Dare to Sell Yourself?
22 April 2015
Read by 2620 persons
Wanting to advance in your career and life is perfectly natural. Wanting to take on new challenges is a sign of determination, courage and ambition.
For my part, after a dozen years teaching adolescents, I enjoyed managing adults. Then, a few years later, I took training that led me to coach leaders.
To advance in your career, the first challenge is often self-promotion before a selection committee.
You will need confidence, boldness and know-how to dare to sell yourself.
During the preparation process and when interviewing, many people experience anxiety and performance stress. Not surprisingly, they perform below their capacity.
You probably know that stress is counterproductive. It causes a contraction of your neural circuits, thus limiting your ability to access all your intelligence. But you may not be able to control it.
One reason may be that you are hesitant to speak well of yourself.
"I know I need to sell myself if I want to get this promotion, but I don't like to brag. Plus, it stresses me out to interview. However, I feel ready to take on new challenges and more responsibilities. If I don't dare to present myself, I will be frustrated."
These are the kinds of comments I hear at the beginning when someone consults me to prepare for and succeed in their next selection interview to get a job or advance their career.
For many people, self-promotion is a big challenge. It is particularly difficult if you are not used to being assertive.
To advance within your organization, you need others to know who you are and what you are capable of. You can't let them guess or hope that someone else will praise you to those who will decide on your advancement.
This means you need to gain the confidence to promote yourself powerfully, without false humility. When considering a promotion, you need to have a keen awareness of your value, because this will show through during the process, especially during the selection interview.
You have probably experienced this: when a person enters a room, we can feel the energy they emit.
Many times, I have been on selection committees. I can assure you that members of such a committee are very attentive to what the person presenting before them conveys. They are interested in your skills, of course, but they are also concerned about the kind of person you are and the impact you will have on the people you will work with.
So why not prepare accordingly? Here are three concrete actions you can take immediately to increase your sense of power and personal competence:
1) Make a list of your strengths, talents, abilities, and strong points, and take pleasure in demonstrating them, not through bragging, but by embodying one of these qualities each day in the presence of the people you work with and even at home.
2) Speak up at every meeting or public gathering. This way you become familiar with being the center of attention (which you will be during your selection committee appearance) and others will learn to appreciate your knowledge and contribution.
3) Dare to proudly share your successes, results, and accomplishments. Invite others to do the same. You will see how much this makes people shine and raises the energy in a group. You will be an empowerment agent, which makes you an excellent candidate for a management position.
By using these suggestions, you will step outside your comfort zone. This is a good way to build confidence to feel at ease and "perform" to your abilities before the selection committee!
To your success!
Aline
http://alinetardif.com
Posted online April 22, 2015.
For my part, after a dozen years teaching adolescents, I enjoyed managing adults. Then, a few years later, I took training that led me to coach leaders.
To advance in your career, the first challenge is often self-promotion before a selection committee.
You will need confidence, boldness and know-how to dare to sell yourself.
During the preparation process and when interviewing, many people experience anxiety and performance stress. Not surprisingly, they perform below their capacity.
You probably know that stress is counterproductive. It causes a contraction of your neural circuits, thus limiting your ability to access all your intelligence. But you may not be able to control it.
One reason may be that you are hesitant to speak well of yourself.
"I know I need to sell myself if I want to get this promotion, but I don't like to brag. Plus, it stresses me out to interview. However, I feel ready to take on new challenges and more responsibilities. If I don't dare to present myself, I will be frustrated."
These are the kinds of comments I hear at the beginning when someone consults me to prepare for and succeed in their next selection interview to get a job or advance their career.
For many people, self-promotion is a big challenge. It is particularly difficult if you are not used to being assertive.
To advance within your organization, you need others to know who you are and what you are capable of. You can't let them guess or hope that someone else will praise you to those who will decide on your advancement.
This means you need to gain the confidence to promote yourself powerfully, without false humility. When considering a promotion, you need to have a keen awareness of your value, because this will show through during the process, especially during the selection interview.
You have probably experienced this: when a person enters a room, we can feel the energy they emit.
Many times, I have been on selection committees. I can assure you that members of such a committee are very attentive to what the person presenting before them conveys. They are interested in your skills, of course, but they are also concerned about the kind of person you are and the impact you will have on the people you will work with.
So why not prepare accordingly? Here are three concrete actions you can take immediately to increase your sense of power and personal competence:
1) Make a list of your strengths, talents, abilities, and strong points, and take pleasure in demonstrating them, not through bragging, but by embodying one of these qualities each day in the presence of the people you work with and even at home.
2) Speak up at every meeting or public gathering. This way you become familiar with being the center of attention (which you will be during your selection committee appearance) and others will learn to appreciate your knowledge and contribution.
3) Dare to proudly share your successes, results, and accomplishments. Invite others to do the same. You will see how much this makes people shine and raises the energy in a group. You will be an empowerment agent, which makes you an excellent candidate for a management position.
By using these suggestions, you will step outside your comfort zone. This is a good way to build confidence to feel at ease and "perform" to your abilities before the selection committee!
To your success!
Aline
http://alinetardif.com
Posted online April 22, 2015.
