Building a Personal Portfolio

I used to think my portfolio had to impress other designers. So I filled it with sleek mockups, polished animations, and endless case studies. It looked beautiful...But it didn’t land me clients. Why? Because clients don’t hire you for aesthetics. They hire you for outcomes. 🚫 Too many portfolios still look like it’s 2015: → Pretty mockups → Trendy layouts → 10-second Behance loops But here’s the hard truth: Clients don’t care how cool it looks. They care what it does. 💡 Ask yourself: → Does my portfolio solve real business problems? → Am I showing results or just visuals? → Is it written for clients or for other creatives? What actually works in 2025: ✅ Highlight before/after results (data if possible) ✅ Explain your thinking, not just your tools ✅ Tailor your portfolio to your ideal client, not your peers Because great design isn’t just about craft It’s about clarity, strategy, and trust. ✨ Your portfolio shouldn’t be a gallery. It should be a sales tool. One that shows the value you bring, not just the vibe. 💬 Got a portfolio tip that worked for you? Drop it in the comments, let’s help each other grow. 📌 Save this if you’re about to redesign yours. It’s not about looking good. It’s about landing the right kind of work.

71% of hiring managers say a strong online portfolio influences hiring decisions. Then, how can you make yours stand out? - Focus on quality, not quantity: Limit your portfolio to 5–10 key projects that showcase your best work. - Show your process: Clearly explain your work—what you did, how you did it, and the impact it had. - Keep your links fresh: 66.5% of links break over time, so check them regularly to keep your portfolio looking professional. While reviewing a mentee's portfolio, I saw amazing work—but it was scattered across 20+ projects, with several broken links. The response? Not great. After receiving some feedback, we narrowed it down to 8 solid projects. The impact was almost instant. One recruiter said, “Now I can see how they approach problems.” Your portfolio reflects how you approach challenges. When it’s clear and well-organized, your skills and talent come through. If you’re unsure whether your portfolio is hitting the mark, don’t hesitate to seek feedback—whether from a mentor or someone in your field. Or even us - Supersourcing - your friendly career partner.😊

Looking for a job? Build a portfolio. Not just a résumé. If I were job hunting in 2025, here’s what I’d do. Build ONE great portfolio project in the next 30 days. Something that shows - not tells - your skill, thought process, and creativity. I say this as someone who's also hired half a dozen people in the past 2 years. There's too much noise out there. You've got to find a way to stand out. Here are 3 roles and 3 portfolio projects you can build in the next 30 days to stand out: 👩🏽💻 1. Product Manager Build: A new feature for an app you love → Pick a product (Spotify, Notion, Duolingo) → Design a new feature: user problem → solution → wireframes → Write a PRD (problem, KPIs, edge cases, success metrics) One of the most creative ways I've seen a friend get an interview was this: He mocked up a "Spotify Social Listening" feature - then sent it to Spotify PMs. This got him an immediate response and interview. Tool stack: Notion, Figma, Canva, ChatGPT, Whimsical 📱 2. UX/UI Designer Build: A 2-week redesign challenge → Pick a real-world flow that sucks (e.g. booking train tickets on IRCTC lol or the entire Goodreads web app) → Interview a few users (just ask around within your friends) → Redesign the flow with better UX → Share your case study on Behance or your website Write a post on the entire process you followed. Tool stack: Figma, Maze, Framer, Medium 📊 3. Data Analyst Build: A dashboard + case study → Choose a public dataset (NYC taxi data, Netflix ratings, upcoming Indian startups) → Clean + analyze it using SQL/Python → Build a dashboard in Tableau or Power BI → Publish your insights + charts as a case study Once again, write a post on the entire process you followed. Tool stack: SQL, Python, Tableau, Canva, Medium ... It's easy to get stuck in the rut of applying to jobs every day. Try something a tiny bit different... and you can easily stand out from the noise. Best of luck! 🌿 Found this useful? Repost it to help someone who’s job hunting. 🟢 Want a free guide to acing your first PM interview? Comment below “portfolio” below and I’ll send it over. :)

