Update Your LinkedIn Profile to Start a Business
Update Your LinkedIn Profile to Start a Business
If you are looking for a professional change, your professional profile has to change, too
What if your LinkedIn profile is perfect for conveying what you do now, but not what you want to do? What if you want to do something new — like start a business?
I often hear questions like this from clients. They have a corporate career in, say, finance, but they crave a change. Maybe they want to leave behind the corporate world for the nonprofit world. Maybe they want to do what they do now, but instead as an independent business professional or small business owner.
When the change you crave is to start your own company or to go solo, there are tweaks you can make to your LinkedIn profile to raise your profile and gain credibility for that next professional adventure. When I was starting my public relations business nearly four years ago, I didn’t have clients lined up out the door. But I made sure to talk up results I’d had with clients I worked for in my corporate communications role, which helped me gain traction.
If you’re yearning for a professional change, here are four ways to change up your LinkedIn profile.
1. Rethink your headshot.
You know the saying: Dress for the job you want. Think of your LinkedIn profile headshot the same way. If you’re an accountant who wants to turn a knack for fashion into a personal styling business, you might change out the photo of you in a suit for one that shows a bit more of your personal style. If you’re a web designer for a startup who wants to make the move to start something in a more buttoned-up industry, you might ditch the the business casual attire for a more professional look.
