Six Steps to Enhance the Visibility of Your Good Work
By Grande Lum
Be seen and be valued with six easy steps to get noticed for the good work you do.
Your ability to be seen for your value within an organization is critical. The reality is that you may be bypassed for important assignments and not receive the evaluations, salary raises and promotions you may deserve if you are not on the decision makers' radar screen. This is especially true in organizations that are large, consensus-based, matrixed and/or contain multiple decision makers. This risk of invisibility is exacerbated with so many people working remote or hybrid over the last three years, which is not changing anytime soon.
On the other hand, no one wants to be seen as spending all of their time self-promoting instead of doing the actual work. And it is a problem for the organization as a whole if everyone is searching for face time and grandstanding with the “important” people rather than focusing on the organization's goals. The challenge and the opportunity is to help others sees your value clearly and doing so with ease and comfort. Here is an approach to get noticed -- without hurting your credibility:
1. Emphasize Your Passions
People notice when you are genuinely excited about what you do. It also can come off less boastful than emphasizing the greatness of your achievements. People dislike someone who is tooting their own horn. However, people are inspired by individuals who care, who are motivated, and who are passionate. Sharing your authenticity within your work life will help you bring more of your full self and get you affirmed for it.
2. Shine the Light on Others
See visibility with a theory of abundance rather than a zero-sum game. By helping others get noticed, you will often find that those people are willing to help you. Do it when you really notice someone else doing a good job, especially when they may have been overlooked. When doing so, be sure to provide specifics and details of what the person did e.g., did additional research that resulted in a new direction, found a partner to collaborate with that will expand the reach of the project, etc.
3. Share Ideas That Help Others
When you share your success stories, do so with the intent of really assisting others. People will less likely ignore what you say if they see how they can learn from what you did. Make the connection between what you did and how others can replicate it so that they and the whole organization will benefit. Give props to others who share ideas especially by letting them know you have adopted an idea of theirs and are implementing it.
4. Help Others Do Your Visibility Work
Enlist your advocates to shine a light on what you do. Share with them your goals and give them the information to share with others. Ask external parties or internal colleagues who were highly appreciative of your work to let others within your organization know about it. Brainstorm directly with those individuals about your challenges of concerns on how others perceive your contributions and how to publicize your successes. There are so many forms of content that can increase your visibility, such as a thoughtful e-mail complimenting what you did, a post on LinkedIn, or a shout-out in a meeting,
5. Make Key Individuals your Champions
Organizations are interdependent by nature and individual and team success are key. Be on the lookout for individuals in and outside your organization that can advocate for you. Look for qualities such as trustworthiness, degree of influence, and credibility with others. For example, your manager is a candidate to play such a role. Your manager's success is tied in to your individual and organizational success. Ask your manager and other possible champions what their challenges are, e.g., what keeps them up at night. Help your champions in new ways and those allies will find ways to help you.
6. Find Role Models
Observe what others do to gain visibility for themselves. In this way, you can find ideas that are comfortable for you personally, especially for those who are modest and self-effacing. Some may prefer using LinkedIn or e-mail rather than sharing in an in-person or videoconference meeting. Also, notice what creative tactics people use to raise their visibility. Visibility has to go hand-in-hand with showing your true skills. You deserve to be evaluated fairly, but people make judgments based on their perception of reality, not just on the facts. I cannot overemphasize that enough. At the same time, I am not advocating smoke and mirrors. I am advocating that you help others clearly see your unique contribution to the organization's success so that they can realize how valuable you truly are.
Frame visibility as a journey rather than an event.
The six steps frame visibility seeking as an ongoing aspect of your work life, rather than an activity focusing on increasing your visibility just before performance reviews, compensation increases, and promotions. Make visibility of your value an enduring journey instead of something you do at specific times of the year. Doing so will increase your comfort and ease with sharing your value and will help you be viewed as a contributor rather than a manipulator. Your success in your career is dependent upon the perceptions of others. Help them see your work with accuracy and appreciation.
© 2022 by Accordence, Inc. All rights reserved. An earlier version of this article appeared in Monster.com