HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF (WITHOUT SOUNDING LIKE AN IDIOT) SUZAN ST MAUR HowToWriteBetter.Net [email protected] http://www.HowToWriteBetter.Net HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF How To Write About Yourself By Suzan St Maur From a 2-line bio to a full length autobiography … this book shows you how to make the most of yourself, truthfully and thoroughly, without exaggeration. People usually find it hard to write about themselves, but Suze demystifies the process to make it easy for you. Published by Suzan St Maur HowToWriteBetter.net All rights reserved. ©Suzan St Maur 2013 2 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 3 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF CONTENTS Introduction 1. “About Us” pages for your business 2. Personal “about” pages/bios/profiles 3. CVs/résumés 4. Covering letters and emails 5. Personal statements (university) 6. Personal statements (CVs/résumés) 7. Getting good testimonials 8. Your personal brand 9. Personal blogging 10. Autobiographies 4 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF The author Canadian born, UK-based Suzan St Maur trained as a journalist and then as an advertising copywriter and has worked across a wide spread of commissioned writing genres since the 1970s, as well as researching and writing more than 30 published nonfiction books – with several more in the pipeline. Her key area of expertise is deli- 5 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF vering unique written content and editing for business and general nonfiction, and she helps people produce more effective written material of their own, more quickly – from entire books down to micro-blogging. On Suze’s website, HowToWriteBetter.net, you’ll find more than 300 articles on how to improve your writing skills. And whether for business and pleasure, yourself or a friend, these books by Suze will get you writing superbly … Banana Skin Words and how not to slip on them: the right answers to around 1,500 commonly mis-spelled and other wrongly used English words and phrases in one handy, 73-page eBook. 6 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF The English Language Joke Book: hundreds of humorous posts, jokes, anecdotes and real-life laughs, with dozens of illustrations, about this crazy language of ours – in a chunky, 115-page eBook. 7 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF The 30 Day Basic Business Writing Challenge: if you worry that mistakes in grammar, spelling, punctuation etc. might let you down, here’s an easy, fun way to perfect your business writing so it’s as professional as you are – either as a 30 day eCourse, or as an eBook/Kindle. Business Writing Made Easy: fact-packed 200 page print or Kindle book that gets you writing fast and well for any of today’s common business media, from press releases to blogposts and web pages to ads. (Also on Amazon USA, other Amazons, and Kindle.) 8 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF English To English: the A to Z of British-American translations: over 2,000 commonly used English words that can cause confusion, chaos, red faces and even cost you money if you use them in the wrong way, in the wrong country ... especially for business and social purposes. (Also on Amazon USA, other Amazons,and Kindle) How To Write Winning Non-fiction: if you want to write a high-quality non-fiction book, get it published and make it commercially successful, this book treats you to a masterclass that covers all you need to know about creating, crafting, writing and pitching your next bestseller! (Also on Amazon USA, other Amazons, and Kindle) 9 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Dedication To Debbie Sinfield …one of the best writers I know, and a great friend, sadly stricken by the terrible MS. 10 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Introduction Before we get into the specific areas, let’s start with some general hints and tips on how to approach any project that involves writing about yourself… What you want to achieve Before you do anything else, ask yourself not what you want to say, but what you want to achieve with the text. Be honest with yourself and don’t be overly ambitious. Once you’ve clearly identified your objective keep it in mind throughout the writing exercise. You’ll find that keeps you on track far more effectively – what you want to achieve should define what you say. For example: which of the following objectives do you think would help you to write a good personal statement for your CV/Résumé: 1. I am a very good software engineer and I need a job 2. You have just found the ideal software engineer to fill your vacancy Or on the “about” page for your website: 1. I am a nice person with some interesting hobbies, as well as being a very good illustrator 2. I am the sort of person you will like doing business with Forget modesty As an experienced salesperson would say, “if you don’t think you’re good, 11 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF why the hell should I?” Equally of course you don’t want to exaggerate your strengths – that can lead to problems when you’re eventually called upon to deliver! But be realistic 12 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF about what you can do and don’t be afraid to describe it in a positive light. A useful way to achieve this is to step outside of yourself and regard yourself as a product or better still, as a brand. For the purposes of this exercise you are not Mary Doe the person. You are writing about Mary Doe the brand (see “personal branding,” below.) It’s not as difficult as it sounds; write in the third person to start with, if you find that more comfortable. Imagine you’re a colleague writing about you. Who are they and what’s in it for them? Where possible, identify the audience who will be reading your text and aim your writing squarely at them. It’s possible that the “core” of your text can remain the same for a number of different purposes, with individual “tops and tails” aimed at specific audiences. The more relevant your text is to the reader – telling him/her how you and your service meet their needs – the more successful the text will be. Bear in mind that whoever reads this text probably won’t care much about you; they’ll only care about what you can do for them. Structure everything with that in mind. If you need to include factual/statistical information (educational details, qualifications, etc.) then make sure you put it in a box so it’s visually separated from the main text. First person or third person? 13 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF A few paras ago I suggested writing in the third person to make it easier for you to regard yourself in an objective light. However there are times when you may need to present your text in the first person – e.g. in a letter or email. Try where possible to use the third person – if for no other reason than it gives you more leeway 14 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF to write enthusiastically about yourself. Have a look at these two mini-case histories – which do you think sounds more professional and less conceited? Third person With 10 years' experience in retail HR management, John was able to identify quickly the cause of the staff unrest, before it began to disrupt the workflow. His considerable negotiating skills got the entire team together and communicating, and without finger-pointing or allocation of blame he re-distributed the workload. Within just 24 hours what could have become a costly strike was resolved thanks to John's efficient handling of the problems, and staff morale increased significantly. First person With my 10 years' experience in retail HR management, I was able to identify quickly the cause of the staff unrest, before it began to disrupt the workflow. My considerable negotiating skills got the entire team together and communicating, and without finger-pointing or allocation of blame on my part I re-distributed the workload. Within just 24 hours what could have become a costly strike was resolved thanks to my efficient handling of the problems, and staff morale increased significantly. Testimonials are valuable Where appropriate, use short clips of testimonials from existing clients or customers. Avoid the pleasantly banal bits and use phrases and sentences that have some meaning and bite. A sentence or two normally is plenty – any more and the reader will probably just skim over it. I go into quite a bit of detail on how to get good testimonials later in this book. 15 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Good writing style is essential Follow the rules of modern business writing; keep it simple. Use “active voice” rather than “passive voice” where possible. Keep your sentences down to a sensible length and use no more than three or four sentences per paragraph. Use cross headings and “pullouts” to break your text up visually and allow the reader to pick up on the main points. Be sure that your grammar, spelling and punctuation are right. Although standards have been slipping in the last few years the recent publication of the “Eats, Shoots & Leaves” book has focused everyone’s attention on the technical aspects of writing again. Goofs of this nature make your text, and you, look amateurish. Do a reality check on your text after you’ve completed it. Show it to friends and colleagues and ask not if they “like” it, but if they feel it represents you fairly – and if not, why not. Then take other people’s opinions on board, but don’t lose sleep over them. At the end of the day you probably know yourself, and your market, better than anyone else. Don’t be afraid to make final judgments. 16 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 1. How to write a good “about us” page for your business Have you ever visited a company website and despite reading all about its products and services, couldn't find out who and what they were … or where they come from? It happens all too often. You go to the "contact us" page and you find a blank email form or boxes to fill that tell you nothing. You go to the "about us" page (if there is one) and all it tells you is that the company is the finest purveyor of whatever in the world. (Not where in the world, of course.) I've got to the stage now that I've worked out ways of second-guessing those basics from subtle clues … like the currency used, the form of company name suffix, the spellings (American or British English) and even by clicking through to the company that designed the website, to see where they are based. But this is a very unreliable way of finding out the information. How do these people expect to build trust and confidence in their business – especially in the anonymous twilight zone of cyberspace – without at least telling site visitors a bit about themselves? Never mind who I am, just buy my stuff Think about it. Would you approach someone at a networking event and say, "never mind where I come from or what my background is – just take it from me, I'm the best person to train your store staff…" ?? No. So why do it on your website, when you're not even there in person to give people some idea of your identity? Of course if your company is Kelloggs or Proctor & Gamble or Coca Cola, you probably don't need to worry too much. But given 17 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF that our businesses and/or our employers' businesses aren't quite so well known, I believe we owe it to site visitors the courtesy of a short explanation to locate us in time and space. It doesn't have to be a 2,000 word essay, unless your company history happens to be very interesting indeed. And for a commercial website, it doesn’t have to go into the CEO’s sailing on weekends or the Chairman’s lovely Rottweilers that he breeds in his spare time. (Personal “about” pages are another ballgame and we’ll go into that a bit later.) You just need a non-sales, factual few lines that sketch out the background to your business, how it came into existence, where you're based and – if appropriate – who its key players are. However even when people do include an "about us" page on their site, often they use the wrong information and the wrong approach. Usually, that takes the form of a thinly-disguised piece of selling copy that contain few or no facts and only the vaguest of references to their people, 18 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF establishment and ethos. Some real-life examples… Here are a few examples of poor "about us" text. They're real excerpts from real "about us" pages, with the names blanked out (so I don't get sued!) You have found us because you are looking for sound, financial advice. As professional Independent Financial Advisers, XXXX YYYYY are authorised to deal with many forms of financial services, and specialise in giving advice to clients on a wide range of subjects to assist with personal financial planning. We listen to your needs, and offer clear, no-jargon advice on the most 19 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF appropriate financial products for your personal circumstances. There are two things wrong here. One is that it tells you nothing about the company other than the fact that they think they're pretty good. The other is that it's full of boring clichés we've read hundreds of times before, and they no longer impress us in the slightest. Why couldn't they just say where they are, how long they've been established, what sort of financial services they offer, what experience their key people have, etc.? XXXXX YYYYY is a partnership based in ZZZZZZZ specialising in all aspects of tax affairs. We have highly qualified people offering services ranging from simple accountancy procedure to large and complicated tax investigation cases involving businesses and individuals. We are happy to welcome all clients both business and personal regardless of wealth. Our current range of customers varies from those requiring help with the basic self assessment forms to handling the affairs of an international sporting celebrity. This one is a bit more informative, but expresses about as much personality as sink full of dirty dishes. Who are the highly qualified people? When was the company founded – last week? And "regardless of wealth?" You mean you might give me the time of day even if I'm not an international sporting celebrity? That's patronizing, and it puts me off. Here’s another doozer… XXXXXXX is a company of sales people who teach selling. Our consultants all have many years of sales and management experience. In addition, everyone undertakes a continuous training and development program. We maintain outstanding quality through rigorous trainer accreditation. You can depend on XXXXXXX to repair sales problems and deliver learning results. 