A letter to yourself in the future: how and why to write it?

A school essay is a task aimed at developing creative thinking and the formation of coherent speech. Writing papers on given topics helps the student not only get a good grade, but also quickly and efficiently master the rules of the Russian language and unleash their creative potential. The example essay “Letter to the Future to Yourself” can be used as a template.

Making Memories

Start writing letters at important moments in your life, such as moving to a new city, graduating from university, or the birth of a child. When you receive a letter like this a few years later, you will be surprised how much this or that significant event has changed you. You will be able to trace exactly how you came to today's version of yourself. Are you worried, angry or sad about current events? How do you think you will feel remembering them in a few years? Big changes are overwhelming when viewed from the outside, but with greater familiarity, it is much easier to cope with the changes and make the most of new opportunities.

Introduce yourself (6:53)

The second recommendation may seem funny to you, but too many times I have seen texts from entrepreneurs that do not contain a name. The authors are so carried away by the content, usefulness and information content that they simply forget to introduce themselves.

Write your name, who you are - a consultant, psychologist, yoga teacher or pastry chef - and how you can help.

For example, I wrote: “My name is Varvara Lyalagina. I help creative entrepreneurs build online communications and grow their brand through blogging."

Check out the 10 most common blogging mistakes and how you can fix them.

Additional motivation

A detailed description of goals and desires helps to bring them to life. Knowing that you will re-read your letter in the future will help you work harder on your goals to achieve them before you receive the message from the past. Understanding that your dreams have become part of reality is a unique feeling that makes you believe in yourself and your capabilities. Even if you don't achieve all of your previously planned goals, the letter will serve as a reminder that you still have the opportunity to succeed, you just need to put in enough effort.

Some of the things you dream about today may change over time. You have the opportunity to compare your motives and dreams then and now. Is your motivation extrinsic or intrinsic? Do you think this quality will change in the future or will it remain the same?

Typewriter

What everyone should know when filling out the “About Me” field on a resume

The goal of a freelancer who is left without projects for some time is to find a customer and, with interesting cooperation, get hooked on him. But how to fish if there is no fishing rod? No way, without a resume and portfolio you are unlikely to find a decent vacancy.

Of course, the education and work experience fields are fundamental in a resume, but you can’t do without a self-portrait. The customer is looking for in a candidate not only machine efficiency and an analytical mind, like a robot, but also a responsible, versatile personality.

Of course, all employers have different criteria: some need an ambitious and sociable employee, others are content with a quiet and submissive colleague. But not a single customer will choose a person who cannot even write a beautiful text about himself.

The “About Me” field should contain short sentences describing the advantages of your candidacy. If you are too self-critical, you can also talk about the disadvantages, but honesty in a negative way may not appeal to every customer. The tendency to procrastinate, forgetfulness and similar moments can be off-putting.

In addition, you should not use unnecessary means of expression. The sentences “Dasha, who will pump up not only your brains, but also your abs,” are only suitable for a blogger’s Instagram profile.

Fitness instructors should not get carried away with such phrases. The emphasis in writing lines on a resume is on the employee’s productivity.

What do people write in the strangest section of their resume?

The “About Me” field is the logical conclusion of the resume. By the time you fill it out, you have already talked about your work experience, achievements, education and personal preferences for salary.

Now the final point remains with your personal qualities and talents. Yes, in the “About Me” section you need to introduce yourself as an interesting, multi-faceted person.

The main mistakes in filling out a self-portrait are going overboard with the style or duplicating information from other sections. If you step past these mistakes, you will create a decent resume; if you add some of your own innovations, you will move your resume forward through the stacks of the same competitors’ documents.

So, about the main and new additions:

1. Highlight the main personal qualities. This could be optimism, the ability to find solutions from non-standard situations, or hard work. But remember that employers are most looking for responsible, sociable and resourceful candidates.
2. Talents and hobbies that help you appear as an interesting person. Managers generally value creativity at work. Additionally, tell us about the advantages of your hobby that may be useful at work.
3. Achievements. If you did not allocate a separate box for special merits, mark them at the end. Highlight the main achievements that can show your candidacy as the best of all those proposed. Reasons for pride may include creative solutions, participation in conferences and seminars.
4. Industry courses. Tell us about the completion of specialized seminars, lectures, and attach certificates confirming your level of qualifications.
5. Foreign language skills. Employers pay attention to candidates with knowledge of different languages. You do not need to write a resume in English if you are not applying for an international company, but it will be useful to note your level of knowledge of English or any other language.
6. Breaks in the profession, reasons for leaving the previous workplace. The more complete information about your work experience you provide, the more trust you will receive. It is not always appropriate to write about personal reasons such as emotional experiences, but it is possible to write about a change in activity due to preferences and salary.
7. Priority areas of activity. In one area there is a carriage and a cart of specialties that should be clarified. For example, you wrote that you want to become a blogger assistant. But behind these two capacious words there can be a manager, a content maker, an SMM specialist and even a producer.

