Now if you're in the market for advice
on how to craft a really compelling professional bio
that you can use in a variety of different places,
like a resume, or a social media channel, or a personal website,
you've come to the right spot.
So in this video what I'm going to do for you is help you craft
a professional that is authentic and engaging, but also concise,
so that you can set it out to a variety of different people.
Now, be sure to stick around to the end as well.
I'm going to share with you an example of a full length
written, that you can use as inspiration if you're really
just looking to write your own with some "zhuzh"
and spice up your personal brand.
So let's jump right in.
There are four key areas that I want
you to focus on when you're developing your bio.
And the first one is, what do you do?
What I want you to do is start out
by simply offering your name, your job
title, the company that you work for,
and then your unique offering.
What makes you different?
A professional offering might just simply
be expertise in a given field or for a product or service
that you've worked with in the past,
and it can be really good information
to use instead of the itself.
Here are a couple of examples.
My name is Alex Drysdale, and I'm a junior web developer
for Indeed.com, where I specialize
in streamlining user experience for external clients.
John Sullivan is a Human Resources Manager at Indeed,
with a decade of successful experience in hiring
and employee management.
He specializes in HR technologies
and regularly attends national training sessions
to showcase new HR tech trends, such as self-service, wellness
apps, and people analytics tools.
Katie Lee is a PR intern at Indeed,
with a professional interest in the intersection
of brand responsibility and public service.
So here's a pro tip.
When beginning to write your professional bio,
one of the most important things that you can do
is keep your audience in mind.
Is your audience limited on the amount of time that they have?
Or is there a character limit to the platform
that you are actually going to be copying and pasting
this professional bio into?
The ideal length for a professional bio
is anywhere between four and eight sentences.
Point of view-- so I statements are
really great for social media profiles, to whereas he,
she, or they is going to be better suited
for a company website.
The use of industry language-- if you're
using very specific language to maybe the industry that you're
a part of, it could get lost on people outside of that.
So what I would encourage you to do
is, think about how you might be able to soften that language,
so that it's just more available,
or better interpreted by a wide variety of audiences.
Now, if you're writing for different audiences,
it's completely normal and OK to have
different versions of your professional bios ready to go.
Now, if you're enjoying this video and find it helpful,
like and subscribe so that you can join us for more job search
advice.
And be sure to leave us a comment below
if you've got any additional questions for us.
So writing a short bio is actually
very similar to writing a resume.
The end goal is to communicate why you're qualified.
But what I would love for you to do
is hone in on things like projects
that you've personally worked, and maybe your words
or accomplishments that you particularly
are really proud of, or any other notable ways in which
you've been recognized.
It's going to be a great way for you to then showcase
the specific qualifications that you bring to the table.
Here are a couple of examples.
I graduated from Indeed University in 2016
with a bachelor's degree in Software Development.
While in school, I earn the 2015 Great Student Grant
for my exemplary academic performance and leadership
skills.
And since joining Indeed, I've overseen the development
of eight key programs that led to an exceptional boost in user
action.
As a result of her lifelong passion for education,
Kristina developed a new curriculum for dual language
students that's resulted in a 10% average increase in test
scores across the board.
And as a result, she's won the innovative teacher award
in 2020 and expects to launch an online version of the program
in the next couple of months.
An industry professional with eight years of experience
working alongside the executive team of a Fortune 500 company,
Leslie manages a 40 person sales team
that has directly increased company revenue
by 15% under his leadership.
So here's a pro tip.
Aim to communicate your accomplishments
in a way that is understandable and readable by a variety
of different people.
For example, instead of stating that you are an award winning
graphic artist, maybe what you say
is that you are a multifaceted graphic artist who has won
multiple awards for their work.
It's also important to make sure that your qualifications are
up to date, especially if you are going to be posting
this in a public capacity.
Your why-- so your why is arguably one
of the most important parts of your professional bio,
because it's really going to communicate
why it is that you do.
Now, if you're not really sure where to start with this,
or if you're trying to draw some inspiration
as to the type of answer that you want to provide,
all you have to do is simply ask yourself,
why do I care about my job?
Or why do I find meaning in this?
When you're able to draft an answer like that, is spoken
with conviction, and with pride, and even
with a little bit of joy, it's just infectious.
And people are going to want to learn more about you--
not just who you are as a professional,
but who you are as a human.
For example, dedicated to the end user,
I am passionate about creating simple, seamless online
experiences that highlight the company operating.
When people notice my work.
I know I've done well.
Martin finds it incredibly motivating
to use his analytic skills to advance medical company A's
life saving research.
A strong believer in mental health awareness, Sally
is passionate about media campaigns' potential impact
on the way we think about and treat mental health.
Now, for a more in-depth look at how
to craft your professional bio, or for additional tips
on finding your why, click on this
link right up here to learn more.
So the fourth and final element in crafting
your professional bio is the inclusion of personal details.
So you're not expected to input any personal details
into your professional bio if you don't want to.
But I will tell you that any sort of personal detail
that you do feel comfortable sharing,
you can throw it in there, as long
as it's relevant to either the job that you're applying for
or the message that you're wanting to communicate.
Because it could add a really nice personal touch.
So unless your is going to be shared
in a highly informal environment,
it might just be best to make sure
that you are sticking to any sort of detail that
is relevant to the job that you're applying for
or the company that you're applying for.
So for example, if you're applying
to be a school teacher, and you have
two kids who are currently in school,
feel free to talk about that.
Or if maybe you are a video game designer,
it could be really fun to include your favorite childhood
game in your bio, that whoever is reading it just gets to know
you a little bit better.
So whether or not you choose to include personal details
into your professional bio, just make sure
that you have a call of action at the end.
This can be as simple as, to see more
examples of my online portfolio, simply
visit my profile on Indeed.
All right, so now let's take a look, when we put all of this
together, what it could sound like.
John Sullivan is a Human Resources consultant
with a decade of successful experience
in hiring and employee management at Indeed.com.
John specializes in HR tech, and he regularly
speaks at national conferences about new tools
for wellness, recruiting, and people analytics.
Teams that implemented John's 2019 recommendations
reported an increased employee happiness score
by an average of 10 points.
A strong believer in the power of positive thinking
in the workplace, John is proud to contribute
to improved efficiency and satisfaction company wide.
He has personally found a great benefit
in implementing wellness measures in his own life,
including meditation and mountain biking.
For more information about John and his work,
please check out his professional website.
So this bias strikes a really nice, balanced tone,
because it identifies specific accomplishments
that he wanted to address, but also presents him
as an inclusive, self-aware human being.
And the last time provides an opportunity
for people to follow up, or a place where
they can go find more information if they like it
they read.
So if you're interested in examples of additional bios,
click on this link right up here.
We've got a ton of them for you to choose from.
All right, so let's recap the four main elements
of creating a really compelling professional bio-- what you do,
your why, your qualifications, and personal details
about yourself.
And remember my most important pro tip.
Consider your audience.
All right, everyone.
Well, that's it for now.
Thank you for tuning in.
I really appreciate it.
I hope that this was helpful for you.
If it was, feel free to like and subscribe to this channel.
We've got more videos for you.
Other than that, though, we just wish you the best of luck.
Happy writing.
You got this.