Do you have a career portfolio or professional portfolio as a client seeker, job seeker, or employed career climber? You should have one, but you must keep it updated and consider it a work in progress.

If your career portfolio is digital, you can add it to your LinkedIn profile as a media attachment as a PDF, Word document, or PowerPoint. You can also include a link from your website, a Google doc, a Google sheet, or a Google slide presentation, for example.

If you use Canva.com, you can create a link to share or download a PDF and add it as a document. Canva Pro is my personal favorite, and I use it daily.

When creating a document on your LinkedIn profile, there is a 300-page limit, and the file size must be no greater than 100 MB. In addition, the maximum resolution for images is 36 megapixels, and the word count must be less than one million words. 

You can also showcase your career portfolio on the Featured Section of your LinkedIn profile, so it gets more eyes on it when people visit your profile.

If you want an online portfolio that you can build yourself and don’t mind renting online space on someone else’s platform, explore About.me, Behance.net, Crevado.com, Dribbble.com, Github.com, Google Sites, Portfoliobox.net, as examples, or other WordPress alternatives.

If you prefer to own your platform, you can join 43% of all website users who use WordPress, which is also my personal favorite and I use daily.

Suppose you are going for an interview or an in-person meeting with a potential client. You can print out a copy and visit your local office supply store or printing company, and they can spiral bind your document between a hard plastic bottom and a clear plastic top.

You can either create one example for yourself or make one to leave behind. If you plan to give someone a copy, make sure you personalize it with the company’s logo, if applicable.

SECTIONS YOU COULD INCLUDE, DEPENDING ON YOUR AUDIENCE OR THE PURPOSE

• Overview
• Personal Statement or Philosophy Statement
• Short Biography
• Cover Letter & Resume
• Degrees, Certifications, and Licenses
• Professional Development and Lifelong Learning
• Vocational Competitions
• Transcripts
• Skills
• Clearances
• Accomplishments
• Military Records, Commendations, Awards, Recognitions, Badges, Honorable Discharge, etc.
• Recognitions, Honors, and Awards
• Volunteering and Community Service
• In the News
• Publications
• Letters of Recommendation or Appreciation, Reviews, Testimonials, or Satisfaction Surveys
• References
• Written Reports, Summaries, or Evaluations
• Visuals (images, photos (or yourself or your work or displays), tables, charts, etc.
• Work Samples
• Lists of Companies You Have Worked With
• Other Documents Concisely Organized

If you need further convincing about the importance of a career portfolio, here is an excellent article to read on Harvard Business Review.

Take a step back and admire your portfolio because IT’S SHOWTIME! Remember that nobody else can toot your horn as well as you can!

Missed the previous article “Perfect Your Elevator Pitch”?

NEXT STEPS

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• Register on the events page for these upcoming online events noted below.

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• 2/4 Fri – Interviewing Techniques
• 2/4 Fri – Why You Need to Have a Clear Career Strategy (on Clubhouse)
• 2/7 Mon – Career Success Group
• 2/8 Tues – 10 Common Career Mistakes to Avoid
• 2/8 Tues – How to Stand OUt from the Crowd with a Great Video Career Profile
• 2/8 Tues – Business Executives BNetworking Group (BENG)
• 2/9 Wed – PowerThinking: Rejuvenating Your Amazing Mind Resilience Building Call
• 2/9 Wed – How to Survive & Thrive After a Job Loss
• 2/10 Thurs – Career Success Group
• 2/10 Thurs – Beating the Applicant Tracking System LinkedIn Live
• 2/10 Thurs – Fiscal Sponsorship: The Nonprofit Alternative
• 2/11 Fri – Interviewing Techniques
• 2/11 Fri – Building Your Brand on LinkedIn (on Clubhouse)
• 2/12 Sat – 30 Ways to Get Unstuck
• 2/14 Mon – LIVE LinkedIn Profile Reviews