FRANKLIN, Ind. - The push continues for military members to develop a resume that is free of military jargon in order to help them find private-sector employment once they complete their military obligations. For some reason military members tend to forget how to apply this concept to their LinkedIn account. Whether you are job hunting or you just want to have a nice-looking profile, here are a few tips to remember as you move forward. I won’t lie; I still do some of the things I have written about.
Have a headline that shines:
What does ‘NCO Army’ mean? You could be a sergeant or a sergeant major as an NCO. Wouldn’t you say the responsibilities are much different for those roles? A private-sector human resources screener may have no idea what an NCO is, let alone the responsibilities of each NCO rank. Titles like operations supervisor, technical adviser or senior technician can be translated better to the private sector.
Find the right photo:
For LinkedIn, you need a picture that makes you look approachable, professional and employable. The first thing people look at on your account is the picture. For many of us, the first inclination we have is to use our official military photo. If you look scary or intimidating in it, don’t use it. LinkedIn is not Facebook. Consider LinkedIn a no-selfie zone as well. Have someone take a picture of you. You can get a picture of you in your uniform with all of your medals that has a smile on your face can’t you?
Write a summary:
Tell people your pitch. If I was in line with you at the commissary for a few seconds, what would you tell me so I would hire you? How are you better than the person in uniform behind you in line? Use keywords someone wants to hear in the field you want or currently work in with some accomplishments/results. Did you increase performance of a particular job? Did you reduce spending, create something or manage a large amount of people? Sell yourself in your summary.
Ask for recommendations:
You probably have evaluations or an award from a military boss that described how awesome you were to them. You should contact them and see if they will recommend you. If you impressed someone and they wrote you an award or great evaluation, chances are they will, more than likely, write a recommendation for your LinkedIn account. Bottom line, you don’t know if you don’t ask. Don’t forget, if you are writing a recommendation for someone, keep it demilitarized.
Use quality endorsements:
I’m not a big fan of endorsements but many people are. I have been endorsed for DOD or government I don’t know how many times. What does that mean? I work for a branch of the military under the DOD. So what? What does that tell anyone about me when they look at my profile? If I worked at Pizza Hut, would you endorse me for pizza? How about endorsements for skills the private sector understands like brand management, team building or budget analysis?