20 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF There is one word that springs to mind here: underwhelming. Sales people who teach selling … no kidding. Who are they? Where are they? How long has the company existed? Why was it founded? Why should I believe I can depend on you? OK. Now for some better ones: XYZ was founded by XXXX ZZZZZZZ in (month) (year.) XXXX was one of the first surveyors to both recognise the potential of capital allowances in investment properties and to establish and refine a procedure for their maximisation that satisfied HMRC. In the late 19XXs he jointly developed the first specialist teams of capital allowances surveyors and in 19YY co-founded AAAAA BBBBB CCCCC, the first independent firm of capital allowances consultants. That's better. Doesn't say where they're based but provided that's made clear in very obvious places elsewhere on the site, it's not a problem. At least, though, we get a clear picture of the who and the what which makes us more likely to trust that they know what they're doing. Also, we're not being sold at by a string of empty sales pitches. The Pizza XXXXX was originally named Pizza YYYY, and was established in late 200X by an ex-pizza shop owner. His intentions were simple - to get pizza shops on-line selling pizzas! At the time the dotcom bubble was yet to burst and capital investment was being offered from every angle. We decided to start with little investment and go for sustained growth. This sound financial foundation allowed us to keep costs low and borrowing to a minimum. Whilst many dotcoms have had the plug pulled, we are here to stay. Once again, it doesn't tell us where, but that's made clear elsewhere. I'd like to have read about their devotion to quality of 21 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF the product in the early stages, too, not just the fact that they're unlikely to go bankrupt tomorrow. But at least it gives you an impression of the business, where it has been, and where it's going. XXXXX was established in 19XX by its president, YYYYY ZZZZZ. Mr. ZZZZZ is the originator of Xxxxxx, a discipline designed to inspire and support human potential and well being in individuals and organizations. The theoretical framework for Xxxxxx is based upon a comprehensive study of Western psychology, cybernetics, Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP)* and the Japanese arts of Aikido, and "sei tai". The practical foundation for XXXXX's work rests upon Mr. ZZZZZ's XX years of business and consulting experience, which includes XX years spent in Japanese and other Asian business circles. This text goes on to describe both the technique's history and the company's evolution in some detail – too much, perhaps, and it might have been better summarized here with the clickthrough option to more detail elsewhere on the website. No matter. You certainly feel reassured that Mr ZZZZZ knows his stuff and can be relied upon to deliver. Conclusions? “About us” pages for business should not be “about us.” They should be “about why we’re in a position to deliver results for you,” our prospective customer. Most business communication should emphasise the “you” angle and be centred around the “what’s in it for them” concept. Particularly in a business “about” page text, always keep focused on what’s in it for your reader – and you won’t go far wrong. 22 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF And depending on how “hard sell” you want your site or blog to be, you might want to consider offering readers a gentle call to action at the end of your text … giving them a clickthrough to your services page, perhaps, or asking them to sign up for your newsletter, or even directing them to your most recent blog post or news story. 23 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 2. Personal “about” pages, bios & profiles Personal “about” pages can take many forms, not least of which is the page that appears on your personal (or your 1-person business) website, blog, blogsite or whatever. These are sometimes called “bios” (short for biographies) but often a bio is what you’ll asked for to support contributions to a website or magazine, a special interest or sporting magazine, etc., as well as on a platform of your own. In our current mood of business being driven, to a significant extent, by the influence of social media, these personal “about” pages or bios tend to be informal and chatty and as such provide you with a very good opportunity to express your true personality through what you write. All the same, you must still bear in mind what your audience wants to know about you, and why. This can vary quite a bit from one purpose to another, but it’s not difficult to tailor your text to suit the requirements. Let’s say you work as a graphic designer, you live in Milton Keynes with your wife and two young children, your hobbies are gardening, bird-watching and fishing, and you are disabled. For a general “about” piece you would include all that information in roughly that order. But let’s 24 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF say you’re contributing a guest post to a blog about fishing. Your order of priority then would change as follows: 25 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 1. Your hobby of fishing and experience of it 2. Your location 3. Your job 4. Your family and other hobbies 5. Your disability (if you want to, but only if you feel it’s necessary) If you’re writing for a parenting blog or magazine, the priorities will change again: 1. Your two children and your wife 2. Your disability (if it affects the way you parent) 3. Your location 4. Your hobbies 5. Your job If you’re writing for a publication or website connected with your disability: 1. Your disability 2. Your job and how it’s affected by your disability 3. Your family 4. Your hobbies And so-on. First person or third person again? 26 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF “About” bios aren’t quite the same as personal selling documents like CVs, however I prefer writing in the third person for more business-inclined and/or formal purposes, and only use the first person where I am expected to write in an informal, me-to-you style. Here are a few examples of my own texts. Although much of the core information is the same pretty well throughout, you can see 27 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF how I adapt it and re-angle it to suit the purpose concerned. You’ll see that I use the third person except for the “personal” page on my website and Twitter, where formality is actively discouraged (and anyway you can get more information into fewer characters using the first person!) 100 word bio for writers’ website Canadian born Suzan “Suze” St Maur has worked as an advertising copywriter, script and speechwriter since the 1970s, as well as researching and writing more than 20 published nonfiction books – with several more in the pipeline. Her key area of expertise is writing for business and general nonfiction, where she helps people produce more effective written material of their own, more quickly – from entire books down to micro-blogging. One of her latest books, “How To Write Winning Non-fiction” is an Amazon category best-seller, and currently she is working on a new book on business writing for the 21st century. Personal “about” page on own website I'm a born and bred Canadian but have been based in the UK for many years. Currently I live with my teenage son in a rambling old house near a city called Milton Keynes, just about bang in the middle of England. Apart from going to school, my son plays drums in a rather good (proud Mum talking) metal rock band … click here if you'd like to listen to some samples. We have various (rescued) dogs and cats and until relatively recently I had a horse, who is now retired. In my spare time I edit the newsletter of the local horse riding Club and hope to own another horse one day. 28 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF My other interests include healthcare, food and wine, animal welfare and very, very amateurish gardening. I am a 2 x 29 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF cancer warrior (superficial bladder cancer 2003, stage 1/2 breast cancer 2005, unconnected) and have been writing a humorous blog about cancer, CancerComicStrip. Bio on book jacket, “ The Pony Lovers’ Joke Book” Canadian born, UK based Suzan St Maur is a leading international business writer, editor and best-selling author. She has written more than 20 published books including several joke books, of which the all-time favourite, “The Horse Lover’s Joke Book” has been consistently in the top ten Amazon category best-sellers since the early 2000s. Suzan started riding when she was 11 years old and soon joined the Whaddon Chase Pony Club, of which she has very fond memories and to whom she now occasionally offers her help. She is also a committee member of the BRC affiliated Aspley Guise & District Riding Club. She has had to have a few years off riding due to ill health but spends many a weekend writing for dressage judges. Suzan lives in Bedfordshire with her son, three dogs, and three cats Bio on book jacket, “How To Write Winning Non-fiction” Canadian born Suzan “Suze” St Maur has worked as an advertising copywriter, 30 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF script and speechwriter since the 1970s, as well as researching and writing more than 20 published nonfiction books – with several more in the pipeline. Topics are an eclectic mix ranging from business and marketing to weddings, green living, jokes, jewellery, health and safety, and of course – writing. Suze also edits other people’s nonfiction books as well as coaching them through the writing and publishing process. 31 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF She lives near Milton Keynes, UK, with her student/musician son and numerous rescued pets. For more information go http://HowToWriteBetter.net Bio on book jacket, “The A to Z of Wedding Wisdom” Canadian-born Suzan St Maur is a researcher, writer and author specialising in business, consumer and humour topics. She has extensive experience of writing across all media in both corporate and entertainment fields, and is also well known as a business and humorous columnist on hundreds of websites internationally. As well as writing her own material she edits other people's books, scripts and text, and advises on book preparation and publication. She has 22 published/commissioned books to her name including the popular "Wedding Speeches For Women," also by How To Books. Suzan lives in Bedfordshire, UK, with her teenage son and various pets. She has been married more than once and consequently has personal experience of most of the main issues affecting weddings! You can read more about Suzan and her work on her website, http://HowToWriteBetter.net 32 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Profile on LinkedIn, social/business networking site (business use) Canadian born Suzan St Maur (a.k.a. “Suze”) was transported to the UK when a child and despite resultant cultural challenges managed to leave British secondary 33 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF school with a couple of “A” levels and no talent for anything other than writing, so her career options were fairly clear cut. She attended and graduated from the then-famous Watford Art School advertising writing course and worked in London ad agencies as a copywriter for a few years, before deciding she was far too bolshie to be an employee and so became a freelancer. While comfortably paying her mortgage and bills her work took off into the areas of business theatre and corporate video, in which disciplines she became the Grandma Moses of corporate script and speechwriting for many years. Suze also developed useful skills as a conference and video producer, largely in emergencies caused by the actual practitioners’ bunking off through illness, drunkenness, excessive use of recreational substances, etc. It’s amazing how fast you can learn to do a job if the person who should be doing it is in la-la-land and the client expects a top job, right now… These days Suze concentrates on printed/electronic words. She enjoys coaching new authors and editing other people’s books in addition to running her other business interests, writing her own books, blogs and articles, plus giving workshops, radio interviews, etc., on how to make your writing more successful. She has had over 20 books of her own published, with several more contracted. These titles include 10 on writing for business/general nonfiction, five about weddings, and five joke books. She has edited a number of other people’s nonfiction books and currently is working with two other authors on their autobiographies. 