In your resume for women, you can clarify your marital status. You will be surprised, but this aspect is extremely important: workers with children cannot be overburdened, and, unfortunately, not every employer will undertake to employ a pregnant girl.

Reflections on the past

Everything that has happened in your life has shaped you into who you are at this moment. And having a personal growth report written by you personally is an invaluable experience. This will help you learn to appreciate all experiences, both positive and negative, because each of them affects your beliefs and values. When people try to bury their past, it usually comes back to them in a different guise, which is not always pleasant. Developing a healthy relationship with yourself means recognizing and accepting your past mistakes, and letting them go in time.

Tell us how you can help (2:58)

We were taught in literature classes that first we need a plot and a gun on the wall, which will fire at the climax. Therefore, texts about oneself often begin with background stories and lead from afar.

I recommend constructing the text about yourself on your blog differently. Use the inverted pyramid principle . It implies that you place everything that is most important for the reader at the top, at the base of the pyramid - that is, at the beginning of the text.

Let your gun fire in the first two sentences, otherwise the reader may not be interested and may not scroll to the end of the text. Imagine that the reader reads just a couple of lines and try to convey where he ended up and what he can get here.

You can even introduce yourself a little later than the reader understands what kind of site/blog it is and what interesting or useful things can be read and seen in it.

For example, on the site, where I talk about blogging and communications for creative entrepreneurs, the text about me begins with questions that most likely arise in my reader’s mind.

The reader immediately understands that he has come to the right place and that it is here that he will find answers to these questions. And only then does he find out my name.

In the second blog, “The House You Want to Come to,” the text about yourself begins with the main thought that I and my readers believe in. It's the principle that the little things matter and being happy is easier than it seems.

This example also shows that first the reader understands what the blog is about and what principles the author supports, and only then gets acquainted with it.

The ability to forgive yourself

Describe your biggest regrets and fears in a letter. In the future, you will be able to more objectively analyze your shortcomings and vulnerabilities, and track how you dealt with them throughout this time. An exercise like this teaches us to forgive ourselves for those things that we simply cannot change. Everyone makes mistakes, and some make them more often than others. But don’t hold on to negative memories, replaying them over and over again, this will only lead to even more stress. You must learn to accept your own mistakes and learn from them, so as not to face the same problems in the future. However, this process requires patience and constant practice. By writing about the events and regrets that torment you today, in a few years you will be able to forgive yourself for them, looking at past mistakes through the eyes of the other person you will have become by that time.

The employer asks you to leave your contact information: writing a resume for Instagram

Freelancers are often faced with the fact that they need to leave their social networks on their resume. A profile with a description of his work will look much more interesting. You don’t need to write who a copywriter is, but you can share your work experience, achievements in the field, price tag and personal preferences.

The customer will like a bright, completed account more than a gray profile with one photo straight from 2013.

Active management of social networks is a plus for a candidate for any profession, but there are professions where a formal Instagram account is necessary. The most obvious position is a photographer, whose account is a resume. Let's figure out how to turn a simple profile into a complete questionnaire.

• In the profile header, say hello to the audience and tell us about your profession. A line along the lines of this would be suitable: “Hi, I’m Tanya, a photographer who will turn your profile into an arthouse paradise.” Thus, the client understands that Tatyana is a creative photographer working in the art house direction.
• Leave a link to other social networks. In any account, you can attach a link to your website. It is important that all accounts are intertwined with each other, but not duplicated. We keep the style and theme, but do not copy posts.
• Post by post, tell us about your work process. You can share your creative secrets and life hacks for clients. You will find clients and show yourself as an employee interested in the field.
• Release post-acquaintance. Tell us about yourself, the areas in which you are interested, what you like about your work.

