How to write a powerful summary on LinkedIn

This week I’m sharing 5 essentials to get right on your LinkedIn profile to help you get a new job or attract career opportunities.

So far we’ve looked at your KEYWORDS, HEADLINE and yesterday it was about your SOCIAL PROOF.

Today we are going to focus on the second most important piece of real estate on your LinkedIn profile – your summary.

How to write a powerful summary on LinkedIn

Before I agree to work with a client, I always check out her LinkedIn profile.

And I find it SO SO SO frustrating, when I see the summary is empty or has only one or two sentences.

LinkedIn has given you this golden platform. Why wouldn’t you make the most of it.

Seriously you’re missing out on if you don’t use the summary to the full.

Use the summary to showcase your expertise

The summary is THE perfect opportunity for you to showcase your skills, your experience and your expertise.

It’s THE place that you need to BIG UP you and your career.

Because nobody else is going to do that for you.

You’ve got 2000 characters available – use every single one. Often women ask me “Is my summary too long?”

And the answer is always NO. You’ve got 2000 characters. Use 2000 characters.

Don’t be shy. This is not the time to be modest or reticient.

Big yourself up

This is the time to BIG yourself up.

Nobody else is going to do that for you.

And I get that it might feel uncomfortable but you owe it to yourself and to your career success to step into the fear and do it anyway.

I want you to name drop prestigious clients or employers you’ve worked for. Yes, I know they’re listed in your experience but I’ll only read your experience if your summary tells me something valuable about you.

Tell us about your proudest achievements.

Use active words e.g. managed, operated, implemented.

Talk about achievements rather than responsibilities. Being responsible for something doesn’t mean you did anything.

Where possible quantify your achievements e.g. the size of the team, the size of the budget … anything with numbers.

Now go back and look at your summary. What can you change to make it even more powerful?

5 essentials to get right on your LinkedIn profile

Today was the fourth in a series exploring the 5 essentials you need to get right on your LinkedIn profile to get a new job or attract more of the right career opportunities.

Come back tomorrow and we’ll look talk about visibility.

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p.s. if you’re facing redundancy, going back to work after a career break or actively job hunting, you’ll love my FREE 5 Day Sprint to Get Job Search Ready. Find out more here.