Let me ask you this: Does your portfolio reflect the work you actually want to be hired to do? If your answer is, “Yeah! I want to be an instructional designer!” ...that’s not what I mean. I’m talking about the kind of instructional designer you want to be. Do you want to design courses? Build systems? Lead strategy? Improve performance? Facilitate change? Because here’s the thing…most portfolios default to the same stuff: ✅ Storyline modules ✅ Rise demos ✅ Job aids about the ADDIE process And that’s totally fine (minus the ADDIE job aid)....if that’s the kind of work you want to do. But not every ID role involves eLearning. Not every L&D professional is a course creator. And not every portfolio needs to be packed with eLearning examples. Your portfolio isn’t just a box to check. It’s a positioning tool. A statement. A signal. It should help you attract the kind of work that lights you up, and quietly filter out the stuff that doesn’t. Ya know, when I built my first portfolio, I learned this the hard way. I thought the goal was to showcase everything I was capable of. So I loaded it up: presentations I’d designed, facilitator guides I’d created, eLearning courses I’d built, videos I’d edited—everything. My thinking at the time was: “The more I include, the more capable I’ll look.” But what actually happened? Hiring managers couldn’t tell what I specialized in. And I kept getting inquiries about work I didn’t even want to do. That experience taught me a valuable lesson: Your portfolio mirrors your focus. Get specific, or get overlooked. So if your goal is to land work you enjoy and work you’re great at, then your portfolio has to tell that story. Show the kind of work you want to be hired for. Be intentional. Be specific. And don’t be afraid to leave things out. Because clarity isn’t limiting, it’s powerful. 👉 If you want to see what it looks like to build a portfolio without any eLearning examples, check out my latest video with the link down in the comments! Have a great week! 👋 Tim #eLearning #InstructionalDesign #LearningAndDevelopment

𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 – 𝗗𝗼 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗨𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗱𝗜𝗻 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝗹𝗲?   Last week I was given the opportunity to build a LinkedIn profile from the ground up. Usually, clients ask for a makeover to their existing profile but this time I created one from scratch.   And as is often the case, I learned something new. It wasn’t a new feature; this one’s been there for ages. But I realised my own profile was missing a section I had totally ignored until now.   That section? Projects!   While trying to find ways to add content to this client’s profile, I woke up to the fact that the little information I had about him lent itself well to the Projects section. His work was heavily project based and by adding different projects he’d worked on over the years, it filled out his profile, showcased his expertise AND provided additional eye-catching imagery.   Projects sit between your Education and Volunteering sections. Or, if you don’t have a Volunteering section, just above Skills. (Unfortunately, you can’t add individual projects to your Featured section, but fingers crossed that will come.)   I found I could add a 2000-character description, media (links, images and presentations), skills and other contributors to each project. This gave each project more prominence than if they’d been buried in the Experience section.   Once added, the projects filled out our client’s profile nicely, making it look professional, compelling and complete.   It won’t surprise you to know that quick smart I popped over to my own profile to add the Project section there with the same great results. I’ll be adding more as I also discovered Projects have their own URL – [MyLinkedInURL]/details/projects/. This will be ideal to send to clients enquiring about our LinkedIn marketing services.   Now that I’ve started paying this some attention, I can see it could be used in multiple ways and applied to most profiles. I won’t be ignoring it again!   🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷   Looking to upgrade your LinkedIn knowledge in 2024? Check out linkability[dot]biz for dozens of hours of content on how to leverage LinkedIn to achieve your professional goals.   Got something to add? 🔷 COMMENT 🔷 Would others find it useful? 🔷 REPOST 🔷 Want to see more like this? 🔷 🔔 🔷 Plan to refer back to this? 🔷 SAVE 🔷 Think I know my stuff? 🔷 ENDORSE 🔷   #lynnaire #linkedin #marketing #digitalmarketing   📌📌📌 Tip of the day – Join my audio event tomorrow (Thus Mar 7 in NZ/Au or Wed Mar 6 ET/PT) to hear about the latest new features and updates, and a discussion on the Projects section of profiles. Link in the comments below.  

