Content

• To step
• Method 1 of 4: The basics of autobiographical writing
• Method 2 of 4: Write an autobiographical essay for school
• Method 3 of 4: Write a cover letter
• Method 4 of 4: Write a short biography
• Tips

It can be embarrassing to write about yourself at first, but creating a cover letter, personal essay or biography with some specific tricks and tips can be a lot less intimidating in terms of style and content. Learn the basics, so that the text you write about yourself stands out from all the other pieces.

To step

Method 1 of 4: The basics of autobiographical writing

1. Just introduce yourself. It can be difficult to write about yourself because you have so much to say. Your entire life story, your talents and skills summarized in one or a few paragraphs? Whatever you're going to do, whatever your goal, just pretend you're introducing yourself to a stranger. What do they need to know about you? Answer questions such as:
   • Who are you?
   • Where are you from?
   • What are your interests?
   • What are your talents?
   • What have you achieved?
   • What challenges have you encountered?
2. Start with a short list of your talents and interests. If you don't know what to start with, or if you only get to choose one thing for the assignment, write down as many as you can and think of the details that can help you make a decision. Answer the questions from the previous step, and write down as many different answers as possible.
3. Limit your subject. Choose a particular topic and describe it in detail to introduce yourself. It is better to pick one thing and describe yourself in great detail than to give a long list of general things.
   • What makes you most interesting or unique? What best describes you? Choose that topic.
4. Use a few good details. Once you've chosen a topic to focus on, describe it specifically so that you give people something unique to stick to. Remember, you are talking about yourself. The more details the better:
   • Not good: I like sports
   • Good: I love football, basketball, tennis and volleyball
   • Better: My favorite sport is football, both to watch and to play
   • Best: When I was a kid, I always watched football on TV with my dad and brothers on Saturdays. Then we went out ourselves to play a game of football. I've loved it ever since.
5. Be humble. Even if you have achieved a lot or have a lot of talent, try to come across as a down-to-earth person. Don't write about yourself to brag. List what you've accomplished, but temper it with some modest language:
   • Bragging: I'm the best and most dynamic employee at work, so hire me because I have a lot of talent.
   • Modest: I have been fortunate to have been voted employee of the month three times in my current job, more often than the other employees.

Method 2 of 4: Write an autobiographical essay for school

1. Come up with a good story to tell. An autobiographical essay is often used for entrance exams or school assignments. It differs from a cover letter in purpose because in a cover letter, a candidate introduces himself or herself if he wants a job or assignment, while an autobiographical essay is designed to explore a theme. These types of assignments require you to tell a story about yourself, using specific, true-to-life details that highlight a particular theme or idea.
   • Common themes or instructions for an autobiographical essay are overcoming hurdles, big successes or spectacular misses, or moments when you have learned something about yourself.
2. Stay focused on one theme or goal. Unlike a cover letter, in an autobiographical essay, you shouldn't switch themes or events too quickly to get rid of it yourself, but you should focus on a single event or theme to make your point.
   • Depending on the assignment, you may need to link a personal anecdote to a lecture or an idea from the lesson. Start brainstorming topics related to that idea so that you have plenty of options to choose from.
3. Write about complex topics, not clichés. You don't have to appear good in an essay. When you come up with topics to write about, think about your victories and successes, but also pay some attention to the areas of your life that need improvement. For example, the time you forgot to pick up your sister because you were partying with your girlfriends, or that time you skipped school and got caught, can also make for a good essay.
   • Clichés that you often encounter in an essay include stories about sports, school trips and dead grandmas. While you can also write a fantastic essay on this if you do it right, it is difficult to tell an above average story about your football club's victory when you were very much behind. We know that story by now.
4. Limit the timeline as much as possible. It is virtually impossible to write a good five-page essay about your entire life up to your 14th birthday. Even a topic like "my year in grade 8" is too extensive to be able to make a good essay about it. Choose an event that spans no more than a day, or a few days at most.
   • If you want to tell the story of your nasty divorce with your boyfriend, start with the moment he breaks up, not with how you got to know each other. You have to immediately bring tension into the story.
5. Take advantage of vivid detail. These kinds of drafts are better if you elaborate as much as possible. If you want to write a good biographical essay, it must be packed with vivid and visual details.
   • If you know what you are going to write about, make a "reminder list" of all the specific things you can remember about the event. What was the weather like? How did it smell? What did your mother say to you?
   • The opening paragraph will set the tone for the rest of the essay. Instead of listing the boring biographical details (your name, hometown, favorite food), find a more fun way to write down the essence of the story you are going to tell and the themes you are going to explore.
6. Start in the middle of the story. Don't worry about building tension in an autobiographical essay. Want to tell the story of when you ruined your Christmas dinner? How did the people react? How did you make up for it? That's your story.
7. Connect the details with the big theme. When you're writing an essay about the failed Christmas dinner a few years ago, don't forget that it's about more than a burnt turkey. What's the point of your story? What should we learn from the story you tell us? In any case, each page should refer to the main theme or purpose of your essay.

