I set up LinkedIn 6 months into my career in 2012 when I was starting to think of my first job hop. That also happened to be the time when I lost 30 lbs in 3 months by starving myself (coincidence?!…yeah I think it was…) As a result, the picture I used showed a skinny me smiling (also wine glasses…you have to show who you are, you know?) I’ve had that picture on LinkedIn since then: 6 years.
Throughout those years at various times I’ve looked almost nothing like that picture. I’ve been 60 lbs heavier than that woman. And often when I would go to an interview I felt embarrassed. I knew they would have looked at my LinkedIn profile and I suspected when they saw me they would think “why’d she let herself go?” It embarrassed me, but I wasn’t comfortable posting any of the pictures I took after. Social media is about projecting your best self and LinkedIn’s entire purpose is to sell you as a potential employee. I wanted to keep showing my best even if it wasn’t accurate for that moment.
But now I am happy to say that I finally look like my LinkedIn picture! I may be 10 lbs heavier than I technically was in that picture, but I have less body fat and more muscle. My face looks like that picture. I no longer am living a LinkedIn picture lie 🙂 .