Do you read the “about me” or autobiographical paragraphs on blogs? Do you expect it to be short and sweet or the blogging equivalent of a resume? I think that my bio should read:
“Cathy McCaughan is a mental health advocate and community activist. She is married to her best friend and they are the parents of five children. She has children in high school, middle school and elementary school. Her primary interest is special needs children.”
Do you think anyone really wants me to add information about my college degrees, my most recent employer and all the coalitions that I have actively worked on in the past? Does anyone really want to read all this?
When I read a bio, I expect to find out a little of what makes that person tick. Who they are, where they come from, what they are at that moment.
Depending on how closely you want to be identified is whether you include school info.
A lot of bios, and I mean a LOT, are next to useless – they tell nothing about the person, just a vague “philosophy statement” or two, as if a person’s life can be distilled down to a pithy quote from Milton or something…
I think people skim over the bios expecting that type of stuff but secretly they want to read:
Now there’s a bio!
Once again, I question the oxygen levels in our basement.