34 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Profile pieces on Facebook page (business and personal use) Writing coach, editor and best-selling author, helping people write more effectively for business and general nonfiction. See how my "How To Write Winning Nonfiction" helps you write a successful book of your own- http://tinyurl.com/ycxqxkz I'm the wrong side of 50, overweight, and a 2 times cancer warrior (breast, currently in abeyance, and bladder which was removed recently.) I run a blog about the humorous incidents occurring to cancer sufferers, here: http://www. CancerComicStrip.blogspot.com I'm married but have been separated for a long time, and live with my teenage son who is on a gap year now and hopes to go to Uni to study political science (can't imagine where he got his brains from ... certainly not from me!) Profile on Twitter, micro-blogging site (business use) I help people create text that works - from whole books to microblogs. Also an editor / proofreader / writing coach. Have had 30+ books of my own published, too. 35 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF What about “elevator speeches?” Elevator speeches are a delightfully North American invention if for no reason other than North American cities tend to have very tall commercial buildings, and people – whilst travelling in their elevators (lifts) – have the opportunity to share their raison d’ètre with whoever happens to be going up or down with them at the same time. Despite many North American buildings being unbelievably tall, their elevators move fast, so whatever you say to your co-elevatoree on the way up or down needs to fit into around 30 seconds or so. Realistically, “elevator speeches” are set pieces in which you need to define why you exist – in business terms – within a very short space of time whether you’re yomping up and down in an elevator, speed-networking at a F2F meeting, or chatting to a potential client while waiting for a bus or train. Whatever the circumstance, this is not the right occasion for trotting out your mini-biography, no matter how concise it might be. (Photo thanks to Pzado.) Whereas bijou biographies talk about you, elevator speeches must talk about what you do for your clients. Big difference. However don’t be intimidated. All you need to do is identify how whatever your skill or business capability is, helps clients do their stuff better. 36 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF To illustrate, here is a short bio of mine, followed by an equivalent “elevator speech…” 37 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Bijou bio: Suzan St Maur is a leading business writer, best-selling author, editor and writing coach. Check out how she can help you write more effectively here: http://HowToWriteBetter.net Elevator speech: I help people create text that works - from whole books to microblogs. I’m also an editor / proofreader / writing coach with 30+ published books of my own, so I really do know how to help you achieve your non-fiction publishing dreams! See the difference? Hope so….! 38 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 3. CVs / RÉSUMÉS Not surprisingly, how to write good CVs or résumés (I’ll call them CVs from now on as that’s shorter!) is one of the most widely searched terms within the “how to write” category on Google. Yet despite there being endless advice on how to prepare a good CV on the internet, in recruitment agencies, in careers advisory services at schools and almost everywhere else connected with employment, bad CVs still circulate in far too high numbers. Considering that your CV is probably the most important document you’ll ever create as “writing about yourself,” this is crazy. Getting your CV into good shape is not rocket science, but it is a bit fiddly and requires a lot of checking and double-checking. And every bit of that is worthwhile, because this document is the only tool you’ve got to help you open doors in a huge, competitive marketplace where everyone else is trying to slam your fingers in them. One British expert I interviewed some time ago for an article on CVs made a point that I hadn’t thought of before, and that is the way we focus on our pasts in CVs is not so much about the past as it is about supporting your value now and in the future. And that’s a very good objective to keep in mind when you’re preparing your CV. Combined with that is our perennial old favourite, the “what’s in it for you” element as far as the reader is concerned. In this case your audience is either a prospective employer or someone representing him/her, so whatever goes into the version of your CV you prepare for them must do one of two things: 1. Show them or at least suggest how your contribution is going to be very valuable to them 2. Impress upon them that you have the right social, sporting and other skills to support your business value 39 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 40 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF That may seem hard and cynical. However much as it’s OK to be human and touchy-feely, prospective employers or their agents wading through dozens of CVs are not going to care about your embroidery hobby unless they happen to be looking for an embroidery expert to fill the vacancy. Keeping your CV brief and totally, utterly relevant is critically important because of the limited time available to read it, and also to show readers that you respect their busy lives. Where do people go wrong with CVs? Some experts say that to get noticed you should break away from the traditional format and layout of a CV (see below) as that will get you noticed and make you stand out in the slush pile, but others say although it might make you stand out it could do so for the wrong reasons. Prospective employers and especially recruitment agents of all levels prefer to work within their comfort zones and an all-singing, all-dancing CV that thumbs its nose at conventional formatting will irritate them, which is hardly the impression you want to create. Where people do go terribly wrong is within one of these areas: 41 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Using standardized CV templates downloaded from the internet. These can provide a useful starting point, but because they are standardized they tend to have a standardizing influence on you, which is not what you want. You need to follow the conventional structure of a CV, but that’s where the resemblance between you and the rest of the world finishes. Not taking enough time over the compilation of the CV. As I mentioned earlier, this document is probably the most important one you’ll ever write about yourself, and it’s the one tool 42 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF that can make or break your career. Give it the time and effort it deserves. Use of tired clichés. We all chuckle at some of these hairy old business-speak terms and point out how meaningless they have become through over-usage. So why on earth include any in your CV? Yet it’s surprising how many people fall back on the clichés. But you need to get out of that comfort zone and use terms and phrases that make you stand out. Inappropriate use of humour or informality. This is not a time to write in the way that you would chat to friend over a latté – you want to be taken seriously. The right tone is professional, with no bullshit. Incorrect grammar, spelling, punctuation & syntax. You’d think everyone would know how important this is, wouldn’t you? Yet it’s amazing how often small goofs get missed, even with spelling and grammar checkers. Get your CV proof-read by several different people, if necessary. Wording that’s too arrogant, or too meek. Although it’s 43 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF important that your CV is positive and shows you in your best light, it’s not the place to go into too hard a selling mode because that can make you look either a) conceited, b) desperate, or both. Conversely wording that’s so mealy-mouthed it comes over almost as apologetic is just as bad. A bold, straight-from-the-shoulder approach that’s professional and respectful is ideal. Too many assumptions about what you can do for the new employer. Although it’s important to make all of your CV relevant to the vacancy in question, it’s dangerous to assume you know a lot about the company’s expectations of you. Often job 44 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF specifications are unclear and/or inadequate and if you go into a lot of detail about what transpires to be wrong information, it will make you look stupid. The whole thing is too long and detailed. If you are a young student / graduate, your CV really shouldn’t be longer than about two or three pages. Older people who have been in employment for longer can get away with longer CVs, but even so remember to edit, edit, edit. The shorter the message, the more powerful it will be provided it gets the key points across. Your personal interests give a negative impression of who you are. Much as you may be proud of the fact that all by yourself you’ve been a successful breeder of racing pigeons since you were 12, whether you like it or not that could suggest that you’re a bit of a loner. Not good in our team-orientated business world. It’s better in a case like this to emphasise your role within the pigeon racing community, and the ways in which your expertise is shared and appreciated. The format and content of your CV Much as some of us (“moi” included) consider the reverse chronological order common in traditional CVs to be a bit illogical, in the minds of prospective employers and their agents this is how it should be done. And who are we to try to overturn that perception, especially when we need a job? Most experts advise that you massage this format to increase focus on the best points in your career so far. You can do this by summarizing the so-so parts while highlighting the important parts. Don’t just say what you did for a previous employer; say what you did and how it improved the performance of the department / company concerned. This then links what you’ve done for earlier employers into what, possibly, you could do for the next one: an 45 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 46 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF essential element of a CV but not one which necessarily you can spell out in anything other than general terms – see above. Don’t assume they’ll understand everything. Although you know what you achieved in a particular role, a prospective employer – and particularly an agent who is unlikely to be an expert in your industry – will not understand everything in your terms. Make sure you express everything in terms everyone would understand. If you’re applying for a high-tech or otherwise complex vacancy, write out the techie bits on a further sheet and make sure that’s hanging on the back of your CV. Point readers towards it so they can view it if they want to. If you’re older that 20-something, don’t bang on about your education. If you’re a youngster looking for a job after having done just a couple of paper rounds, by all means sing out your scholastic achievements because – let’s face it – that’s pretty much all you’ve got going for you right now. (See sample CVs below.) But once 47 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF you’re further up the career food chain, dump the details and just include the good bits. Prospective employers like good academic qualifications but tend to be much more interested in how you get on in the workplace. Application forms: what about these? A lot of companies and organizations avoid the CV route when seeking employees, largely because the wildly varying CVs they are likely to receive will drive their HR people or their HR agents utterly nuts. Application forms have the reassuring ability to homogenize the process and so, with a bit of luck, make it easier for everyone to see who shakes down as most appropriate and why. 48 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Although an application form should not alarm you – because the content concerned is simply information adapted from your regular CV – actually it can challenge you somewhat more to show what you can do for the recruiter concerned in a rather more focused way. However don’t be intimidated by application forms. Simply approach them in a way that, probably, is appropriate for CVs too: Be honest and be informal, but be respectful Be brief/concise (don’t waste their time on irrelevant bullshit) Express yourself in a positive light but don’t brag/boast Ensure you answer the questions accurately Ensure your responses are angled towards “what’s in it for you,” i.e. the employer Basic essentials of a CV Okay, let’s now look at the basic structure and content of what most employers or their agents in the UK and USA would consider appropriate for a CV. Here’s how it can go, not necessarily in the commonly used order. First of all, here’s the order you would use if you’re a graduate looking for a first fulltime job: 49 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Personal information Personal statement Education (reverse chronological order) Qualifications (reverse chronological order) Work Experience (reverse chronological order) Skills (languages, IT skills, driving licences etc – keep these relevant) Interests and hobbies (make these varied and interesting – don’t just say “socializing” or “clubbing” – and avoid mentioning too many that suggest you’re a loner, e.g. reading) Personal achievements (sports, hobbies, voluntary work etc.) References / referees For someone who is further along in their career, a different order is appropriate – something like this, depending on what you’re applying for: Personal information Personal statement Post-grad / tertiary / professional qualifications Skills (languages, IT skills, driving licences etc – keep these relevant) Jobs and work achievements (reverse chronological order) Personal achievements (sports, hobbies, voluntary work etc.) Education (reverse chronological order but not detailed) Qualifications (secondary education e.g. GCSEs and “A” levels) Interests and hobbies (make these varied and interesting – don’t just say “socializing” or “clubbing” – and avoid mentioning too many that 50 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF suggest you’re a loner, e.g. reading) References / referees Now. What about someone who has had a long layoff due to taking a career break to have a family, or who is seeking work after having a family with no particular previous work experience? 51 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Personal information Personal statement Achievements (managing a home, multi-tasking re: children and domestic issues, running/participating in school/social groups, supporting/working in partner’s business, etc.) Skills (focusing on management, childcare, multi-tasking – trust me, these skills are valuable to a potential employer! – along with languages, IT skills, driving licences, etc.) Earlier work experience (if relevant) Education (reverse chronological order) Qualifications (if appropriate) Interests and hobbies (make these varied and interesting – don’t just say “socializing” or “clubbing” – and avoid mentioning too many that suggest you’re a loner, e.g. reading) References / referees How to turn facts into selling points Just as is the case with any other “selling” document (and that’s what your CV is) here you need to turn features into benefits. In the case of people who have a reasonably star-studded career track so far and/or those with good academic qualifications, the features (achievements and qualifications) aren’t hard to turn into benefits. All you need to do is relate what shakes down from a particular achievement/qualification to the ways in which that can benefit an employer. Even something like “captain of rugby team for 3 years running” – though 52 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF not of interest on its own – can be interesting if it’s phrased as “being captain of our rugby team for 3 years running, I have become adept at leadership and team leading skills – often under difficult, challenging conditions.” 