Well, it’s happened again. The relentless wheel of history has rolled into another season, and that’s actually a pretty positive thing because every new season is a great reason to look at what you are doing, decide what needs to change, and set some strategic goals that will get you where you want to be.
Look At What You Are Doing
It doesn’t matter if we are talking about your job search, your workplace, or the balance between your home and career. Everyone needs to look at what they are currently doing and see the good points along with the bad. Write it down and celebrate what is working for you, even if there are some scary situations you need to deal with soon.
Decide What Needs To Change
Even a small change can make a big difference in how your workday goes, and doing some updates in your LinkedIn profile or resume will be good investments that give profitable returns. Perhaps deciding that each child does one activity at a time will give everyone some margin in their lives. You don’t need to change everything (particularly if it’s working well) but changing something around is like a breath of fresh air.
Set Some Strategic Goals
Where do you want to be ten years from now? How about next year? Are there steps that can begin to get you there? Many times a career coach can help you figure out which steps will get you there, and what will be a sidetrack you regret. If you are not sure what you need to be doing now in order to reach your goals, get some advice from people who have made it to where you’d like to be. Even if you decide not to take their advice, it gives you a better idea of what is involved.
A change in the season is always fun because it’s an excuse to mix it up a little bit, but it also is an excellent reason to revamp your strategies for success.
LinkedIn is one of the most important places to have an online presence because it is currently the top networking site for professionals of many industries. This is where a potential employer will look you up to see if you are a good fit for the job opening and where many people find the connections that bring them a career. It’s a very valuable resource and worth taking the time to make sure your LinkedIn profile is complete and contemporary.
If your profile is out of date or incomplete, how is being on this vital networking site doing you any good? In fact, an out of date, incomplete profile will probably be doing your career harm because it reflects badly on you. So make the investment and get that profile in shape because good things will happen as a result.
5 Ways To Start Updating Your LinkedIn Profile
Turn off the notifications while you are editing. Nobody but you needs to know that you are updating your profile until you are ready to present it in complete perfection. Do you want to know when others are tweaking their stuff? I didn’t think so.
Be very, very picky about your profile pic. There are plenty of professional photographers or good amateurs who can do the job and give you a polished, professional photograph for your polished, professional profile. No selfies can match that.
Keywords are how the search engine finds you. That means your profile has to use the words you want to be found by. Put those keywords in your headline, your summary, and the various sections in a natural manner.
Add personal details. You are a unique individual and this is one place you can show that individuality with volunteer work, publications, and more. Look at all the possible additions to your profile and consider them carefully.
Create a custom URL that is easy to remember; it is an easy process on the right side of the page when you are editing your profile. Keep your name and lose the numbers and look like the professional you are becoming.
LinkedIn Profile Development is an ongoing process because you should be adding to your completed profile regularly as you progress in your career. It’s much easier to update a professional profile once you have done the foundation work.
