The One Unexpected Thing That Can Fuel Your Career Progress

If you’re on a quest for career development, it’s not unusual to look to external means of improvement. You likely read countless books, listen to the latest podcasts, and watch TED Talks from your favorite leaders.

And while all that knowledge consumption is helpful for growth, you may be overlooking an unexpected yet powerful force a little closer to home: your self-perception.

What fuels your career progress isn’t external; it’s internal. Your self-perception is rooted in the stories you tell yourself. And if you want a better career, you’ll need to make sure they’re helpful, not harmful; here’s how:

First, do a self-talk assessment.

Nothing has a greater impact on your career than the stories you tell yourself. Yet many of us fall victim to an all-too-common practice of self-sabotaging talk without even realizing it.

Perhaps seeds of doubt were planted long ago by a well-intended teacher or parent who encouraged you to pick a “safe” career path or by a jealous colleague threatened by your gifts.

Out of fear of ridicule or rejection, you tell yourself that it’s okay not to go after what you really want. You fill your head with negative stories that prevent you from learning, growing, and stretching your wings. You say things like, I’m not ____ enough, I’m not ready, or I’m just a _____ (whatever you are now), not a ______ (whatever you’d like to be).

Use your awareness to reflect on your self-talk: What detrimental stories are you telling yourself?

Next, create a new story that aligns with your goals.

Once you’ve acknowledged any negative self-talk, allow yourself to explore the positive possibilities. For many, this can prove challenging after years of self-defeating head chatter, but it’s imperative for progress.

To get started, try treating yourself the way you would a trusted, supportive friend. Using self-compassion, experiment with a new story by completing the phrase “I am...” with answers like “enough,” “talented,” and “courageous.”

You must dig deep to determine what you really want. Then, when you have clarity around your goals, you can create a new story that aligns with and supports them.

Finally, change the story you tell to others.

Here’s the thing: The stories you tell yourself also inform the stories you tell others, which impacts their perception of you. Those stories can position you for success or remove you from consideration. Worse, if they don’t give you a fair shake, they’ll diminish your desires and conceal and deprive others of your talents’ highest and best use.

I say this from a place of experience. For years, I told myself I wasn’t talented enough to be a professional writer and that no one would want to hire me, let alone have any interest in reading my work. So instead, I moved through my professional life on the periphery, in close proximity to creativity but never fully stepping into what I really wanted.

But when I told myself I was a writer, everything changed.

Instead of hiding from my story, I embraced it. I told other people my story, and to my surprise and delight, they responded positively. Sharing our stories help others know, like, and trust us, making it easy for them to understand better who we are and the value we bring. Because once you have your story, it changes everything, including how others perceive, pay, and promote you.

Remember, no one will believe in you until you believe in yourself first. Words have power, and the stories we tell ourselves are the most important words we speak. Make sure that they’re positive, aligned with your goals, and mirror what you tell others.

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