Standing out from the rest of the crowd—both in our current jobs, and when seeking a new one—can help us get the promotions we seek, or to land the assignment or job of our dreams. The best way to stand out is to build a powerful personal brand—one that shows your skills and attributes in the very best light.
LinkedIn is a great place to begin to build your personal brand, and to create the kind of presence that will gain you a real edge in the workplace. Here are 5 of the best habits for using LinkedIn to build your personal brand.
1. Have an accomplishment mindset
Being committed to getting things done when they must be done—no matter how difficult or how long it takes—is the kind of attitude that every employer wants more of. Broadcasting that habit on LinkedIn, accompanied by a list of the accomplishments you have already completed, clearly shows people that you get things done.
2. Know the difference between showing your value and boasting
Nobody likes people who incessantly boast how great they are, and the way to avoid this pitfall is simply by being genuine about the work you’re sharing. If you love the work you do, and you’re passionate about it, it’ll show through. Bring that passion to your LinkedIn site, so the list of work accomplishments you include doesn’t seem so excessive.
3. Quantify your worth
Put numbers behind how valuable you are, so that others can know too. If you’re a social media personality, add your follower count. If you’re great at coding, show off some projects you’ve completed. There’s no way for people to see progress without results, so bring those results to the table.
4. Shape your success stories
When explaining on LinkedIn what brought you success in your career, be tactful and careful in the stories you choose. Simply being genuine and expressing that you do what you do—and have gotten to where you’re at—because you work hard and keep on pushing can do more than you think. People will feel that your success stories come from the heart—as they should.
5. Apply the 3-part accomplishment statement
You only have so much space on LinkedIn to hold a reader’s attention before they click their way to another equally enticing profile. When you describe your work accomplishments, make sure to hit these 3 key points: what you did, how what you did helped your organization, and what the result was. Something as simple as, “Wrote a grant application to expand our organization’s reach with at-risk children, and received a $50,000 award,” says everything you need to say.
