It was one of those nights that I couldn’t sleep so I was laying in bed making a to do list for myself, my version of counting sheep. This to do list quickly got crowded with a lot of little thought bubbles because I wanted to update my LinkedIn bio and it made me realize I wanted to update my blog’s “about me” page, my Instagram bio and such. It made me ask myself, “Who am I?” and then my mind went blank. I didn’t really have a good answer. So I asked myself “Who is Rosie?” and I thought of the book sitting on my nightstand with the author’s bio on the book jacket with a nice photo of a woman who has the perfect outfit and blow out. If someone had to write my bio on a book jacket, what would they write?

Professionals suggest that you have an elevator pitch ready so that you can quickly summarize your past, present and future goals in a sentence or two that describe who you are. This can be what you do, where you work, what value you have at your job, and something to catch their attention. I thought it would be clever to apply the same elevator pitch strategy to answering the question of “Who am I?” The same elevator pitch is often said when you meet a new person and start to get to know one another. I imagined myself getting coffee with someone and what I would say to introduce yourself. This approach helps make it less business oriented and help explain who you are in a more authentic way.

Once I had a few things in mind, I typed up a little bio of myself similar to what I would see on a book jacket for an author. We are the writers of our own life so why not have the same approach when describing who you are? Since I was writing it as if I was going to have it printed in a book that I wrote, I chose more confident words and highlighted my accomplishments that I often overlooked. I typed it up in an email and sent it to myself to have so I can easily refer to it when I know I will be asked to “Tell me a little bit about yourself” – a question often asked during interviews and mentoring events.

Once I had my book bio page and elevator pitch written, I took the opportunity to see how I could improve myself so I could therefore add anything that would benefit my bio. Is there community service you wish you did? I would do countless of hours of community service as a college student and would like to get back to it. Was fitness once important to you but got pushed aside once life got busy? For years, I was committed to my gym routine and was really strong because of my Pilates classes but now I’m not sure when the last time I took a class was. I could go on but I think you get the point.

I’ve updated my bios and have a prepared paragraph to answer the dreaded “So, tell me a little bit about yourself” question. Instead of being a deer in the headlights, I have something prepared that I am proud of and can be used for my personal growth as well when I see on paper how I am summed up in a few words. By doing this, it can help you look at your career path with fresh eyes and see what hobbies or passions are missing from your life. It was fun for me to do and I hope you get something from it to!