Why Bother To Be More Visible?

Being more visible requires work and effort beyond all the other things you’re juggling, so why should you bother?

Most of the people I speak to have great intentions around raising?their visibility, but they never quite seem to find?the time. They're so busy doing a good job of?the other things that need to be done, that they never manage to step back and ask if it's the best use of their skills, or if it's what they really want to do.??

It's a shame because that means they don't manage to tell people?about the great work they're doing, or the amazing skills they have, and so they miss opportunities to do things that use their abilities even better.?

Instead, they find themselves stuck, doing more and more things to help and support others, and miss out on opportunities to make their unique difference to the world.?

If any of?this sounds even vaguely familiar, then I hope you'll read on and find some new inspiration on this topic, and try out the exercises below.?

It can be useful to look at visibility from two perspectives:?

• what benefits can being more visible can bring to you personally?
• what’s the difference that you being more visible could make to other people’s lives?

1. How could increased visibility?benefit you?

Increasing your visibility and putting yourself out there raises the chances of people discovering you.

People knowing more about you and your skills, knowledge and capabilities?can help you to:

• secure a?promotion?or?salary increase
• find a?new role?or career
• get?recognition?for your work
• secure investment?into a project or initiative
• attract the opportunities?that suit?you
• build your?network
• become more?influential.

Unfortunately, the people you want to reach often have short memories and attention spans, so you have to remind them what you can do?more than once.?

The more you show up and tell people?about what you can do and the things that are important to you, the greater chance you have of them paying attention, listening to what you have to say and making the connection between you and the value you can bring.?

Let's be honest, it can take time and effort to see the results of being visible, and sometimes it can feel like everything is disappearing into a black hole. If you're clear on what your aim is and the benefits you want, it will help you to focus your limited time and energy on the things which create results for you... giving you the energy and motivation to do more.?

Take one small step:

Take a moment to get clear on the benefits being more visible?could bring you and find?your personal reason why.?

• Pick one of the items on the list above that you'd like to make progress towards over the next 6-12 months (or if none resonate, add your own).
• Take a few minutes to imagine it happening. What would it look like, how would it feel and what would you be saying to yourself??
• As you imagine it, notice the people (or type of people)?you'd need to know about you and what you do in order to make it happen.?
• Ask yourself what small step you could take towards raising your visibility with them - and go and do it.?

Return to this regularly and keep taking a small step. Nudging people regularly with a consistent message will help remind them that you are there.

2. How could your visibility make a difference to others?

A trait which is common in?women?is that they?put everyone else’s needs before their own.?This means that they find it hard to be more visible when it’s just for their own benefit.

When they find a reason for being more visible which is beyond their personal needs, and can see the difference they are making to other people’s lives, they find a deeper?motivation?to get out there and do it.

Your increased visibility is not just about helping the world discover you, but about how you can inform the world about the experiences and capabilities of people like you.

You become a role model for others and help to show others that they can exist (and even belong) in this world too.

Again, it helps to be as clear as possible on your reasons for being visible, but this time from the perspective of the difference you want to make to the world.

This is why the work I do with many of my clients around visibility starts with helping them get clear on their mission and what’s really important to them in the world.

Take one small step:

Take a moment to ask yourself what's important to you and what difference you'd like to make in the world.?

This is a pretty big question, so don't expect to have a clear?answer all in one go. If you've never done any work around your mission before, then just start by noticing and getting interested in the things that really matter to you throughout your day.?

Ask yourself how being more visible could help you to make more of a difference and reach more people, and notice what comes.?

3. Align The Two Approaches

Both of these approaches can give you reasons to get out there and be more visible, but aligning them can give you even more of a boost.?

When you know that what you're doing fits with your personal goals AND is helping others too, it's amazing how much easier visibility becomes.?

For some, this alignment is easy. For others, it can take a while to explore and understand how they fit together.??There is no right or wrong answer - you are looking for the thing that motivates you and only you know what that is.?

Start out by exploring from the?angle you’re most drawn to, take some action to get out there and raise your visibility, and you’ll find your reasons for getting out there which lead to?opportunities. As you do, check in and notice what you’re learning from the other perspective, and see what it feels right to do.?

Keep on returning to each perspective and you’ll notice that the two will slowly come together.?

You’ll see more and more benefits the more you explore this, and being visible will become something you do without having to think too hard about it.?

If you’d like support with getting more clarity on your reasons to be more visible, come over and share what’s going on and ask questions in my?Facebook?group?for women in tech, or if you’d like a more in-depth exploration you can book a one-off Visibility Strategy session with me at any time using this?link.?

And if you’d like to get these blog posts delivered directly to your inbox on a weekly basis, sign up for my email newsletter?here.