September 14, 2007

Putting Fun into Your Bio

I love reading biographies. I never tire of learning about successful people, how they got started and what path they took on the road to success. It's such an adventure ride to discover how people got from A to Z in their career.

Sadly, most bios are dry, boring and never take a powerful stand for something. However, the editors of the Ladies Who Launch.com, a free online community for making entrepreneurship and creativity a lifestyle, email newsletter really know how to do this well.

Several times per month, they send out a "Featured Lady" feature in their weekly email newsletter (here are the most recent ones) that profiles a successful female entrepreneur. They share "her story," how she became a success and plenty of advice for the rest of us.

Here's what I love about this newsletter and how you can swipe some of these ideas to add more fun to your bio (so people actually read it).

1. They always have a fun, bright and engaging picture of the featured lady

Don't make me guess who you are. Invest in great pictures that puts your best foot forward and include it in your bio.

2. They break up each paragraph into subtitles that captures my attention

Don't write paragraph after paragraph of single-spaced lines that dulls the mind. Bold the first sentence in each paragraph or create "newspaper style" subtitles for each paragraph for more pizzazz and readability. The idea being if I were to skim your bio and just read the subtitles or bolded sentences they would quickly grasp what you're about.

3. They're not afraid to be fun and bold

Here's the beginning of the most recently published "Featured Lady" about Geraldine Laybourne, CEO of Oxygen Media (before the interview section) that is well written and has lots of punch.

Geraldine Laybourne was into girl power way before it was cool. Born in 1947, a time when a woman's place was in the home (not the headlines). Laybourne defied convention to become one of the most groundbreaking media moguls to ever wear lipstick.

How can you rock your bio with bold and fun language?

4. They're not afraid to share the "Featured Lady's" personal and professional style

Look at the words that describe Ms. Laybourne's working style in the following piece. "Transform, whip smart, savvy, unconventional…"

Before Oxygen, Laybourne served two years as president of Disney/ABC Cable Networks, a position she took on after 16 hugely successful years literally transforming children's television at Nickelodeon. Laybourne used her background in teaching, her whip smart business savvy and her unconventional management skills (she'd hand out green slime for the staff to play with during meetings) to re-brand Nickelodeon and make it the top-rated 24-hour cable network and the most profitable channel owned by Viacom.

How can you share your working style that makes you stand out from a sea of similar professionals? Some people may hire you over another professional just because they like your style, approach to handling challenges or your sense of humor. Don't shy away from putting this into your bio.

Check out the "featured lady" section of Ladies Who Launch and get some fresh ideas for brightening up your bio.

Karin

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Filed under Blog, Personalizing Your Materials, Resources, Words That Work by Karin