53 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF What about someone who hasn’t done much for a few years? Don’t worry. Particularly in the case of “women returners,” things really are looking up despite the economic pains going on at the time I’m writing this. And don’t be intimidated by the fact that what you have been doing may be viewed as “domestic” and therefore of little importance. That just isn’t true; more and more, large corporations are coming to respect the skills perfected by people in precisely those circumstances. In your CV, focus on what you have learned during your time away from the coalface. If you’re a “woman returner” explain how you’ve managed your family, its finances and everyday management. If you’ve been involved with running the PTA at your child’s school, been a school governor, been a carer to someone, etc., etc., put this forward – pull out the benefits to a potential employer through what you have learned. Running a family home, keeping up to speed with one or more children’s daily requirements and perhaps helping out at a playgroup or seniors’ care centre involves: Multi-skilling Leadership Forward planning Financial planning & budgeting Adaptability Mentoring Etc. Running or helping to run a soccer team, general youth, keep fit, karate, line dancing, or similar group involves: 54 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Multi-skilling Leadership and/or teamworking Marketing Public Relations Forward planning Financial planning & budgeting Motivational work Coaching Mentoring Etc. And don’t be cynical about the skills you develop in such practices, because potential employers aren’t. What you achieve as a mover and shaker with your local cricket team or keep fit group is every bit as important as the – let’s face it, similar – skills you’d acquire in the workplace. Ummm … I’ve been bumming around for a while… Why you have been out of the workplace for a while is another issue, and one which you must address honestly – or your credibility will go through the floor. I don’t suppose I need to remind you that lying about it is a bad idea. 55 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF BUT - being unemployed for a while – even a long while – is not tantamount to being a leprosy sufferer. Unless you’re a total waster (in which case you wouldn’t be reading this) you need to get your self-esteem together and get out there. So how do you relate this stuff – really – to impress a potential employer? It’s not rocket science: just put yourself in the shoes of someone who is being paid to consider employing you. If you have been out of work for some time, explain why. Show that you didn’t 56 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF sit around doing nothing; tell them about the voluntary work you did while job hunting, how you became a carer for a relative or neighbour, how you coached your daughter’s netball team, how you travelled in the Himalayas, etc. Always relate the activity to the outcome, because it’s the outcomes that a prospective employer will use to judge what you might be able to do for them. So state how much money the voluntary work raised/saved for a good cause … how the relative or neighbour benefitted from your care … how much your daughter’s netball team improved while you were coaching them … how your travels in the Himalayas broadened your outlook and helped you become a more rounded person … and so-on. The “so what” test This is a useful device that I use for all kinds of business writing, and it works well for people’s CVs, too. After every statement, ask yourself “so what?” That should lead you to qualify the statement with another phrase or sentence that suggests “what’s in it” for the reader. Obviously you don’t want to lead readers by the nose and state how you think your skill or achievement will work out in practice at the new job, but a strong hint is very helpful. For example… Experience using Sage and most other financial software packages, equally proficient in all Captain of 6th form rugby team, took team to first place in XXXXshire schools league Part-time volunteer, animal charity shop, varied experience of retail sales and management Full, clean driving licence held since 200X, has own car 57 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Sample CV: “A” LEVEL SCHOOL LEAVER Curriculum Vitae Name Name Address 1 Address 2 Address 3 and postcode Tel: 01234 567 890 Mob: 01234 567 890 Email: [email protected] DOB: XX / XX / XX Age: XX yrs NI Number: AB 12 34 56 Z Current status: Seeking full-time employment Summary I am a hard-working person with a great deal of energy and enthusiasm plus growing entrepreneurial spirit. These qualities will help ensure that I make a creative, valuable contribution to my employers' business. Through my school, sporting and social activities I have also developed good team skills which I hope my future employers will find helpful in the workplace. Work Experience History 2010 (July) to 2010 (Sept) Warehouse Operative & Sales Executive, 58 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF XXXXXXXXX Plant Sales Ltd (full-time) (their website) Meeting & greeting customers, as well as advising Creating & filing invoices etc. Organising incoming & outgoing stock Uploading & cataloguing stock information Uploading information to online sites 2009 (Feb) to 2009 (June) Warehouse and Customer Assistant XXXXXXX Building Supplies Ltd (part-time) (their website) Customer assisting & advising Warehousing of deliveries 59 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 2008 (June) to 2008 (Sept) Cashier and General Assistant XXXXXXX Restaurants (part-time) (their website) Customer interface Cashier’s duties Basic cookery skills Maintaining cleanliness, health & safety 2005 – 2008 Office Assistant XXXXXXXXX Marketing (their website) Filing, photocopying Telephone answering Handling post (incoming & outgoing) Word processing Qualifications obtained BCS Level 1 Certificate of IT Users (ECDL Part 1) Full (clean) UK driving licence held since August 2009. Has own car. Educational history XXXXXXXXXXX School Town, County 2004 – 2010 A Levels attained: Economics B Politics C Psychology B 60 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF A/S Levels attained: Biology Economics Politics Psychology Extra-curricular appointment Sept 2008: Deputy Head of Sound, XXXXXXXXXXX School (College of Performing Arts) GCSE Results: Mathematics A grade French A “ English Literature A “ Religious Studies A “ Biology B grade English B “ Physics B “ Business Studies B “ Music B “ Graphics B “ Chemistry C grade 12+ test passed, mark 134 (out of 144) 61 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF XXXXXXX Middle School Town, County 2001 – 2004 XXXXXXXX Lower School Town, County 1997 – 2001 Sporting Interests Golf - to Junior Golf Association Gold Standard Tennis – keen social player Badminton – keen social player Baseball – played XXXXXXXXX Youth team 2002-2003 Member, XXXXXXX Health & Fitness Club, Town Comments: “(Name) is a delightful student, generous-hearted, good-humoured and unfailingly polite. He is also extremely able. It is my sincere hope that he “raises his game” in the few remaining weeks, and exceeds some of these predicted grades. I would love to be congratulating him on this in September!” Head of Year, XXXXXXXX School Referees: Mrs Name Name (Head of Y13) XXXXXXX School Address 1 Address 2 and postcode 62 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Phone 01234 567 890 Email name@XXXXXXschool (Plus two further references – names, company names, addresses, phone numbers and email addresses.) 63 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Sample CV: OLDER JOB SEEKER Curriculum Vitae Name Name Name Address 1 Address 2 Address 3 and postcode Phone: 01234 567 890 Email: [email protected] DOB: Xth Month 19XX Driving Licence: full, clean, held XX years. Summary (First) Name is enthusiastic and well organised with a proven ability to prioritise, and an engaging personality. He is looking to contribute his skills to a company in a role that is challenging, stimulating and varied - where he can add to its success by drawing from his experience, using his creative energy, and learning new ways to provide effective solutions. Experience Month 200X – Month 200X Company, County, their website Trainee Branch Manager Carried out various business roles including: XXXX co-ordinating, liaising with private customers, and with corporate and business XXXX customers, from initial contact to XXXX completion. 64 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Carrying out regulatory vehicle checks and inspections. Planning and booking in of XXXXXXXX. Dealing with XXXXXXX operatives, preparing paperwork in line with processes in order to ensure smooth running of the business. Knowledge of selling insurance according to FSA regulation including complaints procedures. Collecting and processing payments by card, working out final balances/invoices. Month 200X – 200X Company, Parent Company, County, their website XXXXXX Administrator Client Liaison for multi-national XXXXXXX firms such as Multi-National Name, Multi-National Name, etc. Preparing paperwork for Veritas (ISO) Inspection. Administration of overseas airfreight/FMCG freighting tasks. 65 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Month 200X – Month 200X Lincolnshire/Staffordshire Personal Care Worker During this period (First) Name took a career break to develop his interpersonal skills and experience the personal care industry. * Month 200X – Month 200X: worked as a full time carer to an elderly disabled lady who has now gone into sheltered accommodation. Managed her personal paperwork, finances and personal care needs. * Month 200X – Month 200X: provided assistance to a local disabled lady; helping with accounts through the use of excel spreadsheets, general household duties, including sorting paperwork, re-decorating and gardening . Month 200X – Month 200X XXXX XXXXXXX Ltd, County, their website Sales Coordinator In the first year of joining the business, (First) Name doubled sales revenue and continued to increase sales year on year. Further activities were as follows: * Managed the business for holiday periods and ad-hoc, duties included: workforce management, planning daily work schedules, use of company vehicles and storage unit to maximise revenue. He also undertook invoicing and stock ordering. * Gathered information on target areas for efficient use of canvassing to boost market coverage; creating new leads to increase sales. * Housing estates with frequent and fast property sales were targeted. This included dealing directly with firms supplying �For Sale’ signs. * (First) Name was involved with the review and modernisation of the brand including the design of company sales literature and livery, creating a fresh and inviting look. * Undertaking surveys, covering sales for domestic (household), office (commercial), European and international XXXXXXX. This included dealing and liaising with freight forwarders in order to supply a complete and competitive quotation for customers. * Monitoring FSA regulations in order to provide insurance. Month 199X – Month 200X 66 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF XXXXX XXXXX Ltd, County, their website Sales Coordinator (First) Name took the role of the domestic, international and smaller office and commercial sales representative for the company. Activities included: * Project management of office XXXXXX, the largest of over 800 staff (XXXXXXX Council). * Gaining the professional qualification XXXX (XXXXX XXXXX XXXXXXXX XXXXX) 200X-200X - Including EU Working Time Directive. * Increasing turnover through sales, within 6 months of joining the business, bringing in a total of £269,000 in 200X-X. Graduate Placements Month 199X – Month 199X XXXXXX Newspapers Ltd, City * Worked in the advertising sales department. * Helped to produce client reports based upon their specific target segments. * Upon completion of work placement, David was invited by the company to stay on for a further 3 months. 67 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Month 199X – Month 199X Foreign Bank, City * Worked with the bank’s treasury department. * Working on ensuring corporate compliance for the bank. * Responsible for overseeing that the liabilities of the bank were within Bank of England guidelines Education 199X – 199X University of Place, City Degree in Business Studies & Marketing. BA with Honours (2.2) 199X – 199X XXXXXXX Grammar, City, County A Levels: Economics (B), General Studies (B), History (C), German (E) Nine G. C. S. E.’s: grades achieved 2 x A’s & 7 x B’s. Interests Church bell ringer (campanology). (First) Name was appointed as Tower Captain at XXXXXX Church (CRB checked and cleared); and regularly rings at XXXXXXXX Cathedral as well as at churches in the XXXXXXXX area. Field Hockey player for Town’s 6th’s in the XXXXX XXXXXX League, awarded top goal scorer 200X/0X season. Gardening is also a hobby that he enjoys. In addition he likes to play the piano having passed Grade 6, particularly playing baroque. Photography is a new interest which provides a creative outlet. References (Five – names, company names, addresses, phone numbers and email addresses.) 68 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ What did you think of these two sample CVs? They are both real ones – I haven’t made them up, but obviously I removed all names and identification points to protect the innocent! How would you improve on them? What opinion would you form of the candidates concerned? 