The professional summary serves as the primary marketing pitch for any career document, immediately shaping the reader’s perception of a candidate. Confusion often arises regarding the appropriate grammar and voice to use when crafting this brief yet impactful statement. Deciding whether to use personal pronouns affects the perceived professionalism and tone of the entire document. Understanding the established norms ensures this introductory section effectively captures attention and leads to further engagement.
Defining the Professional Summary
A professional summary, sometimes called a profile or an objective statement, is a concise overview of a candidate’s qualifications, experience, and career goals. Its standard placement is at the top of a resume, immediately below the contact information. The purpose is to provide a hiring manager with a high-impact snapshot of a candidate’s value proposition in four to six lines of text. This positioning allows recruiters to quickly assess relevance before reviewing the detailed work history and achievements.
The Standard Convention: Avoiding First Person
For traditional, formal documents like a resume, the convention is to omit all first-person pronouns. Statements should not contain words such as “I,” “me,” “my,” “we,” or “our” when describing accomplishments or skills. The absence of these pronouns establishes a professional tone expected in applications reviewed by Applicant Tracking Systems and human recruiters. Adopting this style signals an understanding of conventional business communication standards.
Why Omitted Pronouns Are Preferred in Formal Documents
The preference for omitting pronouns stems partly from the need for conciseness where space is limited. Removing phrases like “I am a” or “My experience includes” conserves valuable line space, allowing the writer to pack more quantifiable data into the summary. This pruning shifts the focus immediately to the action and the result, which holds greater informational weight for a potential employer.
The omission also helps maintain a formal, objective tone throughout the document. By eliminating the implied subjectivity of “I believe” or “I feel,” the summary presents the candidate’s history as an established record of competency and success. This stylistic choice directs the reader’s attention away from the writer’s perspective and onto the measurable outcomes achieved. The resulting text is perceived as more authoritative and data-driven, aligning with the expectations of corporate and technical hiring processes.
Writing Summary Statements Without Pronouns
The most effective technique for eliminating pronouns involves structuring sentences to begin with strong action verbs or descriptive adjectives. This approach immediately focuses the sentence on the skill or achievement, creating an implied third-person voice. For example, instead of writing, “I managed a team of ten people and increased sales by 15%,” the statement should be rewritten to start with the action.
A professionally revised statement would read, “Managed team of ten to exceed sales targets, generating a 15% year-over-year increase in revenue.” This structure forces the writer to be more direct and allows the summary to function as a high-level list of qualifications. Starting with words like “Expert,” “Accomplished,” “Certified,” or “Proven” also provides a strong, professional lead-in while maintaining distance from the first person.
Consider a weak statement such as, “My decade of experience in software development makes me qualified for this senior role,” which is subjective and pronoun-heavy. The statement can be transformed by focusing on specific skills and tenure. A revised version might state, “Ten years of progressive experience in full-stack software development, specializing in scalable cloud architecture and automated deployment pipelines.” This revised version provides specific, technical detail and quantifiable tenure without using personal pronouns, maximizing the informational density of the limited space.
Platform Specifics: Resume Versus LinkedIn
The convention of omitting pronouns applies primarily to the resume, which remains a formal application document. However, expectations change significantly when moving to digital professional platforms like LinkedIn. The LinkedIn “About” section functions more like a personal bio or narrative introduction than a traditional resume summary.
On this platform, the use of first-person voice—”I,” “my,” and “me”—is acceptable and often encouraged to establish a personal connection and facilitate storytelling. Since LinkedIn is a networking tool, using a conversational tone helps the reader feel they are hearing directly from the professional. This allows candidates to provide context and create a narrative arc for their career that would be inappropriate in the concise, objective format of a resume.
When Using First Person Might Be Acceptable
Beyond the LinkedIn profile, several other professional contexts permit the use of the first person. Documents intended to showcase personal brand or creative voice, such as a career portfolio website or a personal “About Me” page, often benefit from a subjective narrative. These platforms are designed to showcase personality and perspective, making the “I” voice natural and expected.
Furthermore, the introductory paragraph of a cover letter is the proper place to utilize first-person pronouns. A cover letter is inherently a personalized communication, where the writer must explicitly state their interest and qualifications in relation to the specific role. In this context, using “I am writing to express my interest” or “I believe my skills align” is the correct stylistic choice.