When I compare the format of LinkedIn and that of resumes, I believe that LinkedIn is a heartfelt variation of a resume.

There are certainly some similarities between your LinkedIn profile and your resume. In your LinkedIn profile headline, you may use similar terms to the ones you use in your resume’s executive summary. Your profile’s Experience section, to a large extent, mirrors your resume’s references to jobs you have held. The Education section of your profile reflects the same educational institutions you list in your resume.

Yet, a resume is a static document, while a Linked profile gives multiple opportunities to provide a wide range of links. You can include links to YouTube videos or landing pages on a website. You can link to the company pages of entities where you worked or for which you volunteered.

In addition, there are sections within a profile in which your personality and your values shine through.

 

Examples of Ways in Which LinkedIn is a Heartfelt Variation of a Resume

  • Choosing your background photo provides a wonderful opportunity for you share an image related to a hobby. Or you can choose a photo of a favorite vacation spot or other getaway place special to you.
  • Your profile headline could include words and phrases revealing your philosophy of life, your work ethic, your professional values, etc.
  • In the Contact Info section, you can include clickable links to a Meetup group you created. Or you could add a link to the website of a nonprofit where you volunteer.
  • Use the About section to tell the story of you in the context of the career in which you seek to land a job. You can provide a bit of back story about why you like working in that field. You can reference career highlights from jobs you held more than 10 years ago. Keep in mind that for both a resume and LinkedIn, you generally don’t list jobs from over 10 years ago.
  • The Volunteer Experience section provides a natural opportunity to show your generosity of spirit and your heart-centered nature. List both current and past positions that you have had with entities that you served because you believe in their cause. Describe what you did in those roles.
  • The Projects part of the Accomplishments section is another place to include ways in which you contributed to your community. Perhaps you helped to raise money for a nonprofit, or maybe you coordinated a series of classes for an organization. Any of these short-term activities can be included in your LinkedIn profile to help paint a broader picture of you.

 

About Joyce

Joyce Feustel helps people, especially those age 55 and up, to become more effective using social media, especially LinkedIn and Facebook. She works with business owners, business development professionals, business consultants, job seekers, and more – ranging from entrepreneurs to people in large corporations. Find her at www.boomerssocialmediatutor.com.