69 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 4. HOW TO WRITE A GOOD COVERING LETTER OR EMAIL Recent letters accompanying CVs I have received have made me cringe with embarrassment on behalf of the writer ... usually a student looking for either a temporary or permanent placement in a marketing job. The reason why is that so often the letters are totally "me" orientated ... all about what "I" have done and how "I" want to achieve this or that, usually ending on a none-too polite request for them to be informed of any vacancies. Why should I inform them of any vacancies? Not once in their covering letter do they say, or suggest, what might be in it for me as their prospective employer. Most experts agree that the sensible way to approach the covering letter is to abide by conventions of whatever industry you're in. If you're in any of the business communication industries, your covering letter will need to be "you" (reader benefits) orientated if it's going to attract the right sort of attention. If you’re in IT, you may not need a covering letter at all. Overall, though, it’s considered a polite way to introduce your CV and provided that it doesn’t slow the reader’s progress through the pile, it can be a very good way of flagging you up and capturing the reader’s attention. 70 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Layout of the letter This should follow the normal pattern of an ordinary business letter, something like this: If you are sending your CV by email as an attachment, the email itself needs to cover the same topics but obviously in a less formal, abbreviated way, e.g. 71 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Covering letters or emails when you’re going around job agencies Very often when you’re job hunting around the agencies F2F or by telephone the agents concerned will tell you to email or send your CV to them directly. In this case the covering letter or email only needs to confirm and remind them of who you are – something like this: Covering letters or emails when responding to job ads, etc. This is where you need to get a bit more creative, as unlike the agency staff, the recipients of your CV are likely to be a) the person who might employ you or b) someone pretty close to him/her. First of all this is where your capability at business writing comes under scrutiny, as much of the text in the CV is likely to be bullets and contractions 72 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF – but here your words need to flow. You also need to be very concise so you get them wanting more very quickly. And it goes without saying that your spelling, grammar and punctuation must be perfect. First impressions count here like anywhere else. Pay particular attention to spelling the person’s name as shown – ditto the company name and address. Use a standard business letter layout or email layout as I showed you above, and if sending hard copy make sure you use plain, good quality white A4 paper. The objective here is to make your application stand out from the crowd, and there’s one way I have suggested to many people that seems to work pretty well. This involves researching the company concerned and picking up on a particular issue with which you can offer a definite connection. The structure of your main body text might go something like this: Dear XXXXXX (Manager of Pizza Restaurant) I am applying for your position of waiter as advertised in today’s XXXXXXXXXX. My CV is attached for your information. 73 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF You might find it useful that my late grandfather was Italian, from Naples which as you know is the home of the pizza – and I have loved both making and eating pizzas since early childhood. You’ll find that much within both my work experience and hobbies relates to this. I do hope I may look forward to hearing from you - and eventually to contributing good value to your restaurant. (Etc.) How about this one: Dear XXXXXXX (Manager of residential SEN children’s school) I am applying for your position of part-time care assistant as advertised in today’s XXXXXXXXXX. My CV is attached for your information. Although I have not been formally employed for a few years while raising my young family, you may be interested to know that along with doing this I also acted as personal carer to my grandmother from 200X to a few weeks ago when she was obliged to move into a nursing home. I enjoyed caring for her increasingly challenging needs and you may agree with me that this experience is transferable to your care assistance role. 74 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF I do hope I may look forward to hearing from you - and eventually to contributing effectively to your school. (Etc.) 75 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF And for someone further up in the big bad business world: Dear XXXXXXX (MD of Volkswagen Audi dealership) I am applying for your position of marketing manager as advertised in today’s XXXXXXXXXX. My CV is attached for your information. Although as you’ll see from the CV that my recent experience in automotive marketing has been with Peugeot/Citroën, you’ll be interested to know that I have a passion for Mark 1 VW Golfs and have three models, all in showroom condition, which I take to concours d’elegance all over the UK. I do hope I may look forward to hearing from you - and eventually to contributing positively to your dealership and my favourite marque. (Etc.) What if there’s nothing to pull you out and get you noticed? If you can’t think of anything special to pull out of your employment toolkit, don’t worry – just make the recipient of the covering letter feel good – without excessive flattery or any grovelling, of course! Your second paragraph (after the salutary one) should pick up on something like… …I have always admired XXXXX pizzas – I plus many of my friends and family are regular customers there, and as such 76 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF it would be especially gratifying for me to be able to make a positive contribution to your restaurant … …that having brought up three young children, some of whose school friends were SEN, I have valuable first-hand experience of day-to-day care and management of most age groups and enjoy interaction with children of all abilities… …that although my recent marketing experience has been in the luxury goods sector I have always loved the Volkswagen brand for its quality and no-nonsense sophistication and I’m confident that my experience can be harnessed to add significant value to your dealership… There are thousands upon thousands of websites and books that give you information on how to put your CV and covering letter/email together, and by all means look them up. However don’t take it all too seriously, and remember that a) simpler is always better and b) never forget that your CV and covering letter are all about you – not some stereotype candidate that we well-meaning advisers have concocted. Trust your instincts. And good luck! 77 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 5. HOW TO WRITE A GOOD PERSONAL STATEMENT FOR UNIVERSITY OR COLLEGE Before I go any further, I have to point out that there are myriad resources both on the internet and within print books that will indicate exactly what you need to include in your university personal statement – and if in the US your admission essay – so for me to detail it all here would be superfluous. In addition to that, whichever university to which you are applying will undoubtedly offer detailed guidelines on what they expect you to include in your statement. Beyond that, your school or college from which you will be graduating to university will have trained staff who know just what you need to include in your personal statement and/or admission essay, for whichever and however many universities. In the UK, the key contact forum is UCAS which as you probably know already can be accessed here: http://www.ucas.ac.uk So why have I included a piece on this at all? Business writing approaches can be very helpful Those of you who read my business writing stuff regularly will know that I bang on endlessly about the “you” angle, and particularly the need to infuse your writing with an emphasis on “what’s in it for me, the reader.” Much as university personal statements and the US-favoured admission essays would appear to be all about “me” the applicant, let’s not kid ourselves. What’s going to get you in the door is not 78 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF “all about me” but “all about how I am a suitable student to work well within your university and probably help bring it some good brownie points into the bargain.” Cynical? Yes. Unrealistic? No. As I have suggested, there are endless websites and books available that will tell you the structures, approaches and “tones of voice” which work best for any particular university application. I can’t duplicate these here (no space) and in any case, in the main they offer you lots of good advice that I wouldn’t know about, not having been to university myself. Please use these – and especially use the advice given to you by your school or college – as much as you can. So what advice can I, speaking as an old goat, offer? What I do know about as I suggested above, has little to do with university requirements and everything to do with basic business writing psychology that helps you, as the “product,” to get your foot in the door. Take a look at these tips, because they will help you to angle your university application material in a way that can grab readers harder. Try to include the tips as and when you can, and don’t let the academic types in your life deflect you from creating material that appeals to its readership rather than anything else… 79 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 80 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Write as people speak, but don’t just write down a monologue Write in terms of “me,” but don’t use a pompous “royal we” approach If you want to use your “personal brand voice” (see below) make sure it speaks the reader’s language Make every sentence relevant to the audience – “what’s in it for them?” Wherever possible write to “you” – not to anyone in the 3rd-person Don’t just get to the point – start with it, and phrase it so it will grab the audience’s attention Say what you mean and don’t procrastinate with fuzzy language Be informal but be careful not to be overly familiar Use go words, not slow words – sharper nouns, stronger, shorter verbs Use active rather than passive phrasing (“go to bed now,” not “it’s time you went to bed”) Although simple is usually better, don’t over-simplify – it can seem childish or patronising Especially with online text but with print too, avoid long blocks of text because they’re uninviting to read Visually break up long sections of text by peppering them with cross-headings or emboldened key points Keep online sentences and paragraphs short, and vary the length of offline sentences Don’t go into more than one idea per sentence Write so that one sentence flows logically into the next One-word or verbless sentences are useful for pacing and effect, but 81 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF only if you use them sparingly Where possible start new paragraphs with links like “Of course,” or “However,” to keep the audience hooked Use a list or bullet points to put across more than two or three items in a sequence Keep jargon to a minimum and be sure your audience will understand what you do use Avoid meaningless or valueless clichés because they make your writing seem unoriginal Learn the difference between poor clichés and your subject’s commonly used terms, and use the latter intelligently Avoid adjectives and superlatives that smell phoney, e.g. “best,” “fastest,” “exciting” Use the most visual adjectives and adverbs you can think of – they’re powerful Use “Plain English” wherever possible – even college professors are unimpressed with a lot of long words where short ones will do Check for small grammatical and punctuation goofs – they make you look amateurish Check for spelling mistakes and don’t rely totally on your spellchecker Proofread your work backwards – it sounds crazy but you don’t miss spelling mistakes that way 82 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 6. HOW TO WRITE A GOOD PERSONAL STATEMENT FOR YOUR CV/RÉSUMÉ Many people panic when asked to write a personal statement to head their CVs because despite their ability to detail their careers right back to their nursery schools, summarizing it all into a couple of hundred words freaks them out. Are you one of those? Fear not. So what constitutes a good CV personal statement? If you search this term and associated ones on Google you’ll find huge amounts of information and advice, and most of it is good. But once again I would urge you to phrase that paragraph or two in terms of: What your particular strengths are and how they are relevant to the job in hand How you feel you can harness/adapt your previous experience to deliver in the job you’re applying for Why you personally feel your contribution to your new employer will be valuable Provided that you stick to those criteria, or at least something resembling those, you won’t go far wrong. But whatever you do, avoid focusing on “me” and what I’ve done or might do. Much as it may sound harsh, potential employers (or their agents) don’t care, unless you underline to them the ways in which whatever you do / have done could benefit them. 83 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Examples from the real-life CV samples earlier in this book School leaver: I am a hard-working person with a great deal of energy and enthusiasm plus growing entrepreneurial spirit. These qualities will help ensure that I make a creative, valuable contribution to my employers' business. Through my school, sporting and social activities I have also developed good team skills which I hope my future employers will find helpful in the workplace. Older job seeker: (First) Name is enthusiastic and well organised with a proven ability to prioritise, and an engaging personality. He is looking to contribute his skills to a company in a role that is challenging, stimulating and varied - where he can add to its success by drawing from his experience, using his creative energy, and learning new ways to provide effective solutions. What do you think of these personal statements from CVs (they are real – not made up) … ?? Do you think they