Get Hired and Noticed as an Introvert

Getting ahead in your job search and career requires people to be their own advocates —effectively voicing their ambitions and articulating their worth. This can be a daunting challenge, especially for those who come from cultures or backgrounds where humility is valued over self-promotion. On today’s episode of Get Hired with Andrew Seaman, we delve into the nuances of advocating for yourself in environments that often reward the loudest voices, rather than the most competent.

Soulcast Media CEO Jessica Chen is out with a new book titled Smart, Not Loud: How to Get Noticed at Work for All the Right Reasons. In it, she shares her journey from a journalist in a dynamic newsroom to becoming an authority on navigating the workplace with what she describes as “quiet culture traits.” Today, she’s here to help us understand how to maintain authenticity while effectively standing out in competitive environments, offering strategies that anyone can use to claim their space in the professional world.

A transcript of the full conversation is below. You can listen to the episode above or on Apple Podcasts by clicking here.

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TRANSCRIPT: Get Hired and Noticed as an Introvert

Andrew Seaman: To get ahead in your career, it isn't enough to just be excellent at what you do. You also have to be able to speak up for yourself and ask for what you want, whether it's a new assignment or a promotion. But for many people, taking charge like that can be challenging, especially if you were raised to keep your head down and your expectations in check. Today on the show we're talking about how to get noticed at work when putting yourself out there is way out of your comfort zone. Don't go away, we'll be right back after the break.

From LinkedIn News, this is Get Hired. A podcast for the ups and downs and the ever-changing landscape of our professional lives. I'm Andrew Seaman, LinkedIn senior managing editor for Jobs and Career Development, bringing you conversations with experts who, like me, want to see you succeed at work, at home, and everywhere in between.

Today I'm joined by Jessica Chen, founder and CEO of Soulcast Media. Early in her career, Jessica struggled not because she wasn't good at her job, but because of what she calls her quiet culture traits. Growing up, she was taught to always do as she was told, and to never question authority. Then when she entered the workforce, she found that those lessons held her back from achieving career success, so she made it her mission to figure out how to shed some of those traits and she sharing those lessons in her first book. It's called Smart, Not Loud: How to Get Noticed at Work for All the Right Reasons. Here's Jessica.

Jessica Chen: My background is I actually started as a journalist, and it's funny because when I started working and my first job was at the NBC station in Reno, Nevada, I struggled. I was walking into this very loud newsroom where, as you can imagine, you're working with people who are very well-spoken, very charismatic, they're not afraid of sharing their ideas in meetings. And I remember sitting in these editorial meetings and feeling stuck as to, I want to pitch my idea, I want to share my ideas. But then I had all this mental dialogue of, how do I say it? Is it going to sound silly? You feel really self-conscious.

And as I started working and I started talking to a lot of my peers who are other fellow Asian Americans, I realized that a lot of the struggles that we have with communications can be boiled down a lot of it to how we were raised. And we were raised to embody principles such as you just keep your head down and you work. You don't cause waves. If you do something amazing at work, good for you, but you don't talk about it, you should be modest and humble. And if there's conflict, you certainly don't engage and you try to avoid it. And this is what I call quiet culture traits, and it's interesting because even though I initially was talking to my fellow Asian American peers about this, who many of them are working in the corporate environment, I found it was beyond just an Asian trait, which is why I basically coined it quiet culture traits.

Andrew: I really like that because growing up I come from a very lower, not even middle class, just like my parents lived in a trailer when I was born, and I think when you come from a poor background too, that also translates to don't make waves, just keep your head down, get a good job and stay there. It resonated a lot with me, even though I'm not necessarily a quiet person.

Jessica: Exactly. It's that mentality, that modesty, this don't make waves, keep to yourself. That is the quiet culture that I'm talking about.

