Should you sell yourself at work?

Yes?    No?

What do you think the answer is?

Well, let me put it this way…

If you want to move up the corporate ladder and get noticed, yes you should.

Selling yourself simply refers to showing others what you are capable of and promoting your skills and worth to others. In a work context, selling yourself could refer to letting your peers and superiors know about your skills and the reasons why you exist in the company.

If you work for a large company where it is easy to get lost, self promotion becomes even more important if you expect and want to get noticed by your higher officials.

Despite the necessity of being able to sell yourself to others, for many people like myself it does not come naturally. Shyness and lack of self-worth are just a few of the obstacles that can potentially get in the way. To overcome such obstacles, I suggest focusing on the following:

Present Yourself Professionally

Everything you do and say creates an image. You always want to present yourself with professionalism. This includes everything from your appearance to how you speak and how you shake hands. It’s always best to play it safe and follow formal business etiquette. Though things have relaxed quite a bit in most professional environments, formality is never viewed as unprofessional. When attempting to sell yourself, it can be a big added bonus and creates a good impression.

Speak up in meetings.

How many times do you attend a meeting where you say nothing and let others do all the talking? Contributing during meetings is a great way to sell yourself and to get noticed by others. If you have something to say, say it. Not saying anything and not getting involved in meetings can be misconstrued by others as proof of indifference on your part.

Offer to work on a project or task that’s tough for others to manage

Once I worked on a complex project that other project managers had already tried and failed completing. I started working on the project and quickly managed to turn around the project unlike my predecessord. My efforts were recognized which had many benefits including appreciation from my Boss and opportunites to get to know other people in the company across different teams.

Be consistent in producing good work

There is no better way to sell yourself than by consistently completing good work but no one will know it is from you unless you tell them! Ensure that your reports, articles, thesis show that you wrote them, document them with your name on them. Where possible make sure your boss (and their boss if appropriate) sees what you are doing. There is no better way to sell yourself than by consistently completing good work and having a reputation of doing so, remember your reputation will preceed you!

Be Positive

Can you remember the last time you received poor customer service? Did the person look bored, disinterested, wanting to be anywhere but there serving you? Don’t be that person. Positivity and enthusiasm can both be developed, but once again it takes work. Here are a few tips to help you:

• Look for the best in people
• Associate with positive people
• Care deeply about something
• See life as an adventure
• Smile

You must be aware of your own self-worth. This means you believe in yourself, have faith in yourself, and have confidence in yourself.

Be true and real

Selling yourself is about letting others know who you are as a person. For this reason, lies and half-truths are a recipe for disaster later down the line. By telling the truth, you will earn both trust and respect which, in turn, will help you build a great reputation. Not only that, it will make you feel good about yourself. The last thing you want to do is sell yourself out by compromising your values and principles.

Be a professional, follow the rules of Simple Workplace Etiquette…

As we spend a large part of our day at our workplace, it becomes essential to ensure that the time we spend at work is a happy time. How we behave and conduct ourselves in the office speaks a lot about the kind of person we are.

Survival at the workplace depends on many attributes of the employee, one of them being office etiquette.

Here are some simple tips of workplace etiquette that every working professional should follow –

1. Be On Time Everyday - Make a point of reaching the office on time everyday. Set an example for late comers and make a good impression to those around you. Ensure you are on time for all appointments regardless of who arranged them.
2. Dress Appropriately - Not only should you look good, but you should also dress appropriately for the office environment. While getting dressed for work, look at yourself in the mirror and ask yourself if you can go to a party in these clothes after work. If your answer is NO, then rest assured that you are dressed appropriately for work. Always remember to abide by the professional office dress code.
3. Stay Away From Gossip - Most of us believe that it is okay to gossip about each and every colleague in the office. Consider the consequences and be aware that there is no place for gossip mongers in a professional work environment. Even if you are habituated, refrain from gossiping.
4. Respect One Another - Learn to respect your seniors and colleagues. A respectful manner will be noted and can take you a long way.
5. Do Not Disturb Others - You must have team spirit if you want to be successful in your work. Avoid speaking loudly, speaking out of turn, interrupting others, gossiping or talking too much. If you want to be heard, you must be ready to let others speak as well.

Conducting yourself appropriately in the workplace will win appreciation and respect from your colleagues and seniors.

Gone are the days where job seekers had to spend hours upon hours walking around visiting companies and career consultants, searching for job listings in newspapers, calling every employer over the phone for the vacancy for an appointment/interview hoping to get a job. Today, the Internet has changed all that. One of the most effective and efficient ways to look for a job is by using online career portals. Modern online job portals offer comprehensive advice regarding interviews, resume writing, and even career coaching – all at reasonable prices or some services can be found free of charge.

Convenient resources in the job portal

The online job portal offers benefits to both job-seekers and recruiters. Here, we will discuss the benefits to the job seeker/candidates.

The best feature for a jobseeker candidates is the advanced search option. Relevant searches for jobs can be made based on domain, experience, location, type, and a lot more. Another important advantage is that job seekers can save and edit different versions of their resumes by simply completing the questions and then applying for any job with a single click, all without the need for posting the resume again. There are numerous other advantages such as the use of other add-on features like resume builder, resume posting to HR consultants, video resume building, automated job alerts, Candidate Web Page – a personalized Web page for the transitioning employee and so on.

Job-related scam

Using an online job service is very efficient. Instead of having to go to several different sources for career-related information and help, you can find everything you need in one place.

Is The Online Career Site Reputable? We’ve all heard of job-related scams, so it pays to be careful. Scammers create false vacancies and post them with the intention of getting personal information about candidates and later misusing it. If you follow certain practices while using an online career service, you will be secure.

To verify that an online career service will do what they say they will, ask yourself the following questions:

• Is there a ‘help’ function – contact email or otherwise?
• Does the service offer career coaching (it is hard to fake this)?
• Is there sufficient information on the site (a lack of information suggests a scam)?

A reputable online career service offers lots of features and information upfront. A good site will include lots of free articles; resume writing help and career coaching. In addition, they will offer free tools and assessments for job seekers to use on their own before seeking live help. Gone are the days when a career site only allowed job seekers to post their resumes and search available vacancies. Today’s career sites are comprehensive tools, offering complete career management, planning and consulting.