and it doesn’t matter whether it is some grand, ambitious plan or just pure love for hard work (whether mental or physical). Even if you just do your job because it lets you earn money, you can still word it in a way to show that you need this money to sustain your family and do your hobbies.

#2 Focus on Your Achievements

Speaking of your job, it’s great if you focus on your skills and experience, but you should also focus on your successes or your achievements. Even if you have experienced failure time and again, you definitely have something successful you could talk about – and that’s exactly what you should do.

Remember that these achievements are the writings on a blank paper – and this blank paper is you. You can’t change yourself completely, so you need to focus on what you have already, especially if you feel like there are many mistakes on this paper that is you. You need to be thinking “How can I rewrite my paper in a way that will make it better?” instead of “How can I write a completely different paper because I hate this one?”

#3 Use Correct and Proper Wording

The wording is by far one of the most important things to remember when writing your LinkedIn profile summary. You need to be using the right HR vocabulary to signal correct messages to your readers. Likewise, if you use words that are considered red flags, you could end up scaring away potential employers or partners.

Aim to eliminate most or all jargon, but still try to write the way you would speak as a person. Focus on your first sentence to make the most impact, but also make your last sentence count. And, of course, format everything in a way that will look good and flow smoothly.

#4 Think About Your Future (and Your Past)

As mentioned earlier, you will need to focus a lot on your past and present. You will need to think about your experience and achievements and translate that into the kind of professional you are today. However, focusing on your past is not the only thing you should do – you must also think about your future and write about it. This is especially important if you are currently on a job search.

You could have been lazy about some things at work and still be really good at it. However, you should still remember that your investments in your professional skills today will influence your future. Write about your professional goals and how you are working towards them as well as the job titles you have in mind.

#5 Talk About Your Life Outside of Work

Last but not least, you need to talk about your life outside of work. Some things you do – like using the same voice to write the summary as you do while speaking and writing about what motivates you – help humanize you as a worker or business owner. But when you talk about your life outside of work, you seem even more like a real human being.

For example, for remote employees, productivity while working at home can often depend on how well they feel when they aren’t working. A hobby is usually a solution in this case, and so, it could be a solution for you too. Spending time with your family, painting, or even gardening in your yard can all be included on your profile summary to show what kind of person you are outside of work.

Final Thoughts

To sum up, writing a good LinkedIn profile summary that works is definitely possible as long as you follow popular best practices. Use the tips in this article to create the perfect LinkedIn profile summary and start networking online more effectively.

If you are still unsure about how to write a LinkedIn summary you will be satisfied with, consider getting some career advice from an expert who will explain to you what you should keep in mind as a job seeker or as a working specialist in your respective field.

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About Author: Frank Hamilton has been working as an editor at an essay review service, where you can find professionals if you think you need to pay someone to write your paper. He is a professional writing expert in such topics as blogging, digital marketing, and self-education. He also loves traveling and speaks Spanish, French, German, and English.