Effective Communication: How to Promote Yourself at Work

It is not easy to promote yourself. You have made a positive contribution for the benefit of the company. But, your bosses were not around to witness the situation. Yet, you want them to know so that your efforts are recognized and they remember you for the next job promotion. If you make blatant loud claims, people may think of you as a show-off. Yet, some people do it so effortlessly and get recognized for the next job promotion.

How do you impress your bosses and co-workers so that they think well of you and recognize your contributions? Is it possible to do so without being ostracized? Yes, you can.

Here are some practical suggestions:

Tell An Interesting Story
Report like a journalist. Describe what happened rather than boasting loudly and focusing on you. Give details of how things happen from A to Z, highlighting the interesting angle. It doesn’t have to be a unique story about aliens falling from the sky. An interesting but ordinary daily encounter can be a good starting point for your story. Because it involves you, people will remember what you contributed.

Add Some Light Humor
Interject some light humor. Nothing beats a funny story to draw attention. If it is funny, people will hear you out. A witty person is often seen as more intelligent. It doesn’t have to be a 5-Star joke that you memorize from some bestseller joke book. It can be a simple statement of how unexpectedly someone behaved or how different a situation turned out. Laughter can bring people together. Laughter also lightens the atmosphere.

Bad Vs Good. Before Vs After
Describe the situation before you solved the problem. How bad it was, and how good it is after you have resolved the matter. It gives magnitude towards the difference you have made to the situation. Compare the worse (negative) that it was and how well (positive) it turned out after you have intervened.

What Is Your Reason
Try not to make stand-alone statements. Support your statements. Add a reason why you say or do something. When people understand why you’re doing something, they will tend to be more acceptable to what you say.

Who Else Agrees With You
Who else is in agreement with you? When you have support from other people, it will tone down people’s (your listeners) inherent defensive nature to critically evaluate your statements. People now are not dealing with you alone. They are dealing with you and a few other people who happen to share the same opinion. With strong support, your statements will go a long way.

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Make a grunt as if to say, "If you don't get it now, you'll be a loser." Then say, "You mean you don't know about the big benefits? Everyone knows already"

When people question why you do things when you are just doing the normal run of the mill things, like they are nosy or super-imposing and you are annoyed, then tell them what they are missing if they don't do the same as you are doing. It will worry them and make them run for the money (with their mouth) for their unwanted curiosity, because they now have to quickly sprint to find out (or beat themselves) for what they have been missing for doing nothing.

Yes, sometimes a grunt and a horrified facial expression speaks more than a thousand words. 

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