Andrew: And also I think a common misconception when you say quiet culture or you're coming from a background, whether it's ethnicity or socioeconomic background that's quiet, it tends to be a more protectionist thing. It's not that your parents or your grandparents are just telling you to be quiet for the sake of being quiet. A lot of times it's because they genuinely feel that if you're quiet, if you keep your head down, you'll get ahead. Maybe you won't be the CEO or the boss, but you'll have a good job, you'll be protected, you won't get in trouble, things like that. That's where I think it comes from.

Jessica: Absolutely. I don't think it was meant to mute us or hold us back. If anything, I think it was meant to protect us. But again, I think even though it was very well-meaning and they really wanted to make sure we were doing okay, it was that culture shock when you enter a workplace, you're, whoa, okay. And the whole thing about smart not loud, and the premise of it is it's not that we should change ourselves to embody only loud culture traits because it's what's expected and it's what's rewarded. It's how can we still keep this because it's a part of ourselves, but still be able to get noticed at work for the right reasons.

Andrew: I think the first part of your book is the culture shock that you talked about, which is essentially like you said, going into a newsroom. And I imagine for a lot of people, especially people who are a little bit more quiet, a little bit more reserved, it could be incredibly overwhelming.

Jessica: I remember sitting in these morning meetings, and this is where we talk about what's going on that day, what's going to be covered that day on the news, in the paper. And I remember always thinking, whatever my boss told me to do is what I have to do. Whatever my boss tells me that I need to cover that day, there's no question about it. And I remember that I'd be sitting in these meetings and similarly my manager would be assigning everyone their stories, but I would see my colleagues debating with him about it. They'd be, "No, I don't agree. I don't think we should cover this story. I think we should cover that story," and it would become this almost heated exchange. And this is the culture shock that I was feeling, wow, how do my colleagues, how do they have that confidence to almost speak up and even speak back and challenge my manager? To me, that was beyond what I thought was okay to do.

But here's the crazy part, I actually saw my managers respected that, they liked that. They loved how the team, my colleagues, had that ability to stand up and defend their own ideas. And in many cases, my colleagues who did that, they actually were able to do what they wanted to do versus for me, I always felt like I was just the yes person. I felt like, okay, give me this project, I'll do it. And so this is an example of one of the culture shocks that I experienced of this, whoa, is that okay or not okay?

The other one is I would also see my colleagues ask for what they want and not only would they ask for it, they were so good at following up with what it is that they wanted. That was another culture shock of being, whoa, everything that I thought I was supposed to do or not do it seems completely contrary to what other people are doing. And these are people who are really good at their jobs.

Andrew: You mentioned in the second part of the book quiet capital, which I think is really an interesting concept. Can you explain a little bit about what that is and how you can use it to your advantage?

Jessica: Quiet capital is part two in Smart, Not Loud, and the quiet capital framework is a proactive way of basically approaching your career and it's basically three parts. The first part is shaping your career brand. The other chapter, and this is the second part, is knowing how to build your credibility in the workplace. And credibility isn't just something that happens when you get to a certain level, you start building your credibility the moment you walk into that door, you start meeting people for the first time. And then the third part of your quiet capital framework is basically getting good at advocating for yourself. And so I argue how building your quiet capital and having this quiet capital framework is how you want to approach work, and it's a very proactive way of doing so.

Andrew: Let's start with career brand. What are some simple things people can do? Because I think when people hear personal brand, professional brand, they get turned off by it. But it's one of those things where it's like you're going to be known for something in the workforce or in your workplace, so what is your advice to start crafting that?

Jessica: There's basically four steps to do it, but from a high level, a career brand and a career brand you are proud of is you being able to do work that you want to do and it comes easy to you. Then you can basically take that to open more opportunities for yourself. When I was a journalist, I was a general assignment reporter and it basically means you just cover everything and anything that's happening that day, the business news, the politics, the fire that just happened down the street, you're running to that. But for me, I've always been interested in business, specifically covering business news. I remember thinking, how cool would it be to have my own business show while working at this television station? But I knew that if I had pitched this idea of, "Hey, can I be our station's business reporter?" My manager would be, "Well, no, you got to still cover your day-to-day story. We don't have enough resources." That's always a thing. We don't have enough budget or resources.

