Toolkit: How to Write Your About Page
This toolkit is a growing library of wisdom that highlights the hurdles of owning your content and building your platform. We not only curate the wisdom from creative leaders and artists, but also from the communityâa balance of both, like cheese and wineâso that youâre supported and empowered to build your home on the internet.
Your about page copy is like a form of identity for the internet. It reflects who you are, what you stand for, and the work you do. However, itâs not always easy to talk about yourself and it certainly feels awkward to highlight your successes. But if you donât, who will? Similar to life, itâs a process thatâs continuously growing and unraveling rather than being set in stone.
The roadblock is not the act of writing your about page copy. The real roadblock is in your mindâthe desire for perfection, the pursuit of the right answer. Itâs one of those tasks that you want to get off the hook as fast as possible.
Nothing is perfect and there are no right answers in writing about yourself. Weâll help you craft a clear and concise About page that reflects your story, values, and the work that youâre doing. It will be a framework that you can use throughout your career as you expand your portfolio and garner more achievements.
Practical wisdom from like-minded creatives
Meet Paul Jarvis, a writer and designer whoâs had his own company of one for the last two decades. His latest book, Company of One, explores why bigger isnât always better in business.
As a creative that shows up in various placesâhis courses, blog, and newsletterâhe reassures us that no one has the right answer. He admits that he struggles each time he reads or rewrites his about pageâand heâs been in this game for two decades. Paul continues:
âThereâs common advice that our about pages arenât about us, theyâre about our audience/customers. Which I think is both wrong and right at the same time. It obviously has to cover who we are and to some extent prove what we know. But it also canât leave out an aspect of âwhy would someone else care?â
âAbout pages can also vary widely depending on who itâs about and the type of work they do. My business is heavily leaning towards me as the brand or in other words, personality-as-a-brand, so thatâs got to shine through on mine. But if it was a corporate type or in a different industry or ran a business that was not personality driven, mine would be quite different (and probably not have a silly note about Greys Anatomy). Even my bio on my books website is different than the bio on my personal site, because context is important.
âI think we just have to be honest and get over our penchant towards not wanting to brag a little. We should be proud to showcase our accomplishments, our features, our clients, etc. We should also make sure that every bit of whatâs mentioned bears some relevance to who we want to be reading it. So I donât need to mention my love of gardening or pet rats on mine, but I will mention who Iâve worked with, my most recent product and some social proof. I may even apologize a little bit (Iâm Canadian after all).â
Read Paul Jarvisâ Own Your Content interview â
ABOUT PAGES WE LOVE
We can bolster our learning by hearing from different points of view and studying a diversity of examples. Some of our favorites are below.
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Lauren Hom is a designer and letterer based in Detroit, schooled in New York, and raised in Los Angeles. |
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Ash Ambirge is an internet entrepreneur, creative writer, speaker and advocate for women being brave & doing disobedient things with their careers and their lives. Her About page shows it. |
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Dark Igloo is a company that specializes⊠in their About page. |
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Daniel Eatockâs About page features his bio. Every bio heâs ever had. |
ENCOURAGEMENT FOR NEXT STEPS
The about page is the one thing that gets re-written and heavily scrutinized more than any other copy on oneâs website. Why? Because it creates the first impression.
The key is to avoid thinking of your about page as something thatâs set in stone. Look at it like a canvas where every brushstroke adds a new layer of texture and color, adding richness to your story. Once you have a template that flows well, the key is editing and adding new achievements over time.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Lessons Learned From Writing 7,000 Artist Bios
Artsy shares the common threads that make bios stand out.
Why Writing About Yourself is So Hard
Our beliefs influence the stories we tell ourselves and the way we see the world. When we become aware of those beliefs, and change them, we can tell our story clearly.
How to Write an âAbout Meâ Page That Gets You Hired
99u shares practical, easy-to-follow-along tips on writing your about page thatâs clear and reflects your personality.
RELATED CREATIVEMORNINGS TALKS
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Marie Louise Kold on you are your art. |
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Morgan Givens on the intricacies of identity. |
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Julia Bottoms-Douglas on why context remains a key element in connecting us to our purpose and our identity. |
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Max Moore talks about embracing your weird is learning to embrace yourself. |
#OwnYourContent
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Read more interviews and toolkits at ownyourcontent.wordpress.com.
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Toolkit by Paul Jun. Illustrations by Jeffrey Phillips. âOwn Your Contentâ illustration by Annica Lydenberg.