Career-minded social networking service LinkedIn runs an annual analysis of which words and phrases are most used on profiles in Australia. The most noticeable trend this year? The same offenders keep cropping up.
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Compare this year’s top ten terms to last year‘s in the table below and you’ll see that the top six are the same, with only a slight shuffle in order:
| 2012 | 2011 |
|---|---|
| 1. Creative | 1. Creative |
| 2. Effective | 2. Extensive experience |
| 3. Motivated | 3. Effective |
| 4. Extensive experience | 4. Track record |
| 5. Track record | 5. Motivated |
| 6. Innovative | 6. Innovative |
| 7. Responsible | 7. Communication skills |
| 8. Analytical | 8. Wide range |
| 9. Communication skills | 9. Problem solving |
| 10. Positive | 10. Dynamic |
New to the list this year are ‘responsible’, ‘analytical’ and ‘positive’, knocking out ‘wide range’, ‘problem solving’ and ‘dynamic’.
If you want to stand out from the crowd, avoiding these hackneyed phrases and actually explaining what you do makes sense. A LinkedIn profile isn’t the same as a resume — a document which requires much more honing — but many employers will check it these days as part of their screening process.
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