work, or could you improve on them? 84 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 7. TESTIMONIALS: HOW TO GET GOOD ONES Testimonials have a bit of a chequered history. In the past they were over-used in press advertising and some unscrupulous advertisers even faked them. It's only in comparatively recent times, when advertising in most industrialized countries has been regulated, that readers know testimonials have to be genuine. There may still be the odd person or two who sneers at testimonials and endorsements, but in the main people now accept them for real, and believe in their honesty. This makes them powerful. Testimonials aren't just useful in advertisements, either. They can be used to strengthen your case even when putting forward business proposals, writing reports, in email signatures, and in particular, in CVs. However getting good testimonials isn't easy. Robert Middleton, US professional service marketing guru, agrees. Here is an excerpt from his excellent newsletter, "More Clients"… The dilemma is that it's damn hard to get a good testimonial. Even if you get a willing person, it often takes ages for them to write it. And when they do write it, it doesn't say what you hoped it would. And if you write it for them, all your testimonials start 85 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF sounding the same. It often ends up being a hassle and, after several unsuccessful attempts, it drops off the radar screen. There is really only one way: get someone else, such as a marketing or PR person, to interview your client, transcribe the interview, edit it to emphasize the most important points and then get the testimonial giver's approval to use it. 86 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF And, believe it or not, people are almost always happy to be interviewed. They are delighted to help you if you helped them. And this approach makes the process so easy. Another reason why you can be the wrong person to do the interview, in my opinion, is because your interviewee may feel a little intimidated if you are the person s/he is actually dealing with. A neutral third party will not intimidate the interviewee in the same way, and can probably get away with asking more pointed questions than you can, anyway. You don't necessarily need to go outside your own comfort zone to find the right person to do the testimonial interview. It could be someone from a different school or college, or from a different branch or office of what you have been doing. It could even be someone who works in the next room – as long as they know the background and do not know you, the interviewee. What about interviewing by email? I find this works quite well and certainly saves time, which is a bonus when you want to get a testimonial from a very busy person. With emailed questions that person can answer them in their own time. Provided that you phrase the questions very carefully (see below) you should get answers as good as you would face-to-face – possibly better, because people tend to waffle on less when their typing their answers. And finally of course, you don’t have any transcription to do … you just cut and paste! So, how should this third party set about interviewing the testimonial giver? Even if you are interviewing via email, it’s still better to get someone else to ask the questions – not you – for the same 87 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF reasons as we’ve looked at above. Testimonial givers will still feel uncomfortable writing about you, to you – even if they can’t see you. We can begin by taking a leaf out of a journalist's book, and never ask a question that can be answered with a "yes" or a "no." The easiest way to do that is to start all questions with, once again, the journalist's old favourites of "who, what, why, how, when and where." Questions like "what do you think of So-and-so's" product/service" are too vague and are likely to elicit a weak response. "Do you think So-and-so's service has increased your profitability?" is likely to get a "yes" without the specifics or worse still, a "no!" Here are various versions of some strong questions which should get more interesting and useful responses. You can mix and match them to suit your own needs. Questions that lead to good testimonial responses 88 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 89 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF What is it that you think makes XXX different from his/her competitors/peers? Earlier on, you mentioned that XXX is better than his/her competitors/peers. Why would you say that is? Just how much better than the competition/other students/etc. do you feel XXX really is? Why do you feel that XXX is more efficient/effective/skilled than other, similar (whatevers)? How would you rate your experience of working with/teaching/employing XXX? Compared with his/her competitors/colleagues/peers, how would you rate your experience of working with/teaching XXX? On a 1 to 10 scale, how would you rate your experience of working with/teaching XXX, and why? What difference has XXX made to your business's/department's performance ? What is it about XXX's performance/class contribution that makes him/her different? What was it that made you choose XXX in the first place? / What was it that made you decide to be interviewed about XXXXX today? What was it that made you choose XXX instead of his/her competitors / What is it that sets XXX apart from your other students? What was it that made you change from your previous (whatever) to XXX? / Why do you think XXX is so well suited to his/her present educational course? What additional benefits have you found through using XXX? / What benefits has XXXX brought to your class and his/her peers? 90 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Of all the benefits of XXX we've talked about, which is the most important to you, and why? What are the three main benefits of working with / teaching XXX? In summary, then, what would you say is the key benefit of working with / teaching XXX? In summary, then, what difference has working with/ being in a class with XXX made to you? How important is it to you that you should work with/stay in touch with XXX in the future? What sort of future do you think XXX can look forward to? If I were someone considering employing / enrolling XXX, what advice would you give me? Editing testimonials for your CV and other purposes When editing testimonials, try to keep them short. Readers have a way of switching off if there is more than a sentence or so to read. If necessary, you can split one person's testimonial into two, three, or more sections, but always be honest and attribute each section to the correct person. Then always, always run the finished testimonial past whoever has said it, for their approval. Often people will tell you not to bother but I feel that it's a courtesy you should not ignore. Also, if ever there should be any comeback, you have covered yourself; for this reason, ensure that the person responds to you saying they have approved the quote. If they don’t respond, don’t use it. 91 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF The other point you need to clarify with the testimonial giver is how they want to be acknowledged. Some will want to retain their anonymity but if you are to be believed, you must ask them to agree to substantiate their quote privately if someone were to challenge it. Very few people will refuse to do that, provided that you respect their privacy and only approach them about it if someone genuinely wants to pursue it. Others will want some sort of credit; for example, their website's URL. Don't feel irritated by this – it may be free publicity for them, but it makes the testimonial even more genuine, so you win, too. Finally, who should you pick as a testimonial giver? Usually your first inclination is to approach the person you have had the most contact with during your business relationship or education. But whether that's a good idea or not depends on who they are in the pecking order. It may be that instead of, or in addition to that person, you also want to get someone else in their organization to be interviewed. Judge that on the basis of what sort of decision maker your document, website, brochure, CV or whatever is aimed at. Then, see if you can get equivalent decision makers in the testimonial-giver's organization to give you quotes. Because they are coming from the same place as your target audience, they are likely to say things that will appeal. 92 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 8. YOUR PERSONAL BRAND AND HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF IT “Brand” is a popular word at the moment. And because many of us understandably view “brands” as belonging to such outfits as the Kelloggs, CocaColas, Microsofts, Googles, General Motors and other organizations of this world whose employees if laid out head to foot would stretch from here into the next galaxy, we don’t understand how brands and branding can work for us personally. If you are keen to learn more about the deep science of branding, help yourself to gobs of information about that on Google. If, on the other hand, you would like to know how the rudiments of personal branding can help you get on in your career in what many gurus would consider somewhat simplified terms, stay tuned right here. Who am I? This is the first basic question that really matters with personal branding, whether you are someone setting out into business as a sole trader (working under your own name) or as a jobseeker looking for permanent employment. It may seem stupid to ask yourself this question, especially if you have been on the planet for more than 20 or 30 years. But rather in the same way as people in sales will say to you “if you don’t think you’re good, why the hell should I?” … here we can ask the same question at a more basic level… 93 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF If you don’t know who you are, how the hell can anyone else? 94 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Yet if you are to move on in your career or other interests – especially now that our online personas have become so important to both social and work issues – the people who matter have to know who you are and what you stand for. For me, that’s all the justification you need to develop your “personal brand;” all else stems from that thought. Who am I and what do I do for you? With all this “who am I” stuff it would be very easy to become too introspective and, frankly, spend too much time searching for your persona up your own orifices. Although old-fashioned selling techniques may be passé in direct ways, the concept is still buried deep in people’s brains. So who you are is all fine and dandy provided that you can swiftly say or at least hint at why who you are is going to benefit whoever your message is aimed at. So how does my brand work out for my business? If you’re running a business, you’ve got to create an image that sets you up as the best possible choice within your industry area. You have to look at a number of issues here: Have you already got a reputation as a good carpenter / plumber / electrician / consultant / therapist / coach / whatever? What benefits does your experience and great successes for earlier customers offer new customers? Are you one of several people / companies offering a similar service in your area? 95 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF If you’re someone offering a service similar to that of hundreds of others, why should someone choose you? Etc. Creating a good personal brand can be very simple Here I’m taking an example of local advertising from one of my earlier books, but I have adapted it to show how this local carpenter creates his own personal brand within a small marketplace, and on fairly simple terms… Meet John The Carpenter John is running a business within a fairly contained locality. His business consists of just him, perhaps with an assistant now and again plus an apprentice if he can arrange the necessary red tape, and also his wife who does the accounts and the admin. He needs to create his “personal brand” in order to stand out from his competitors in the locality, if he is to build on his existing customer base and grow his business. First of all, let’s look at how John can build up his local business without recourse to social media, blogging, etc… So what have we got, with no frills? John the carpenter is really good at making things out of wood 96 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF We’ll get a lot more done a lot faster if we forget that and instead focus on what we want to achieve. 97 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF John wants to increase and consolidate his business as a carpenter specializing in woodwork for people’s homes in this area. Now we need to figure out the best way for him to do this. In the advertising world this would be handled by the planners/account team etc. But we’re talking DIY branding here. So first step is, take a closer look at John’s target audience. Who are they, and what do they want from carpentry? John the carpenter’s potential customers are well-heeled local home owners who are prepared to pay well, but only for high quality work and service they can depend on What do we deduce from this? Obviously, a low-price story won’t impress them. In fact if anything it will put them off John. What is likely to work is a quality story. Also, we notice an element of insecurity here too, which we can use to help establish John’s reliability. Because the nature of John’s work is essential pretty personal – he specializes in carpentry for people’s homes, don’t forget – he needs to reflect that in his personal brand not only to attract customers, but also to inspire their confidence in him and his abilities. Now, what has John got to offer that other carpenters haven’t? Why should people pick up the phone to call him? Why should they trust him with something as important as the contents of their homes? 