How to Self-Promote without Being a Jerk

The best way to enhance your own career is by helping other professionals. From personal experience, I can tell you that this works incredibly well on three levels:

1. It feels amazing
2. It's pretty selfish because you really do end up better off
3. You help a lot of people

To demonstrate, I'm going to give you two gifts.

Last week, I gave a How to Self-Promote without Being a Jerk webinar for over 800 MIT alumni. Even if you didn't go to MIT, you can still listen to the entire webinar here:

Effective self-promotion isn't about bragging. It's about demonstrating value and helping others in a meaningful way.

For example, in the webinar, I share my simple and straightforward 4-step system:

Kindness first: I start every day by taking about 15 minutes to see whom I can help. Can I share an insightful article someone wrote that's not yet getting much traction? Perhaps I can introduce people who should know each other? This is also when I respond to requests for favors or advice.

Why do I do this first thing? There are two reasons. First, it puts me in the mindset of helping others, which has benefits throughout the day. Second, it ensures I don't get lost in the day and forget to proactively help others.

Be provocative: You can't make a difference if no one notices your existence. Before you can educate, connect, or persuade... you have to get someone's attention.

In short, you should be interesting. Tell a story about the time a bear chased you up a tree, or your own version of something that shows rather than tells.

But don't scream "Fire!" in a crowded theater. Be interesting, but also intelligent.

Be memorable: As my friend, Carmen Simon, reminds us, your task is to create memories in other people's minds that are so strong they remember to take a future action (such as hire or promote you, or buy your product).

The sad truth is that people forget most of what you tell them, so you must focus their attention on what you really, truly want them to remember.

Interact online: I get my best ideas by reading every single comment shared in response to my articles. Except for referrals, I get all my new clients by being active online. Yes, I benefit hugely by interacting online.

If you're not using professional social media to expand your network and deepen your existing relationships, you are doing your career a vast disservice.

Just remember my primary rule: use social media to help others. Serve before you sell.

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Bruce Kasanoff is a ghostwriter for thought leaders. He is the author of NEVER TELL PEOPLE WHAT YOU DO.