How to Land High-Value Clients (for Freelancers) 👇🏼 If you’re looking to start freelancing, read this carefully. In the past 6 months, I’ve worked with over 18 clients and landed a few high-paying, repeat customers. I don’t really struggle to find clients anymore — I actually pick who I want to work with. But this didn’t just happen. From the start, I knew I had to set up a few things properly, and these are the ones that worked best for me: 👉🏼 Be ready to share or work on test projects. One of my best projects so far - the one that paid me over $8k in 6 weeks - came from a test project I did for free. That same test (which is now in my portfolio) has become my most-viewed project ever. It’s brought in even more clients since then. 👉🏼 Your personal projects are where you show your full range. This is where you put in all your know-how - no restrictions, no client feedback cycles, just pure creativity. These are the projects that impress people the most. They show your aesthetic, your skill, and how you think as a designer. 👉🏼 Mix diverse project types into one strong case study. There’s a high chance clients will only check one or two of your projects. They don’t always have the time to dig deep. So put your best work forward - combine your strongest UI projects in one case study so they can see more of your skill without switching tabs. These few things have helped me attract retainers, high-paying clients, and repeated work. If you’re freelancing or planning to start soon, take this as a checklist. I hope it helps someone today. I’ll see you in the future. Samuel Lasisi #linkedin #freelancing #uiux #design

Great experience, but nothing to show for it? As a recruiter specialising in design and creative roles, I often find myself in the middle of a really tricky dilemma: brilliant candidates with amazing experience, but no work they can actually show. I’ve been recruiting for an Art Director role recently, and I’ve spoken to so many talented people whose portfolios just don’t reflect the depth of their experience. Usually because the work is confidential or under NDA. Totally understandable, but from a hiring perspective, it can be a real challenge. In this case, my client was specifically looking for examples of retail campaigns that had been art directed and rolled out across a range of digital platforms. And honestly? It was a real struggle to find work that could be shared. From a freelance perspective, this becomes even more crucial. When you're brought in as a freelancer, you’re expected to hit the ground running. That’s why even if your CV and experience look amazing, clients need to see that you’ve done the kind of work they need. If you can’t showcase it somehow, chances are you won’t even get an interview. So I wanted to share a few practical tips for how to present your work when you're not sure what’s safe to include: If it’s live, it’s fair game – If the campaign has launched and is publicly available online, you can usually include it in your portfolio. Just be clear about your role in the project. Use screenshots wisely – Link to the live campaign if possible, or use screenshots with proper context to showcase your contribution. Strip out sensitive details – If something is still under wraps, anonymise the work. Blur logos, change names, or generalise the client. Focus on your creative approach and the outcomes. Get permission – When in doubt, ask. Sometimes companies are happy for you to include certain pieces, especially if you present them professionally and respectfully. Keep a “private” version – If you're applying for roles directly, have a password-protected or offline version of your portfolio that you can walk through during interviews. Just make sure it's clear it’s for their eyes only. This kind of thing can really make or break your chances, especially in senior or freelance roles. A little extra effort to present your work in the right way can make all the difference. I’d love to hear from others. How do you handle this in your portfolio? #portfoliotips #recruitment