Essentially I pitched this idea of, "Okay, I will still cover my general assignment stories that I have to do that day, but let me from time to time just focus specifically on business news." And then so I started proactively just finding and sourcing and pitching business news. But not only that, because I was consistent with it and I started doing really good stories around it, my manager was, "Oh, okay, I see the value in you doing this. Okay, we'll give you two hours a week to now work on it." And then you just start building and building on that. But I get it, in the beginning sometimes you do have to take on a little bit more work, you're balancing maybe multiple projects. But that other project, the project that you want as your career brand, it's not going to necessarily feel like exhausting work because it's actually work you want to do.

Andrew: We'll be right back with Jessica Chen.?

Andrew: And we're back with Jessica Chen, author of Smart, Not Loud: How to Get Noticed at Work for All the Right Reasons. What is your advice for people who maybe feel like they're lacking in self-advocacy?

Jessica: I think advocating for yourself is really hard, especially because you might think, well, I don't want to bother my manager by asking for this, or maybe I already asked for it and I don't want to again follow up, or it's like I do good work, isn't that enough? In this chapter of advocating for yourself, I basically break down that there's four things we got to get good at if we want to advocate for ourselves.

And there's an acronym called ACCT, basically act. The first A is you just got to ask for what you want and not feel bad about it. Be crystal clear about what it is that you want to do, what projects you want to be on? What skill do you want to uplevel?

The C is, well, it's not just about asking, you have to circle back. Because asking once is usually just when you're planting that seed, but it's the follow-up. And oftentimes it is a follow-up where you're going to get that answer. And not just that, it's multiple follow-ups. And what I love about the idea of circling back, and this is also another saying, you just got to sometimes say it twice, literally and figuratively, and this is a great way to think about following up because when you basically say, okay, I know I have to say it twice, then you start to not feel as bad about it because it's almost like you're expecting yourself to follow up.

The third one, which is the other C, is celebrate your wins. Because celebrating your wins is absolutely a part of advocating for yourself just because you're doing good work just because a client is happy. Sometimes you just have to slip a FYI to your manager or just, "Hey, check this out." And it's honestly as simple as that.

And then the T is being able to turn down requests. Because I think advocating for yourself is not always saying yes to things. And if we say yes to too many things, well, we're taking away time from doing things that we want to do. Advocating for yourself I think is us getting really good at these things and keeping it top of mind.

Andrew: The next part of your book, you dive into the advantages and strategies that you can deploy. And can you tell us maybe some of those that you go through in the book? Because I think those were really helpful, especially focusing on words, on tone, things like that.

Jessica: There's three chapters in part three. I broke it down in the sense of communications is made up of three things. It's what you say, it's your tone and it's your body language. When you think about your communication, when you're communicating and pitching your idea, just know that it's not just how you frame that message or frame that pitch. You also have to think about, okay, my tone of voice. How do I show my excitement, show my enthusiasm? And when I'm talking about it, or even when I'm presenting my idea, how can I utilize my body language? Because we know when folks are nervous, especially, let's say, when they are presenting, which we know is one of the biggest fears, when people are presenting their body language is the biggest telltale sign that they're nervous. And I always feel like it doesn't matter how much of an expert you are in your topic, if you cannot convey your message clearly, succinctly, and you're articulate about it, then people won't be able to understand or even get fully excited about what you want to say.

Andrew: And I think it's probably good to dive into the idea of these concepts applying to your own unique style. I can't necessarily speak to this authentically, but people of color from marginalized backgrounds, they're familiar with the term and concept of code switching. What you're mentioning in these books is a lot about bring yourself in there, but what is your tone? What is your way of showing up confidently? It's not about mimicking other people's necessarily, right?

