Are you good at blowing your own trumpet? Are you getting the recognition you deserve? Are you highlighting your achievements? Does your boss know what you do? Do they really know what you do?
Far too often we shy away from taking proper credit for a job well done. We don’t talk about our achievements and don’t bring them to the attention of our bosses (as part of the appraisal process or otherwise) and more than often they are too busy to notice on their own. We are also encouraged to celebrate the success of others (and rightly so) which also means that we often shift recognition towards our colleagues without actually highlighting what we have done. Women in particular find this challenging and we often talk about the great team they had and don’t always talk about the “I” as well as the “We”.
So we will start simple. We will make it easy by writing it down in your career journal. I have chosen”What achievements do I need to tell my boss about?” as the starting point, but you can repeat this exercise with any question.
Self-Promotion
Here’s how you can start getting over the fear of healthy self-promotion:
- By writing it in the career journal and pondering it as a question we can be crystal clear about what our achievements are, what we should be celebrating and if needed find a channel to get the recognition you deserve (and help you get ahead).
- Take the time to acknowledge your own accomplishments (and you should try and do this in your free-writing as well as in relation to the prompts) getting used to the idea on a personal level will make it easier to accept outwardly and make it easier to talk about.
- Consider what channels you are comfortable with using for self-promotion and use them. For example you might have a newsletter that celebrates staff achievements. As it is in written form it can be a great way to showcase your achievements without openly speaking.
- Appraisals are an important time to be talking about your achievements and for this the key is in the preparation. So if you have an appraisal or other type of review with your boss make sure you prepare adequately.
- Team up with a colleague (or group of colleagues) who can share your achievements (and you can share theirs).
Prompt: What achievements do I need to tell my boss about?