At my cousin's wedding, I watched the photographer work. 3,000 photos taken. 47 delivered. "Why so few?" I asked. "Madam, people don't want to see everything. They want to see the best version of their story." That's when it clicked me🔻 This is exactly how we should manage our careers. We're taking 3,000 skills, and showing all 3,000. Result? Confusion, not clarity. 📌As per LinkedIn’s data: Profiles with 5 focused skills get 17x more views than those listing 20+. The paradox: More is less when everything matters equally. So, here’s the "Portfolio Curation Method" I now teach: Capture Everything (backstage) -Document all projects -Track all learnings -Note all connections Curate Strategically (frontstage) -Show 3-5 signature strengths -Highlight pattern of impact -Tell a cohesive story Archive Wisely (storage) -Keep records for depth -Pull when relevant -Update quarterly Example transformation: BEFORE: "Experienced in project management, data analysis, team building, Excel, presentation skills, communication, leadership, problem-solving..." AFTER: "I transform complex data into stories that drive million-dollar decisions." Understand the pattern: Same person with a curated story getting 10x more interviews. Last quarter, a client reduced her LinkedIn skills from 23 to 4. Recruiter messages increased 300%. Why? Because when you stand for everything, you stand out for nothing. The photographer was right: People don't want to see everything. They want to see the best version of your story. P.S. What would happen if you showed only your best 47 photos instead of all 3,000? #CareerPortfolio #PersonalBranding #StorytellingInBusiness #ProfessionalBrand #CareerStrategy #LinkedInTips #PortfolioCuration

Want to stand out as a data analyst? A generic portfolio won't cut it—make sure yours is relevant to your target industry! Each industry has its own metrics, data, and business challenges. Show potential employers that you understand what is important to them! Here are some example projects from different industries: 1. 𝗘-𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲: • Customer segmentation analysis for targeted marketing campaigns. • Sales dashboards to compare forecasts and actuals. • Inventory optimization using historical sales data. 2. 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲: • Patient appointment no-show rate prediction. • Analyzing hospital resource utilization to improve efficiency. • Health outcomes comparison across different treatments or demographics. 3. 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲: • Credit risk assessment using customer data. • Time series analysis for stock price prediction. • Anomaly detection for identifying fraudulent transactions. 4. 𝗦𝗮𝗮𝗦/𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵: • User behavior analysis to understand feature usage. • Subscription churn prediction. • Cohort analysis to evaluate customer retention over time. 5. 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴: • Analyzing production line data for downtime reduction. • Predictive maintenance to minimize machine failures. • Supplier performance analysis to optimize supply chain reliability. Adjust your portfolio projects to the target domain, to show that you understand the data challenges and business questions specific to that industry. It will make you more competitive and help you stand out in a challenging job market! Comment below if you’re working on any of these projects—or let me know if you need more ideas for your specific domain! ---------------- ♻️ 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 if you find this post useful ➕ 𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 for more daily insights on how to grow your career in the data field #dataanalytics #datascience #dataanalyst #portfolio #careergrowth

Want to know how I helped my 4 students land interviews last week? By excelling at the art of resume alignment. Here's my exact process (save this for later. Let's make your resume naturally match job descriptions: 1. The Foundation Setup - Use JobScan or TargetMyResume for initial analysis - Create a "master resume" with ALL your experiences - Keep ATS-friendly formatting (no tables/graphics) 2. Strategic Keyword Integration - Copy job description into a word cloud generator - Identify top 15-20 recurring terms - Review your master resume for matching experiences 3. Natural Implementation Process - Start with your most relevant role - Weave keywords into achievement statements - Use exact phrases from job posting (when authentic) - Focus on action verbs that match required skills 4. Tools That Make It Easier - Grammarly for professional phrasing - Word cloud tools: WordClouds or WordArt - LinkedIn Skills Assessment (validate your keywords) - Google Doc's built-in thesaurus 5. The Reality Check Method - Read each bullet point out loud - Ask: "Would I say this in an interview?" - Remove any forced-sounding phrases - Keep industry-standard terminology only The key? Make every word count. Don't just stuff keywords - prove you've actually done what they're looking for. Remember: Your resume should read like a human wrote it, not like an AI generated it. Hope this helps you land more interviews in 2025. Save this post for your next application. P.S. What's your biggest resume challenge? Drop it below, and let's solve it together. Join me in the #LIPostingChallengeIndia and let's grow together!