98 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF John’s personal brand values John the carpenter is highly skilled He has 20 years’ experience He’s a local man, born and bred He’s worked for some of the city’s most respected residents, including the Mayor – some for many years He has glowing testimonials from many of his customers who are prepared to say so if a new customer wants to ask them That’s all excellent stuff, but there’s a problem here. Those are similar to features - not benefits. Features are what something or someone is (so what?) and benefits are what it/he/she does (for me? That’s more interesting.) It’s easy to turn a feature into a benefit. Just add a “so” at the end of the feature and fill in the blank. This is how John’s personal brand values benefit his customers: John the carpenter is highly skilled - so he knows what he is doing and you can rely on that He has 20 years’ experience - so he won’t waste your time or money because he knows what works and what doesn’t He’s a local man, born and bred - so he’s not likely to do a moonlight flit having half-completed your work, because people know where to find him 99 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF He’s worked for some of the city’s most respected residents, including the Mayor – some for many years – so the guy must be doing something right He has glowing testimonials from many of his customers who are prepared to say so if a new customer wants to ask them – so we have proof that he’s doing something right; these days testimonials legally have to be true Now, we need one key benefit to focus the personal branding on. You get that by asking what does all this really boil down to? First the feature... John the carpenter is acknowledged as XXXtown’s leading quality carpenter for people’s homes And the resulting benefit - what does this do for you? John the carpenter gives you high-quality carpentry you can really rely on How do we get the personal brand to portray that 100 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF benefit? We portray it by implanting a sentiment – one that instantly captures the benefit. Sentiments don’t have to be touchy-feely. They can be based on anything from sex and rock’n’roll to hard-nosed financial or 101 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF management issues. Whatever the choice, the secret of a message that works is to choose the right sentiment and then use it so the audience immediately grasps the benefits of buying your product or service. In this case, by adding a sentiment into our brand’s message we see a powerful benefit coming through: Because you really care about the quality of everything in your home, only John is good enough to do your carpentry. That’s lumpy, so let’s develop a concept that says it in a shorter but sharper way: Only you value the quality of new woodwork in your home as much as John the carpenter does. I like that as a concept, but it might be seen as not hard enough, even for this end of the market. What about a concept that touches on the insecurity issue (mentioned above) as well.... The dependable handcrafted carpentry service your home deserves … now available from XXXtown’s leading expert John the carpenter Or this, making even more of that insecurity... Chances are, most carpenters could do a good job on the woodwork in your home. If you don’t want to leave it to chance, call John the carpenter. All this is the approach I use when developing brand or promotional copy. Other pro writers will use a slightly different 102 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF approach. But there will be many common denominators, because the basic method works. If I had to pick one single element from this as the most important of all, I’d say remember my cute little phrase: features smell, benefits sell. If everything you write for this purpose is benefits led, you won’t ever go far wrong. So what is JohnTheCarpenter’s brand after all that? Here’s a surprise: it’s NOT “TheBestCarpenter” … “CarpenterExpertise” … “YourBestCarpenter” … or even “YourBestCarpenterIn XXshire” and other equally, ostensibly plausible brands. Why? Purely because of this: why should John advertise every one of his competitors along with his own business? A generic name is all fine and dandy, but it doesn’t pull you out as the one to contact. This is something that many sole traders fail to understand. So now, his actual brand: JohnTheCarpenter. Substantiated by the most important of his core brand values, which are: 1. Highly skilled in quality work 2. Experienced 3. Local 4. Reliable 5. Track record So his brand (with accompanying tagline which he could probably drop once he is better known) might go something like… 103 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF JohnTheCarpenter Creating fine quality woodwork in XXXXtown since 199X Your personal brand should be visually appealing, AND relevant The major corporate organizations regularly spend millions on having a new corporate identity designed and implemented, sometimes with disastrous and horribly expensive mistakes. (E. G. British Telecom … their previously bright yellow repair vehicles which everyone could see and recognize when they were parked on the side of the road, were repainted in a gentle, touchy-feely pale grey with a shadowy logo on the side. Consequence was that they disappeared visually into their surroundings and dozens were hit and often written off. But we digress.) 104 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Particularly as media you use to promote your personal brand is likely to be quite diverse, often with less than high-resolution reproduction, you can waste your time and money on fancy logos and typography that come across as pretty disappointing when viewed. You’ll have noticed that even the likes of Kelloggs, BMW, Mercedes, etc. will make sure their logos are promptly supported by their names, despite the fact that their logos have become icons in modern history. By all means use a visual interpretation of your name or business, but make it easy – and quick - for people 105 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF to recognize and appreciate you and what you stand for. And always remember not to let the tail wag the dog – a logo is there to support your personal brand, not demand an explanation. For a small business, when in doubt, leave the logo out and just go for strong branding based on your name alone. You can always add a logo to that later when your business grows. Your personal brand must show you as the person people need JohnTheCarpenter may only operate within a relatively small urban or semi-urban area, but that’s OK. In fact, that’s good, because he will find it relatively easier to identify his potential market than were he to be available to work nationally. You might snigger at the thought that a carpenter should sell his wares to local customers on the internet which is international and all that. But whatever you do, don’t lose sight of the fact that that internet is very powerful on a local basis … in fact sometimes, even more powerful than other media when you consider the influence of its social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Your personal brand must be consistent Unless you use your personal brand consistently, it won’t work no matter how powerful and appropriate it is. Consistently means across every item of paperwork, business cards, press advertisements, emails and email signature files, newsletters, online ads, offline and online service directories, articles, press releases, social media posts, blogging, etc., and of course your own website and/or blog. 106 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 107 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Your promotional copy should pick up on your core brand values, and any non-advertising output you do (like blogs, articles, newsletters, email marketing, social media posts etc.) should pick up on those too. For example: High quality wood working focusing on quality elements Antique wooden furniture, its care etc Famous cabinet makers through history Types of antique or unusual furniture Repairs to wooden structures and furniture Resurfacing/French polishing/etc Stripping to bare wood Wooden flooring, installation, care, repairs Wood sculpture Luxury kitchens Extensions Loft conversions etc Wood sustainability issues Exotic woods like ebony and mahogany, etc How to spot “cowboys” in the woodworking trade How to commission fine quality carpentry, get quotes, judge estimates etc And so-on – everything that’s relevant and/or connected to the upper end of the carpentry/joinery/cabinet making marketplace. 108 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 9. WRITING YOUR PERSONAL BLOG Perhaps the biggest joy of blogging is the freedom it gives you to write whatever you want to and see it, within seconds, published on the screen in front of you. With personal blogging, you need to be sure of one key point – what is your reason for doing it in the first place? Many people view their blogs almost as online journals – in fact that’s how the whole blogging concept started. In this case you use it record what’s going on in your life, key events and your thoughts about them, and anything else that takes your fancy. However you could be running a personal blog alongside a business or special interest blog. In this case, as there will be linking between them, your personal content needs to be mindful about what you say in the other one or ones. First person, second person, third person? The internet is informal, and blogging is an even more informal manifestation of that. So to blog in the third person – especially when it is a personal blog – would seem ridiculous. Whatever you write is going to be seen as coming from you, the person (not the brand) and perhaps your partner and family. Using the second person (i.e. “we”) when you’re describing the fun you and the kids had at the safari park is perfectly OK. However you must avoid anything that smells of the “royal we” when what you really mean is “I.” Once again, informality is key on the 109 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF internet and anything even vaguely pompous or patronizing sticks out like the proverbial sore thumb. What’s in it for them? Although a personal blog necessarily is going to be more “me” focused than, say, marketing or promotional text, you still don’t want to ram too much of “me” down your readers’ throats. (Remember the old joke about the conceited actor who bored his date to tears talking about himself for hours, then finally turned to her and said, “well, that’s enough about me. Now: what do YOU think about me?) My interpretation of a good personal blog is the way “I” (i.e. author) share my experiences, thoughts and conclusions in an entertaining and meaningful way with “you,” the reader, so that “you” the reader get as much out of what I write as “I” do. That’s not a commercial statement, or indeed a commercially adequate proposal – but with human nature being as selfish as it is, it’s a reality. So once again when writing we must keep one eye on the old advertising adage of always ensuring you focus on “what’s in it for them,” your readers. You can’t expect many return visits or onward sharing of your posts if readers find them boring, self-congratulatory, narrow-minded, or bigoted in any way. Themes Strictly speaking your personal blog does not have to have a particular theme or slant, but unless you’re a famous actor, pop star or reality TV personality, the harsh truth is people will not be interested in a blog that’s just about you and your day-to-day life. I made this mistake when I started one of my blogs, “The Suze Report.” I 110 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF thought it was enough to share my interpretation of 111 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF current affairs and other issues that made me laugh, and included all sorts of posts from the slightly naughty to the not-so-slightly naughty. Result? Despite having stopped posting there a good few months ago I’m still getting dozens of hits per month, only because people searching for words like “penis” … “bum” … “spliff” … “Viagra” … “poop” … etc. have been driven there by our trusty search engines. So sorry folks to disappoint you, but those search terms haven’t led to anything more vile on my blog than a few naughty laughs. Moral of the story? Narrow your focus a bit. Your personal blog’s theme doesn’t need to be anything exotic; it just needs to help create a focus for what you have to say. This could be your favourite hobby … your location/environment … your family and parenting … your way of life … your faith and what that entails … etc. Don’t restrict yourself unnecessarily, but at the same time don’t let your blog drift without some sort of direction. A perfect essay? Blog posts do not have to be perfectly crafted pieces of prose – in fact that’s the beauty of blogging…total de-restriction on earlier modes of communication and the freedom to do and say what you like without someone criticizing you for it. Well, that’s the theory, anyway. Whether we cyber-hippies like or not, however, the bottom line is that badly crafted and badly written blog posts say about as much for you as if you to wear a dirty old shirt and jeans to a formal gala event. If you want 112 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF credibility and respect, you have to write reasonably well and construct your blog posts properly. 113 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF What’s “properly?” Well, again, we’re not talking university level language here, but on the other hand your grammar, syntax, punctuation and spelling need to be pretty much OK if you’re to retain the respect of your readers. Your posts need to stay on topic without wandering off into the wild blue yonder and ideally need to have a beginning, a middle, and an end. That’s not a very tall order now, is it? Not too many links In blogging and indeed nearly all over the place on the internet, including links in your text to other, relevant pieces of information has become very popular. When I’m writing blog posts I always make sure my key points are backed up by a link to something somewhere else on the internet that supports what I’m saying, although there are times when I wonder just how valid some of those links are. That’s not the only point to consider, however. I don’t know about you, but when I peruse a piece of prose on the internet and find it peppered with more links than there are baubles on a Christmas tree, it gives me cyber-indigestion. I enjoy clicking on the odd link here and there while I’m reading online text but if I’m offered the opportunity to click on just about every other word, I begin to feel sick … and tend to move on elsewhere. Don’t let that happen to your blog. If you do want people to know where else to get further information in droves, save your links for the end of your blog post and gather them all there. 