In terms of networking and job searching, Linked Likes is an excellent option. It’s the ideal place to initiate a career move.

However, if you are currently an architect and wish to become a baker, a LinkedIn profile that emphasizes your architecture career will not help you shift careers. At the very least, when you apply for baker employment, the hiring manager may believe you applied by accident! 

Your LinkedIn profile will need to be optimized for your career shift. Here are some starting point recommendations.

How to Use Your LinkedIn Profile to Make a Career Change?

You can ease the transition by:

• changing your LinkedIn profile to reflect your career change, 
• using keywords from your target field, and 
• highlighting your transferable skills to show that your skill set makes you a strong fit for the role.

1. Beginning With the Headline

The brief, one-line bio that shows next to or below your name on LinkedIn. It is succinct, to the point, and concise. LinkedIn also generates this section, which includes your current title and organization.

That’s OK! But if you’re switching careers, a headline in your old industry definitely won’t help, as recruiters read your headline first while they browse LinkedIn. If it does not fit their industry, they will likely not view your whole profile. Instead;

• Utilize the power of the headline and compose something that uniquely expresses who you are and what you wish to accomplish.

• Only provide information pertinent to your new industry. Suppose if you’re now in banking but wish to transition to social work, omit all references to your banking experience from the headline. In no way does it imply that you’re changing careers.

• Use your elevator pitch, a five-word job description, or anything else that makes you more relatable. 

2. About section should highlight recent projects. 

The About section is longer than the headline. Here you can describe why you’re switching careers. Use this space to explain:

1. Your career shift 
2. How do your capabilities and previous experiences prepare you for your new field.

This is most easily organized with three paragraphs. 

• Introductory paragraph! 

Discuss the following:

1. What you do, 
2. What you want to accomplish. 
3. How your history makes you an excellent (and unique) candidate for your new career.

• The second paragraph

1. Emphasize your transferrable talents using industry-specific keywords. 
2. Focus on outcomes, not activities, to prove your effectiveness. 
3. You may also include charity work and classes done in preparation for your new career.

• Concluding paragraph, 

You should tie everything together and make connections. Use it to describe:

1. The relevance of your prior experiences.
2. Present talents to your new career.

3) Display your new knowledge in your Activity.

Do not hesitate to add your education and volunteer experiences to your profile even if you have previously discussed them in the “About” section.

Incorporating volunteer experience into these parts allows you to put a greater emphasis on what you’ve done to make your career transition a reality and demonstrates your commitment to this switch. 

It’s a great way to elaborate on your accomplishments and add keywords to your LinkedIn profile, as far as you don’t repeat anything you said in the About section.

4) Include significant consulting, part-time, and volunteer work on your resume.

The employment experience you list in the Experience area does not need to be paid or your principal position, so long as it is substantive. Yes, you could also include voluntary activity in the Volunteer part! However, it may be overlooked if you do. 

Your objective is to capture the reader’s interest early on before they have formed a judgment that you are too rooted in your previous work.

This also applies to how you order the description of your present job. If some components of your employment are more relevant to your new career than others, emphasize them first. 

Suppose, one of my clients transitioned from financial services to education. Given that she spent decades in her previous business, it appears to be a significant career change. But, in her previous position, although the majority of her responsibilities were financial, she also had mentoring and training responsibilities, which she ranked first.

5) Address your new audience with pertinent keywords

• Whether it’s your headline, summary, action, experience, or another area, examine what you include and how you present it in light of your new target field. 
• Avoid jargon that is specific to a specific field. 
• Generalize your skills for numerous industries to recognize their value.

Include your LinkedIn URL in your email signature to ensure that your whole network gets access to your updated profile.

If no one sees your updated, career-change-friendly profile, it is obviously useless. Including your personal LinkedIn URL in your email signature (not your current employer’s!) is an unobtrusive method to attach your background to all correspondence. 

While it is impertinent to send individuals your résumé, providing a URL provides access to the same material more discreetly. As a career mover, the majority of your network will likely be in your previous field, not your new one, thus your former connections may not be aware of your new endeavors. 

Including a link to your profile in every email you send is a constant reminder of what you do and how hard you’re working to achieve something new.

Utilize your completed LinkedIn profile to switch careers. LinkedIn is a great place to connect with professionals in your field and find a job. Whatever stage of your professional transition you’re in, Linkedlikes can help. Consider meeting with a career counselor for personalized assistance on job transitions.