So much for being "creative": It remains the most overused LinkedIn profile term for the second year in a row among U.S.-based professionals as well as those worldwide.
We could not find the word "creative" in the profile of LinkedIn's first member with 1 million followers, Sir Richard Branson of Virgin Group, and maybe that partly explains his attraction (not to mention the fact that he's loaded, adventurous and that LinkedIn has promoted his profile as part of its effort to get people to visit the site more often by checking in on what assorted Big Thinkers have to say).
RELATED: 4 LinkedIn Tips to Help You Get Hired This Month
SLIDESHOW: 12 Cool LinkedIn Features You Never Knew About
LinkedIn, which boasts more than 187 million members, urges those people to get more creative with their profiles in order to stand out. Rather than just calling yourself creative, make sure you cite creative projects on which you've been involved. The social business site also recommends reworking your LinkedIn profile, whipping up a news-style headline, among other things.
This year's top 10 buzzword list is similar to last year's, with these exceptions: The terms "responsible" and "analytical" are now on the list, whereas "dynamic" and "communication skills" are no longer on it.
Here's the 2012 top 10 list in its entirety:
1. Creative 2. Organizational 3. Effective 4. Motivated 5. Extensive experience 6. Track record 7. Innovative 8. Responsible 9. Analytical 10. Problem solving
In countries outside of the U.S., most popular profile terms include "experimental" (Brazil), "multinational" (Indonesia) and "motivated" (United Kingdom).
Be creative and join the Network World LinkedIn page. As far as I can see, I've avoided the top 10 buzzwords in my own LinkedIn file.
Read more about lans and routers in Network World's LANs & Routers section.