5 Myths About Self-Promotion
Have you ever said or thought:
It’s not cool to talk about yourself at work
Good work speaks for itself
It’s not polite to promote your achievements
If you answered yes, you are like a lot of leaders, and especially women, who dread talking about their achievements. However, self-promotion is an important part of work and necessary for career advancement. So let's bust some myths:
Your work will not speak for itself
In fact, your leaders expect you to remind them what you have achieved. Just like you are willing to promote the work you did as a team, you can honor you own effort and values by brining it forward.
Success depends equally on being - and being seen as - competent
Most of what will determine your career will happen in rooms when you are not present, so are you making sure the people who will talk about you know about all of your contributions?
If you don’t self-promote, you risk falling behind self-promoting peers
This is self-explanatory. When you don't promote your work but others do (as they should) you seem like you are contributing less. Unfortunately, it's also a perception game.
When you share your achievements, you inspire others
Think about all the times you were inspired or motivated by people who have achieved remarkable things and have shown great performance. So why not be the one who inspires your colleagues and your team?
It’s not bragging if it’s a fact
We are not talking about shamelessly promoting yourself or claiming unsubstantiated value, but rather about educating people about your skills, naming your specific contributions and acknowledging your value based on facts. Self-promotion should always be an authentic expression of ourselves and never a fake facade.
So what stands between you and promoting your work? Typically it's fear of being seen but also cultural stereotypes. Research shows that women are disproportionately less likely than men to promote their hard-earned achievements at work for fear of being perceived as cocky and not being liked. This leaves women in a double-bind: they will either be seen as confident, or they will be likeable. But genders aside, when good people doing great work play small, it's a lose lose for everyone.