Read the question. Some personal profile essays are open topic, allowing you to write about anything you'd like. Others ask specifically about certain areas, such as your greatest accomplishment or biggest challenge. Understanding and addressing what is asked of you in your essay is a key component to writing a successful essay.
Brainstorm your answers. Write down everything you can think of associated with the question, even if it seems like a stretch or a tangent. You can pick and choose from these brainstormed ideas when you sit down and write the first draft.
Plan your profile essay. Choose the most interesting and relevant ideas you brainstormed in Step 2; then play around and arrange them into an outline that shows a logical progression of your ideas.
Write a first draft.
Show your first draft to trusted friends, teachers and family to gather feedback. You may be shy about doing this, but don't hold back! Getting feedback can help show you what is working well in your profile and what needs attention.
Revise and rewrite your essay. Ensure that you have a punchy introductory sentence that instantly grabs the reader's interest, smooth transitions between paragraphs and that you've addressed the question.
Proofread, spell check and copy edit for spelling, syntax and grammatical mistakes. Some tricks to help catch errors on a piece you have looked at many times are reading it aloud or looking at the entire essay by going backwards word by word.
Put the essay away for a few days, then look at it again with fresh eyes for a final check. Make any last minute changes, repeat Step 7 and then print your personal profile.