Method 3 of 4: Write a cover letter

1. Find out what they are looking for. If you need to write a cover letter for a job or internship, or anything else you want to apply for, sometimes the description will say what they would like to read in the letter. Depending on the nature of the application, you may need to provide a motivation for why you want the job, describe why you are qualified, or it may need to meet other specific criteria. Possible clues could be:
   • Describe your qualifications and indicate where your talents lie in a cover letter.
   • Tell us a little bit more about yourself.
   • Write in your cover letter why your education and experience make you suitable for this position.
   • Explain why this opportunity can benefit your career goals.
2. Make sure the style fits the purpose. Different employers and situations call for different style and tone in a cover letter. When applying to a university, it is always better to put a professional and academic tone on the letter. However, if you are applying for a blogger position for a tech start-up that asks you to describe "Three things you are great at!", It is probably better to stick to a looser and casual style.
   • When in doubt, keep it serious and concise. If you don't know whether or not to include that funny anecdote about your boyfriend's bachelorette night, it's probably better to leave it out.
3. In the first paragraph, describe why you are writing the letter. The first two sentences should explain why you are writing the cover letter. If someone reading your letter is not sure what you actually want, your letter will quickly end up in the waste paper.
   • "As a result of your advertisement that I read on the internet, I am applying for the position of junior account manager. I think my experience and education make me the ideal candidate for this position ".
   • Contrary to popular belief, it is not necessary to mention your name in the content of the letter: 'My name is Jan Smith and I am applying ...' Your name is already at the bottom of the letter and in the header, so you don't have to not to mention him in the text.
4. Build the letter on the basis of cause and effect. A cover letter should explain to the potential employer why you are the best candidate for this position, or why you should be admitted to a particular course of study. To do this, make sure the letter describes what you have to offer and how that can help meet the needs of both parties. Always make sure that a cover letter clearly spells out the following details:
   • Who you are and what you have done.
   • What your goals are.
   • How you can potentially achieve those goals using this opportunity.
5. Describe your talents and skills in detail. What makes you the ideal candidate for the job or place you are applying for? What experiences, skills, training and talents do you have to offer?
   • Be as specific as possible. You could write that you are "A passionate leader in many areas," but it would be much better to write about an example where you took the lead in a surprising way.
   • Stay focused on skills and talents related to what you are applying for. Extracurricular activities, leadership roles, and other outstanding achievements can be important to you personally and tell readers more about you, but it can also be totally unnecessary. If you put something in the letter, make sure that it can be specifically linked to the purpose of the cover letter.
6. Describe your goals and ambitions. What do you want to achieve from here? Both admissions committees and employers are more interested in people who have ambitions, people who are motivated to reach a high level. Describe what you want and how you think this position can help you achieve your goals.
   • Be as specific as possible. If you write an admission letter for a particular study program, it is clear that you would like to get a diploma. But why this diploma? Why this school? What exactly do you want to learn?
7. Explain how both parties can benefit from your selection. What do you have to offer that other candidates don't? Why would it be good for the university to hire you as a student? Why should it be good for you if you get the job? Your readers will be eager to know what's at stake for both.
   • Be careful about criticizing a company in your cover letter. Now is not the time to say that you can revive the ailing brand with your ideas. That probably doesn't come across very well to the company, and maybe it wouldn't deliver at all if you did get the job.
8. Don't confuse the cover letter with your resume. While it is important to list your best skills if they relate to the job you want, do not include details about your education or other information that should be included in your resume in the cover letter. Since both are usually asked for, make sure your resume and cover letter have different information.
   • Even though it is very impressive, a high graduation rate does not belong in a cover letter. Emphasize it in your resume, but don't put it in two different places when you apply.
9. Keep it concise. The ideal cover letter is no longer than one or two pages, single line spacing, or anywhere from 300 to 500 words. Sometimes a longer letter is desired, it may be between 700 and 1000 words, but not longer.
10. Compose the letter. A cover letter is usually single-spaced and written in a normal, easy-to-read font, such as Times or Arial. Generally, a letter of application should be addressed to the admissions committee or a specific person named in the vacancy and closed with your signature. The following contact information should be in the header:
    • Your name
    • Mailing address
    • E-mail address
    • telephone number

Method 4 of 4: Write a short biography

1. Write about yourself in the third person singular. A short biography may be required for a leaflet, pamphlet, press release, or other material. It can be requested for a variety of reasons. Usually it should be concise, and it is often a bit inconvenient to have to write it.
   • Pretend you're writing about someone else. Write down your name and describe yourself as a character from a movie, or a friend: "Jan Smit is the deputy director of Blabla bv…"
2. Explain what your title or position is. Make sure you clarify your role and specialties, taking into account the purpose of the biography. Describe what you do and what people may know you from.
   • If you're a centipede, just say so. Don't be afraid to state that you are an "actor, musician, mother, and professional mountaineer" if all that applies.
3. Briefly list your responsibilities or achievements. If you have received many awards and accolades, you can list them in the biography to praise yourself. For a short biography, focus on recent history.
   • It often happens that people also mention their education, especially if it is relevant to the work they are writing about. If you have had special training, you can also mention it.
4. Also include something about your private life. A biography does not have to be cold. It is very common to also add some personal details to make it easier to read. Consider mentioning your cat's name or a funny detail about a hobby:
   • Jan Smit is the deputy director of Blabla bv, and he is in charge of marketing and foreign acquisitions. He received an award from the T.U. in Delft and lives in Rotterdam with his cat Herman ".
   • Don't share too much. It can be funny to start right away with "Jan Smit loves archery and he thinks Hamka's very dirty. He's really a boss, "and for some companies such a biography might be appropriate, but be careful about sharing things that can be embarrassing. Telling about that terrible hangover you recently had, you might do better at the Friday afternoon drinks.
5. Keep it concise. In general, a short biography consists of no more than a few sentences. Most of the time, they come up on a dedicated page of submissions or on a list of all employees together, and you don't want to be known as the person with the half-page biography when everyone else has neatly poured it into two sentences.
   • Stephen King, one of the most successful and most popular writers in recent history, has a short biography consisting only of the names of his family members, his hometown and his pets. So you can also consider leaving out all pats on the back.

Tips

• If it is difficult for you to write about yourself, search the internet for examples of personal writing to get some ideas and inspiration.