Let people know your "why", talk about your skills and experience, and make the summary sound like you.
What should a summary be?
Your LinkedIn summary is a short description (between 250-500 words) of who you are, what you do, and why you do it.
It should give people insight into your motivation, your areas of expertise, and what it is like to work with you. These are the things people want to know when they are looking for new business connections, associates, and employees.
What should be included?
Here is what needs to be included in your personal summary:
1. Your why
For this, let people know what inspires you about your work. Do it in a way that is short and concise.
Example:
Strong, healthy businesses can do a lot of good in the world, but an unhealthy business can only focus on survival. I help organizations maximize their potential through better healthcare management and increased employee wellbeing.
2. Your skills and experience
In two or three quick sentences, summarize your strengths and how past work has made you better at what you do now.
Example:
My experiences as a business owner, non-profit board member, and youth mentor have given me great insight into the challenges of providing employee benefits— and the challenges associated with having inadequate healthcare access and coverage. As a big-picture thinker and strategist, I understand the critical relationship between health and productivity. I love creating effective, affordable solutions that enable everyone to perform at their best.
3. Your personality
Your summary section should look, sound, and feel like you.
Think about the sample LinkedIn snippets above. Did you feel like you knew some of these people, or like they might make good connections or coworkers?
To attract people interested in connecting with you, inject a healthy dose of personality into your summary to make this possible.
A checklist for review
Here's a quick checklist to get you through the process:
- Make your summary between 250 and 500 words
- Include what inspires you about your work (your why)
- Talk about your skills and experience
- Show how your past experiences have made you better at your work
- Make your summary sound like you
Before posting your personal summary to LinkedIn, have a trusted friend or colleague look it over and provide feedback. This will help you find any areas that could use a little extra polish.