114 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Make it easy for readers to share your posts Being a total technodork I am certainly not the right person to advise you on the technicalities of setting up your blog, but I do know that for sheer readability and credibility ratings you need to make your personal blog posts easy for others to share, if you want to get the widest possible coverage. That means you need to install appropriate plugins … and/or, install buttons from the best of the social media sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, et all. Don’t ask me how to do that because I don’t know, but our Sarah Arrow does – buzz her and she’ll tell you how, here: SarkEmedia.com Video, audio etc. As technology moves us farther and farther on in terms of what we can achieve with relatively simple kit to put ourselves online in visual and audio terms as well as in pure text, we can rejoice in there being myriad simple ways in which to present ourselves. But be warned; no matter how excellent the technology, if you are not someone who should be voicing or visually presenting a piece online, on your blog, then don’t do it. There is nothing worse than seeing a twitchy, nervous talking head bobbing about against the background of a white tablecloth while trying to remember what the hell to say as the remotely-driven video camera rolls on relentlessly, accompanied by an echoey soundtrack that appears to have been recorded around 100 metres down a smelly well. 115 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF If you can afford to do video or audio properly, then by all means go ahead with it for your blog. But frankly, unless you’re a rock star, forget the fancy toy-toys. Instead focus on some good, 116 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF relevant, informative and entertaining text content that everyone will enjoy. If you must include video and/or audio, however, here are a few tips to help you do it well… Audio tracks: “a word in your ear” Someone once said that audio listeners aren’t one audience of thousands; they’re thousands of audiences of one. Always communicate with “you” in a personal style, as if you were talking to the listener direct. Get it right, and your close proximity to the listener’s ear is a powerful communication tool. Get it wrong, and you unleash the equivalent strength of hostility. Never patronize or talk down. Speak as if you’re talking to a friend. Be honest and realistic – no hype or bullshit. Work with the online text – don’t fight it or mirror it. There’s no point telling people what they already can see. Use spoken words to add a dimension to the written text, or to embellish images where there is little or no text. Don’t depend too heavily on the audio content to get important messages over, because some people don’t even have their speakers on all the time. And as for sound quality, see below… 117 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Video clips With video cameras being so easy to use and video material being so easy to upload, it’s not surprising that many people think it’s equally easy to produce good video content and performance. However, they’re wrong. 118 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Whereas there are high-tech, high-quality solutions for all the practical elements of making a video, once it comes to who says what and how, no amount of technology can improve on a bad performance. The camera exaggerates even the slightest movement and makes it look maniacal. On the other hand, once you recognize this point and make yourself sit absolutely bolt still, you’ll look like a ventriloquist’s dummy. It takes a lot of training and practice to hit the right balance, as any TV newsreader will tell you. The answer? Unless you happen to be very good at on-camera presenting, don’t do it. Instead use the off-camera interview technique. This technique is often used on TV by news reporters and documentary directors, where you see the interviewee talking to an unseen someone just beside the camera. It’s brilliant for two reasons: one, the camera in this case is recording one half of a genuine conversation between two people which is far more natural and relaxed than a “talking head” and two, you don’t have to remember your lines in anything like the same detail. All it needs is for someone to sit beside the camera (or it can be the person running the camera, depending on whether you use remote control or not) and ask you questions which you will have pre-agreed, but not over-rehearsed. You then look at the person (so your eyeline ends just to one side of the camera) and reply to him or her. The person’s questions can then be cut out afterwards, or if you really like the “fly-on-the-wall” approach, you can leave them in. Whoever asks the questions must take care not to phrase them in such a way that you automatically respond with either a “yes” or a 119 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF “no” as this can make the dialogue fall rather flat. The way to avoid that is to ask “open” questions and these are what journalists use – start every question with what who where why when which how etc. And finally, leave a short gap between the question and your answer so that if you decide to edit out the questions later, it can be done cleanly. Similarly, don’t talk over each other as that can mess up the soundtrack. As I mentioned just now, another damning element of DIY videos (and audio tracks) that you find is that the voice of the speaker sounds like s/he was talking from the bottom of a well – echoing, hollow and distorted. This usually arises when you are using the camera microphone to record the sound; no matter how much camera manufacturers swear up and down that their on-camera mics are of excellent quality, in the main they are not. Rather than go to the expense and palaver of setting up individual mics, you can simply ensure that the place where you record your video is as sound-dead as possible. A nice, fluffy, thickly carpeted, softly furnished living room is ideal, well away from domestic noises. And avoid shooting in 120 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF large open spaces, outdoors, and anywhere with hard floors and few soft furnishings. 121 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Pictures and illustrations As people say “the jury is still out” on how many – if any – pictures you should include in your personal blog. Some bloggers say to keep it to one, max, per blog post. Others say you should use a good few. What is the right answer? As always, I think the right answer is to make a judgment on each blog post as you write it. Some will demand one illustration; some will demand several; some will demand none. You simply have to use your common sense. And for more information on personal blogging? Check out these ladies’ blogs for all you need to know: Sarah Arrow – http://sarkemedia.com Barbara Saul - http://blogmistress.com Ileane Smith (USA) - http://basicblogtips.com/about 122 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 10. WRITING YOUR AUTOBIOGRAPHY Obviously I’m not even going to try to show you how to write a best-selling, 100,000 word autobiography here because that’s a completely different topic! However, many of us are either called upon or feel inclined to put together our own history and that of our forefather and mothers, so I thought I’d write a short piece on how to go about doing that. There’s lots of advice around on the internet about how to put your autobiography and/or family history together into book form – for example, 123 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF http://www.mediacollege.com/writing/genealogy/family-history.html But how do you go about structuring it? Telling some of your story in stories People love to read good stories. And even if your only readership will consist of friends and family, you want your work to be entertaining enough to keep them turning the pages. Long narratives, no matter how peppered with sex, drugs, rock & roll, scandal and shopping, end up being very boring. Obviously a long sequence of stories would get a bit tedious, too, but a combination of the two approaches can work very well. This means that you use the narrative as the main structure and hang stories off that, almost as illustrations or punctuation. 124 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF Chronological structure works best Amongst professional authors (and ghostwriters) there are various different fashions in terms of how biographical material is set out. Invariably these fashionable approaches involve mixing up past, present and future, jumping back and forth from decade to decade in what seems like an attempt to keep the readers on his or her toes. Those approaches can work, but they need to be done well. And as we’re looking here at simple ways of conveying your life story and possibly that of your family, leapfrogging decades is merely going to cause confusion. My advice is, stick to chronological order as much as you can. This may involve a certain element of yo-yo mode if, for example, you write a chapter about one branch of your family from the year dot to the present date, and then move on to use the same approach to another branch of the family. But provided that you make clear when and where everybody fits into your past, it will work out OK. Working through your structure In my experience whatever you’re writing – from a business proposal to a full-length novel – the more effort you put into planning out its structure, and the more detail you can incorporate, the easier the work will be to write in the end. Whether you use your laptop or a large piece of doodling paper and a pencil, it’s easy to start with just a list of chapter headings, like this: 125 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF THE STORY OF ME 1. Where I was born and grew up 2. My Mum’s background and family 3. My Dad’s background and family 4. My siblings and how we got on when we were young 5. My school days 6. The teenage years 7. My parents’ divorce and how I dealt with it 8. University 9. Mum’s new life with my stepdad 10. My first proper job 11. Meeting my partner and getting married 12. Our kids & what they were like when little 13. My progressing career 14. My hobbies 15. Where we are today Next, we want to add some detail, so I’ll show some example for chapters 1, 2, and 3. When doing this for real you would probably go on to add more and more sub-sections, so creating a very useful framework for your actual writing… 1. Where I was born and grew up 126 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF a. Eldest child b. Spoilt baby c. First sibling – how I felt jealous d. Second sibling e. What life was like at home f. Family holidays g. Family pets 127 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 2. My Mum’s background and family a. Where she was born and raised b. Her parents (my maternal grandparents) c. Her ancestors d. Her siblings e. Her education and career f. How she met my Dad (her version) g. What she wanted for their wedding h. How she felt when she had me 3. My Dad’s background and family a. Where he was born and raised b. His parents (my paternal grandparents) c. His ancestors d. His siblings e. His education and career f. How he met my Mum (his version) g. How he coped with the wedding hysteria h. How he felt when they had me Great. Now, look through your list (which as I said should be rather more detailed than this) and see how many entertaining stories you or your relatives can recall, to act as “illustrations” to the narrative. Bear in mind the stories do not have to be funny; they can also be sad, poignant, tragic. What makes them “entertaining” is the fact that they appeal to readers’ emotions, e.g.… 128 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF 1. Where I was born and grew up a. Eldest child b. Spoilt baby c. First sibling – how I felt jealous (story: stealing my sister’s food) d. Second sibling e. What life was like at home (story: brother’s chemistry accidents) f. Family holidays (story: caravan blowing over) g. Family pets (story: dog chewing up brother’s course work) 2. My Mum’s background and family a. Where she was born and raised b. Her parents (my maternal grandparents) (story: immigrating from Poland) c. Her ancestors (story: Nazi horrors in Poland) d. Her siblings e. Her education and career (story: getting excluded from school for smoking) f. How she met my Dad (her version) (story: the blind date that went wrong) g. What she wanted for their wedding h. How she felt when she had me (story: nearly named me Reuben after uncle, re: big nose) 3. My Dad’s background and family a. Where he was born and raised (story: no money so slept in a 129 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF drawer) b. His parents (my paternal grandparents) c. His ancestors (story: distant relatives were Romany gypsies: how we found out) d. His siblings e. His education and career (story: how he regrets having dropped out of school) f. How he met my Mum (his version) (story: taking 6 months to set up blind date) g. How he coped with the wedding hysteria (story: getting drunk the night before) h. How he felt when they had me …and so-on. I don’t know about you, but that strikes me as looking like it will be a very interesting read! 130 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF For further information on writing a personal autobiography, try these resources: http://www.wikihow.com/Write-an-Autobiography http://www.your-life-your-story.com/autobiography.html 131 HOW TO WRITE ABOUT YOURSELF THE END! If you have any comments or questions about this book, please give me a shout on [email protected] and I’ll be only too pleased to help you as much as I can. Don’t forget to keep watching the site for more tips, articles and books to help you write better. In the meantime, I wish you happy writing about yourself! Suze. http://HowToWriteBetter.net 132 Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)
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