5 Ways to Talk About Yourself Without Bragging

Do you have the right words and the confidence to talk about your skills and your successes? And if so, do you share this information with your leaders, team, and clients?

Having The Right Words Will Free You

Whether navigating interviews for a new job or simply working on building your visibility in your current role,?having the right words and framework to talk about what you bring to the table is beyond liberating; it's essential for anyone hoping to succeed at the top of the career ladder.

"Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge in the LinkedIn learning course on articulating your value. I am just about to leave my current role and am terrified about what’s next - I’ve always been lucky enough to fall into jobs and never had to really interview or sell myself in this way.?Your tips will help me do this, so thank you for helping calm my nerves a little."

Invisible workhorse to unforgettable powerhouse; get seen and promoted

My client Jess is brilliant, driven, hardworking, and good, very good at her job, but she's also self-effacing and struggled to share her value with others. Although people loved her, she wasn't getting promoted to the kinds of leadership opportunities she wanted.

Jess was a powerhouse at work, but she lacked visibility and, therefore recognition, so she wasn't accessing roles that would have been perfect for her.

We walked her through our Recognition Systems, part of our Executive Rising methodology, and taught her how to own, articulate, and comfortably share her value and impact with others.

The result? In under six months, Jess had two exciting job offers, one created just for her by a former manager. She took that promotion and the 15% raise that came with it.

"I finally put an interview talk together, got asked to interview at two fantastic biotechs, and?will be moving on to an exciting role literally made for me in May.?I am so thankful for this group of amazing, smart, supportive women! Special thank you to?Alessandra Wall?for easing my anxiety in deciding between the options."

Even if you're not currently in the market for a new job, visibility is essential if your goal is to build a career that's both successful and fulfilling. Visibility is the #1 factor associated with advancement for women, especially senior leaders who need sponsors to both access and thrive at the top. The best way to build visibility is to learn how to articulate your value in a manner that's both clear and compelling so the people around you understand what you can do and care enough about you to feel invested in supporting your success.

Another client, Amy, a Managing Director at a major financial institution, came to Noteworthy to build a strategic long-term plan for her career. Amy had dozens of opportunities to choose from, so many that it was impossible to say yes to everything. What Amy wanted was to position herself for projects and roles that best aligned with her skillset and her needs. What Amy needed was for people to stop coming to her with every opportunity and instead seek her out for the once in a lifetime opportunities that she deserved.

Here again, articulating her value with clarity and confidence was a major factor. Being known for the right things made it easier for her to say yes and no. She's established herself as an expert and has been sought after for promotions and new jobs without having to go look for them. Her most recent promotion landed her a 20% salary increase, a larger team, a bigger leadership network, and new responsibilities that will better position her for the C-suite.

Visibility is the #1 factor associated with advancement for women, especially senior leaders who need sponsors to both access and thrive at the top.

Below are 5 different opportunities to talk about yourself, share your value, discuss your impact, and communicate your character without bragging or feeling like you're pitching yourself. In the market for a new role or promotion? Establishing your value to build influence and lead with greater ease and impact? This blueprint will help you step into your power, show up with greater authority, own you value, and build trust with key stakeholders.

5 Ways to Share Your Value To Elevate Your Brand & Your Impact

When introducing yourself to a new team or client:

It's great that your interviewers understand what you bring to the table, but the people who really need to understand your value are the members of your team. Whether it's in that first meeting when you're being introduced to your colleagues or via more informal conversations in the first few weeks in your new position, take a few minutes to share with others what you do best, where you can add the most value, and who you are as a whole person.

When you get complimented:

When most people get complimented, the first thing they do is deflect the comment. "Aw, thank you!" they say awkwardly. Or, "It was nothing, really!". There are a couple of reasons why this is a terrible way of receiving a compliment, including the fact that it dismisses the effort the complimenter made in coming to you in the first place. Instead, accept the compliment and use it as an opportunity to showcase your value.

Example:?Casey, your supervisor, compliments you - the team leader - on the high quality of a recent deliverable.

You respond: "Casey, I really appreciate you taking a minute to share that with me. Excellence is one of my core values, and I'm lucky enough to be good at reading and connecting with people, and understanding what they bring to the table. That's how I knew that Reggie and Diana were perfect for this project and for the client.

If ever you need help with something like this in the future, don't hesitate to reach out; I love finding the perfect people for the job."

When you accept a project or task:

When you're asked to take on a task, and you know you're perfect for the job, why not explain why you're excited to do the work and how your skill set will lend itself to a successful outcome.

When you decline a task:

When declining a client or a project, talk about what is in your wheelhouse (what you love and excel at), and then explain that what's being asked of you isn't where you shine. Be ready with a list of alternate colleagues whom you believe are perfect for the job you just said no to. It's a win-win-win, you get to set boundaries, articulate your value, elevate someone on your team, and the asker gets the help they need.

When you're asked how you're doing:

You could say fine, or you could build visibility around your work and your skill, by very briefly explaining what you're working on and why it excites you.

Anyone who has met me in person knows that I answer ubiquitous questions like "how are you?" with real answers about what is and isn't working for me that day. It helps build relationships and trust and potentially gives someone a bit more context to understand who I am and what I bring to the table.

Can you think of other opportunities to share your value at work and build the visibility that is essential to grow mid to late careers and leadership?

QUESTION:

I'm curious, which of the 5 scenarios are you going to practice?

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About Dr. Alessandra Wall & Noteworthy

Worldwide, smart, ambitious executive women work three times as hard for a fraction of the recognition they deserve.

Overlooked, under-leveraged, and overworked, their success comes at too high a cost.

I've made it my mission to help women in senior leadership show up with full authority, own their value, grow their influence, and make a meaningful impact without sacrificing everything on the altar of success. I lead this work through Noteworthy, an exclusive executive coaching and consulting firm that advances senior executive women in STEM and finance and supports companies that seek to retain, elevate, and attract them.?

This work has transformed the lives of hundreds of executive women in the US and Europe and changed workplaces for the better at scores of companies ranging in size from agile start-up to Fortune 100.?

• Connect with me on LinkedIn?here.
• Apply for a strategy call?here
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