Writing a personal profile that reflects your true self (not just your job title)

Your personal profile has always been an important part of the CV. This is where you’re able to show your potential employer who you really are. After all, while skills and experience are important. An employer also wants to hire someone who is going to be enjoyable to work with. So let’s take a look at how you can write a personal profile that reflects your true self.

Your personal profile is one of the first things that a recruiter or hiring manager will look at. It’s right there at the top of your CV. They will be looking for a snapshot of your personality, strengths and what drives you. As there is now more of a shift towards holistic recruitment processes, recruiters will be looking at aspects such as cultural fit, emotional intelligence and whether your values fit in with a company’s mission. Which means it’s not essential to know how to write personal profile on CV.

Start with who you are, not what you do

Start your personal profile by reflecting on who you are as a person. Forget about job roles and experience. The rest of your CV will cover that. This is your short window of time to allow your personality to shine. Ask yourself what makes you unique. What principles guide your professional life? Do you have a passion for sustainability, innovation or social justice? Where are your strengths? Do you thrive in a collaborative environment or excel in leadership roles? These are all important factors of your identity. It’s also important when it comes to making sure a role aligns with you. Sharing this information earlier on could even save you time in the long run.

Highlight your skills and strengths through storytelling

Showing is a lot more powerful than telling. This is important to keep in mind when writing your personal profile. Listing out your skills and strengths is great but isn’t very impactful. Showing these qualities through examples can bring your skills and strengths to life. This can make it much easier for an employer to imagine you in their workplace. Giving examples also combines any additional skills and strengths with experience too. This can help you to stand out from other candidates.

Take some time to think about situations where your skills and strengths have shined. These examples don’t specifically have to be from your previous job or even in your professional life. If you’re having a career change. Use this as an advantage and not a weakness. Offering a wide range of example from different areas of your life can show how you’re able to adapt to different environments and situations. These stories can help to bring to life your capabilities but also give an insight into how you work. Some employees may value you this to a point when it could work in your favour. Especially helping them to reconsider if you don’t fully meet a requirement or experience level.

Use authentic language and tone

The language you use in your personal profile can set the tone for your whole CV. While having a wide vocabulary can be seen as a strength, stuffing your CV with big words just looks like you know how to use a thesaurus. These are also words that can be used by anyone. Instead use authentic and straightforward language that sounds like you. It’s important for your profile to sound like an actual person. Coming across as genuine will help your profile to resonate more with employers. This approach will also help you to sound more human and relatable which can give a sense of what you’re like beyond your qualifications and experience.

Tailor your profile to the role and company

This is a very common mistake. You need to tailor your profile to the role and company that you’re applying for. An employer will know if you’re using the same profile for every job application. And this can come across as lazy or that you haven’t put much thought into your application. This is why it’s important to tailor your profile to the role and company you’re applying too. By no means does this mean changing your personality. It just means your approach might be slightly different depending on who you are addressing and what the job role is. A little research can go a long way. Research the company’s values, mission and culture and show how they align with you.

Be brief but impactful

Your personal profile needs to be concise. Try to aim for around 3-5 sentences. While it’s important to make a good and strong impression. You also don’t want to overwhelm the reader with too much information. Your focus should be on the job at hand at what makes you unique. Try to keep the tone confident, positive and direct.

Once you have finished your profile. Take the time to read it through. Look out for spelling and grammar mistakes in particular. All of your efforts will be for nothing if you’re profile contains mistakes. If you haven’t taken the time to check for these mistakes, an employer might not think you’re serious about the role.