Before we get into how to write a bio too deeply, let’s get some perspective:

1. It’s your bio, so do what you want.
2. There’s no right, but there are some wrongs.
3. There’s lots of conflicting advice. For example, Pete Kistler’s post about how to write a professional bio gives some advice that’s different from what you’ll read here.
4. So do what you want, after thinking about the repercussions…

Let’s start at the beginning: why do you need to learn how to write a bio? Here are some reasons – and note that some of them imply that you need different versions:

• You need a really short bio for social networking sites – you know, things like Twitter.
• If you do a blog, you need two bios – a very short “About” on your blog’s landing page, and a longer version for your “About” page.
• You’ll frequently need some kind of bio if you speak somewhere, guest blog, or otherwise volunteer your services.
• A bio is a great adjunct document to use in your job search.

I bet you can think of others as well. You can see right away that some need to be more condensed than others. Contrary to advice you’ve received from others, some are better written in first-person, and some in third-person. (“I am a blogger” vs “Feigenson is a blogger”).

It’s really pretty easy to do several versions if you start with the longest one first. Then you can prune it down for the shorter versions, and change the voice of the bio from first- to third-person easily. Just to be clear, if you’re obviously talking about yourself, it’s more natural to write in first-person. But if the bio is going to be used by others, then third-person is more natural.

How long should different versions be? There’s no hard and fast rule, but here’s what I’d suggest:

• The shortest version is your personal branding statement. I’ve written about this topic several times, and here’s a good starting point. Let’s just say that your PBS should be able to fit on a single line on your business card.
• Tiny version should be under 50 words.
• Short version should be about 100 words.
• Long version should be one page (but leave room for your picture).

Here’s why this is way less confusing than it seems: space constraints and/or requests from people who’d like your bio will dictate how long they should be. So you may end up with even more versions…

There are other posts on this site that provide more nuts and bolts instructions for how to write a bio (see “8 Tips to Write a Professional Bio” and “How to Write a Short, Professional Bio on Yourself”). Well, actually do a search for the word “bio” and you’ll find still more posts. And since these are pretty comprehensive, I’m going to finish up with some things people don’t normally write about on this topic.

First, everything you write should support your Personal Branding Statement. This focus is essential to promote the brand, or image, you’ve decided on. Everything you do or say needs to support that effort. For example, a fellow I know posted a status message on LinkedIn: “xxx is a Compentent Comunicator…” Some of you may recognize this as an announcement that the writer had just attained the level of competent communicator at Toastmasters. I hope you will all realize he spelled both competent and communicator wrong. So if you make a claim, please be sure to support it!

So, your bio – any length – starts out with your Personal Branding Statement. Then be sure to include the things you’ve done that support your PBS. And please – whether you write in first- or third-person – include something about who and what you are. When people read bios, they want to get some feeling about you, they’re looking for a personal connection.

Finally, you should consider making a single-page document about yourself – your personal bio – that will compliment your resume. It should be clean, well-designed, and interesting. There are times when this bio will be more effective than a resume in your job search, especially as you advance in your career.

Check out Brand-Yourself’s other articles on how to write a bio, see which tips work best for you, and get started on your own bio.

• How to Write a Bio: 8 Tips
• How to Write a Short, Professional Bio

From a previous article here on Brand-Yourself.com, we learn that personal branding consists of projecting three main qualities about yourself: your competencies (in other words, your skills); your personality, which includes your goals, values, and identity; and the unique value or benefit you are able to provide (i.e. what do you have to offer that sets you apart from the rest?).

As an extension of your personal brand, your personal bio must reinforce the image you present to prospective employers.  Do your best to stay true to your established brand identity, while also keeping in mind these three personal bio tips:

1. Keep it short and sweet.
   Brevity is the soul of wit, as Shakespeare says, and the people reading your bio will be relieved if you stick to this idea. They are on your website to get a quick idea of you, not to read a novel.  Stick to the same rule-of-thumb as for your résumé: include all essential information, but keep it concise and to-the-point.
2. Call him Ishmael.
   Remember to write your bio in third person.  After including your full name once, it is fine to refer to yourself by your first name for the remainder of the bio.  If, however, your career path requires a more formal style, use your surname for the rest of your bio instead.
3. Be yourself.
   You are not writing a research paper on pelicans or economics, so resist the urge to revert back to college composition class (where you wrote a certain way because you needed an A).  Your personal bio needs of course to be readable and grammatically correct, but don’t confuse a need for professionalism with a reason to stay bland and generic in your writing.  Allow some of yourself to show through your words.