The ability to value your life

Whether your life turns out exactly the way you wanted it to, or differs significantly from what you originally planned, reading a letter from your past will make you appreciate more of what you currently have. Sometimes life changes dramatically literally in an instant, and not every person who wrote a letter to himself will be able to read it in the future. When you reach the 3, 5 or 10 year mark, you will realize how far you have come. You will have a chance to feel proud that you were able to get to this point.

If the reasons listed above have prompted you to write a letter to yourself, make sure it actually means something to you. Years from now, you will thank yourself for these reflections, introspection, questions, dreams and motivational words. Perhaps it is “talk” to yourself that will help you achieve the goals that are important to you today.

And I feel good even without words about myself - why do I need a verbal self-portrait?

Even people with a closed account on social networks have at least once encountered a situation where they need to tell about themselves in a living language in the most interesting way, but at the same time convey the information briefly and concisely.

In casual correspondence, you can simply note your name, hobbies, job, age and anything else your heart desires. But what to do when a job offer or an interesting acquaintance knocks on your personal message?

At least don’t worry and write clichéd phrases and simple sentences with the vocabulary of a first grader in a minute. The easiest way out of such situations is for those who either have prepared a conversational, beautiful text about themselves, or have a well-designed profile on a social network.

Useful links: Designer's portfolio: examples + assembly cheat sheet, Letter of recommendation from employer: sample 2020, design examples, Online school producer - who is he and what does he do: a detailed overview of the Internet profession.

Not only bloggers with an audience of several hundred thousand are distinguished by their visual profiles and interesting phrases in their bios. Anyone interested in this can write a few words about themselves.

It is much easier to get in touch with a person when you know at least some information about him: you can find a clue when meeting someone from both education and your favorite movie. Biographies on social networks are a case where openness and sincerity can do no harm.

Freelancers should take a closer look at the design of their “profile header”. All their work mostly takes place through exchanges, instant messengers and social networks - platforms where the profile description is most important.

The biography should include types of services, education, interests and preferences, personal qualities and prices.

It would seem that connecting all this and fitting it into a couple of lines is an impossible task... We will be convinced of exactly the opposite when looking at successfully completed resumes of copywriters, translators, photographers, advertisers and content managers.

Where would it be appropriate to talk about yourself and your talents?

We already understand that a beautiful conversational text about yourself will be useful. But where can it be used? There are actually a lot of answers, but let’s highlight the main options:

As for the latter, you shouldn’t even be surprised. Some profiles on Tinder and Badu are simply works of modern science fiction literature.

Post a professional photo (25:36)

This recommendation is similar to the one where I ask you to introduce yourself on the blog, and it seems obvious. Today, each of us has gigabytes of photos and selfies on our phones. But I want to emphasize that both the quality of the photograph and how accurately it conveys your character are important here.

To choose a suitable photo, think about how or how you want to show yourself to blog readers? To be perceived as a cheerful or serious person, humorous or cozy, elegant or well-read, leading a healthy lifestyle or moving from country to country? All this can be emphasized with a well-chosen photo on your about page.

For example, a photograph of a psychologist should partly reflect the principles of his work and his attitude towards clients: openness, calmness, goodwill. In the photographs on the left you see not the best angles: closed and unnatural poses, unrealistic offices, tense smiles. But you somehow immediately gain trust in the psychologists on the right. Muted colors, realistic interiors, friendliness and open postures tell us that we will be welcome here.

Think about what three adjectives you would like site visitors to describe you. Choose a photo that conveys the right mood. If there is no such thing, then do it yourself or with the help of a professional photographer.

Bonus tip: Record a short video introduction where you explain who you are and what your blog is about. Video conveys the mood of the blog and the character of the author much more quickly. I have such a video on the blog “A House You Want to Come to.”

What kind of person am I

My name is Alisa and I am in 7th grade. I live with my family: mother, father and older sister Nadezhda. We also have a cat, Antoshka, whom we all consider to be a full member of the family.

I am kind, I know how to empathize with people, and support them in difficult times. At the same time, my character can be called strong. I know how to insist on my own and if I want something, I achieve it with enviable tenacity. Any injustice outrages me to the core, and I always try to fight for the truth and protect the weak.

I am a hard worker, I always help my mother with housework and cleaning. I love to cook and often cook in the kitchen. When my parents have a lot of work, I can cook lunch or dinner for the whole family - of course, with the help of my sister. I like to take care of everyone, so for me it is not work, but joy.