Jessica: Absolutely. And for example, because we're talking about tone, what are the different elements you can actually play with? And that's the word, that you can play with in your own tone of voice so that ultimately that tone of voice isn't just what you sound like, it's talking about speaking fast, speaking slow, speaking in a higher pitch, lower pitch, depending on the context and environment. Because I think a lot of times, and this is certainly true for me, I never thought that tone was beyond just what you and I sound like. I thought that's just what it is, but it's actually so much more and we can actually modulate it in the sense where it's to our advantage. But like you said, Andrew, it's doing it in a way that feels authentic to you, and it's not about trying to try to emulate or trying to copy, but it's knowing the different elements you can play with because I think that's what makes the way we speak interesting.

Andrew: A lot of these concepts, all of them actually, can be applied to people who are looking for work too. And I guess especially for people who come from quiet cultures or are naturally a little bit more timid or whatever word you want to use, how do you suggest applying these throughout your job search as well?

Jessica: When we're thinking about getting hired, there's so many concepts in this book that is meant to help folks better show up. Let's take in an interview for example. I want to empower folks to know that when you're interviewing, you have to highlight your genius. That's really what it is. You got to know what you're good at, you got to highlight it, and you got to be able to talk about it, which is the communications part of the book. And I think anytime we're interviewing for a job, the fact that you got granted an interview means they are already interested, they want to talk to you. So already feel like you are already 10 steps ahead of a lot of other people who applied for that job.

I want you to feel that confidence, but it's not just talking about yourself in a boastful way, because I know for many of us, that's not natural, but it's being able to talk about this is what I can do, this is the benefit it has brought to maybe the other team I worked with, and this is what I'm excited about to bring to this team. And I think when you highlight it like that, people get excited.

Andrew: If there's one spot where people can leave this podcast after they're listening and really start their day off and say, okay, I'm going to start turning the tide for myself and trying to make a change when it comes to my communication technique, what would you say is one of the simplest things they can do throughout their day to really start the ball rolling for themselves?

Jessica: There's so many, but if I were to just choose one, it really has to go back to the reason why I wrote this book, Smart, Not Loud. And it's to let people know that communications is one of the most important skills that we can continue to learn. And I say continue to learn because I'm continuing to learn it myself. And I don't think anybody could ever say I've mastered communications, but I think all of us can every day little by little think about, okay, if I want to get better at written communications, verbal communications, what can I do to enhance this skill? Because I have found, especially the higher up you go, communications and being able to influence people, motivate people, get people to understand a project, that becomes even more important to do. In fact, I feel like when you are good at communicating early on in your career, I believe it can fast track your career because it's not just about doing the work.

And this is the thing, it's not just about doing the work. And just because you're smart, it doesn't mean you're going to get promoted or you're going to get opportunities. You got to be able to talk about it, you got to be able to communicate it, you got to be able to build visibility for yourself. This is the essence of why I'm so passionate about this book because it's written for folks who are absolutely smart, so brilliant, so good, and so hardworking, but it's that communications that I would want folks to also focus on.

Andrew: That was Jessica Chen, author of Smart Not Loud: How to Get Noticed at Work for All the Right Reasons. If you're leaving this conversation with a new learning to apply to your job search or career, I'd like to invite you to write about it in a review on Apple Podcast. Our team really enjoys reading what you've learned from our shows. Plus it helps other people discover our community.

Speaking of community, remember that we're always here backing you up and cheering you on. Connect with me, Andrew Seaman and the Get Hired community on LinkedIn to continue the conversation. In fact, subscribe to my weekly newsletter that's called, you guessed it, Get Hired, to get even more information delivered to you every week. You can find those links in the show notes. And of course, don't forget to click the follow or subscribe button to get our podcast delivered to you every Wednesday because we'll be continuing these conversations on the next episode right here, wherever you like to listen.

Get Hired is a production of LinkedIn News. The show is produced by Grace Rubin and Emily Reeves. Assaf Gidron engineered our show, Joe DiGiorgi mixed our show, Dave Pond is head of news production, Enrique Montalvo is our executive producer, Courtney Coupe is the head of original programming for LinkedIn, Dan Roth is the editor in chief of LinkedIn, and I'm Andrew Seaman. Until next time, stay well and best of luck.