Writing a personal bio may seem like a daunting task at first, but remember that you are the one in power (and that you are not being graded!).  Keep it simple and honest, and ensure that it remains cohesive with the other aspects of your personal brand.

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Brand-Yourself.com is a platform to diagnose, manage and monitor your online reputation for career success. Did you know that 83% of employers use the web to research job applicants? If you’re ready to proactively control your Google results and get hired, rather than cut from the applicant pool, try us for free and start controlling how you’re perceived online. Go ahead. Take our tools for a spin.

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Gabrielle is a recent graduate from Syracuse University, where she studied fashion design and fashion communications.  She is in the process of building a small fashion business over the internet and  plans to return to Syracuse in 2010 to pursue her Master’s Degree in art journalism.

You’ve got an impressive resume listing your many accolades and experiences.  Great!  You and 1,000’s of other brilliantly qualified applicants.  A solid resume is vital, but it only shows what you’ve done not who you are.  What to do?  Show prospective employers and colleagues what makes you different from the pack.  Distinguish yourself by writing a personal bio.  Relax – it’s much simpler than you think!  Here is the answer to the question “how to write a personal bio” broken down into 5 simple steps

How to Write a Personal Bio:

1. First things first – decide on your target audience. Are you writing so that potential employers can get to know how fascinating you are so they want to interview you?  To let your students know you’re human?  If you want your writing to sound more professional, it would be best to write the personal bio in the 3^rd person (even if it’s a bit awkward at first).  1^st person is usually fine too, but more informal.
2. Be brief! Even though your personal bio can be longer if it’s posted online (in print it’s usually about a paragraph or two), we probably don’t need to know that your pooch Fluffy died when you were 12 unless that incident has some bearing on who you are now.  Shorter, more frequent paragraphs are easier for readers to follow than long, rambling ones.  Flowery sentences may have worked for Hawthorne and Faulkner, but has no place in your personal bio.  It doesn’t necessarily even need to be in paragraph format, but if you’re going to use a list format make it interesting.  You have a lot less space to show your personality.
3. What to include? Most personal biographies at least touch on all important times of life: childhood, young adulthood, recent successes.  It’s important to keep it proportional, however, as you wouldn’t want to write five paragraphs about your childhood and only two about current endeavors.  Focus on recent accomplishments, hobbies, favorites (movies, food, whatever you want the world to know).  Mention family (spouse, children, parents) briefly, after all this is your personal bio, not theirs.  Write little interesting tidbits that are unique to you!  Be careful though and remember your audience – you may love the story of that frat party but it looks bad to an employer.  Also include stories that make you relatable to readers (I was the typical nerd in high school . . .).
4. Stay positive! This is not the place to tell people about the s.o.b. father who left you and the mother who beat you.  The goal here is to make yourself noticed in a good way – employers don’t want to hire people who have a chip on their shoulder (be it justifiable or not).
5. Pizazz! This is not supposed to be boring (for you or the reader) – include your personality in your personal bio.  If you’re tongue-in-cheek, dry humored, zany, or whatever it should show in how you present yourself.  Just remember to keep it appropriate and inoffensive – you’re not applying to be the next Jeff Foxworthy.  Anyone and everyone will be able to read your bio and this is something that employers will probably look at before they decide to interview you.  People with a can-do attitude and cheerful personality look far more appealing than those who are angry and embittered.  Make a lasting impression!

Writing a personal bio may be brazen self-promotion, but you have to be your own advocate.  Even if you have had some, ahem, unfortunate content of you (photos or otherwise) end up on the Internet, a recent, well-written bio will help undo some previous poor choices.  Don’t lie and keep it interesting, professional, and uniquely you.   Being pro-active in creating a positive Internet presence for yourself through a short personal biography will impress employers and make you memorable (in a good way).

Please also check out our articles on how to write professional bios or profiles:

1. How to Write a Short, Professional Bio On Yourself (Learn from a master)
2. 8 Tips to Write a Professional Bio
3. 9 Professional Resume Tips

Bethany Stringer is a graduate of Texas A&M University (class of ‘08) and has her B.A. in English Literature with minors in History and Psychology.  She is currently working as a decorative artisan’s apprentice, and plans to teach English in Russia in 2010 as a CELTA certified teacher.  She owned her own business working horses when she was 17, and still loves riding her horse Romeo.  Always appreciating a challenge, she loves sea kayaking and prefers Rachmaninov to Bach.