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Q&A Writing about oneself objectively

This is a big subject that probably can't be answered in a brief post, but some thoughts that come to mind: Give objective facts, not subjective evaluations. For example, "I was valedictorian", ...

posted 5y ago by Jay‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

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#3: Attribution notice added by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-08T11:41:24Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/44542
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision by user avatar Jay‭ · 2019-12-08T11:41:24Z (almost 5 years ago)
This is a big subject that probably can't be answered in a brief post, but some thoughts that come to mind:

1. Give objective facts, not subjective evaluations. For example, "I was valedictorian", not, "I was the smartest person in my class". Or, "I was responsible for managing the inventory for 20 stores", not "I was the only one who knew what was in the stores", etc. In general, avoid saying "I am/was the best ..." or "most important ..." or similar words. State the job responsibilities.

2. Don't be afraid to relate your accomplishments, but avoid overstating. "My re-organization plan saved the company $10 million", not "I saved the company." 

3. Something I still struggle with: Should I mention honors or achievements that may be 100% factual, but just sound like bragging? Like I used to be a member of Mensa, the high IQ society. Should I say that, or tell what my score was on an IQ test? I generally don't, but I think that one is not clear-cut. In hazy cases like that, I think it might depend on how many other good things you can say about yourself. If you don't have easy-to-describe achievements -- whether projects completed on the job, sporting matches you've won, whatever is relevant -- I'd be more likely to include hazy things. If you've got plenty of clear-cut things, you don't need the debatable ones and can leave them out.

#1: Imported from external source by user avatar System‭ · 2019-04-10T15:38:24Z (over 5 years ago)
Original score: 1