I love to study, I read a lot, so most of all I like literature classes. I am interested in discussing book characters, analyzing their characters, and discussing the reasons for their actions. It seems to me that I understand human psychology well, so I can think of everything that the author did not say in the work. I also like Russian language lessons - I never cease to be amazed at how rich, complex and multifaceted it is. I also love the French language - it is very beautiful and melodic.

I can say that my main weakness is impatience. It’s hard for me to sit and wait, I’m always eager to fight. Because of this, I sometimes make too hasty decisions, which I later regret. But I try to work on myself and cultivate the ability to wait. This is very difficult, because by temperament I am choleric.

I have many hobbies and interests. I do modern dancing and sing. In winter I go snowboarding with friends - the feeling of speed fascinates me and fills me with energy. There are good ski slopes in our city, but I have already studied them inside and out. When I'm older, I'll definitely go to the Swiss Alps - that's where the fun will be! I also want to visit other countries:

• France,
• Spain,
• UK,
• Cuba,
• Australia,
• New Zealand.

Traveling is always great, it inspires and enriches our horizons.

In the future I want to become a psychologist. I like to communicate , I have many friends. I feel that people are drawn to me because I can encourage, support, inspire, reassure, and make people believe in themselves. I think these are the signs of a good psychologist, which means my calling is to help other people become happier. Of course, for this you need to study a lot, even after university, go through various trainings and master classes, training programs. But this doesn’t scare me - I’m ready to work hard for my dream.

Share your story in the text about yourself (14:08)

I recommend telling your story like Tanya did in the example above. But it is very important to tell the story concisely, without immersing the reader in dozens of details, backstory and several screens of dense text.

It's difficult to tell everything and be brief. But you can make the text more integral, concentrated and informative. To do this, use the formula “After I ....., I did / understood / used .....” .

• For example, this could be a post-acquaintance on a copywriter’s blog: “ After 12 years of office work , which did not bring me happiness, I created my own blog and plucked up the courage to quit and make money by writing texts.” So in just one sentence we already know what happened.

• Or: “ After 14 international moves with two children, I learned to adapt to a new place, get my son into kindergarten in two weeks and unpack boxes at a speed of 10 boxes per second (okay, maybe a little slower). I realized that I could share my knowledge with other mothers, wives of expats, and I do this on my blog.” Just one paragraph, but we again see what happened and what traits the heroine of the blog has.

• Another example: “ When I paid off the 2 million loan that had been hanging over me for several years and bought my own apartment, I realized that I could help sort out personal finances for those who have difficulty budgeting and who live from paycheck to paycheck.” And again we see here the outline of a story, the details of which promise to be interesting. We already know what kind of information to expect from the author of this blog.

If you now feel that your story deserves details and that it won’t be possible to put it into a couple of sentences, there is a way out. You can write a blog article and describe in detail what happened to you. And in a concise text about yourself, provide a link to this post.

How to build a story about yourself in English (introducing yourself)

All topics about myself begin with introducing yourself. The phrase “Let me introduce myself” is a good place to start.

Next you need to call name

- first name,
surname
- last name (for example -
My name is Sergey. My surname is Belov
), indicate your age -
age
.

Also, if you wish, you can indicate where you were born. For example - I was born in Russia in Volgograd City

.

If you talk about yourself in English in more detail, you can also mention the composition of your family ( I have a large family with two brothers and two sisters

- I have a large family - 2 brothers and 2 sisters).

You can also indicate the type of activity of the parents, for example - My mother Svetlana is a dentist

(my mother Svetlana is a dentist), etc.

If you are a schoolchild and you need to write a story about school life, you can specify which class you are in ( I am a pupil of 5 form

- I am a 6th grade student).
You can indicate which lessons you like best - my favorite subjects are maths, geography, literature and history
(my favorite lessons are mathematics, geography, literature and history).

You can also say about your choice of profession - I would like to become a teacher (I would like to become a teacher).

When talking about yourself in English, you also need to describe your personal qualities and appearance. For example, in order to describe yourself to an employer, you need to indicate advantages

- advantages and
drawbacks
- disadvantages.
Mark your qualities - qualities
(for example -
I am polite and intelligent
).

At the end, you can indicate your hobbies, interests. For example - I fond of football

(I like football). You can indicate what you like to do and do.

At the very end of the story about yourself, you can indicate that you are striving to become a good person - I want to become a good person

.

Next, let's look at a few stories about ourselves.