Feeling "Meh" About Selling Yourself?

Time to read: 1.5 minutes


Today I want to talk about self - promotion. Eeew. Yuck. Ick. Does the idea of promoting yourself turn your stomach?

Here's what I've been feeling lately. In the online business world (Think: "Become a 6-Figure Coach in 3 Days!" "Fix All Your Problems Now!" "Become the Most Awesome Boss in the World in 3 Easy Steps!"), there has been a lot of despicable behavior.

Online marketers sell programs that don't work. They know they don't work and sell them anyway for big bucks. Entrepreneurs sign people up for content and sales launches that they never asked for. (I delete at least one a day.) Every webinar is a pitch. I don't know about you but my Facebook feed is filled with marketing messages offering me everything from younger skin to a fairy godmother. I avoid Facebook and want nothing to do with those marketing tactics.

All of this leaves a business person like me looking for ways to connect authentically with people and get my message out into the world with integrity. For you, it's like figuring out how to promote yourself without sounding like that self-serving jerk who is constantly taking up air time in meetings. Neither of us wants to be associated with the bad behavior we see. So what are you and I to do?

I've given this lots of thought in the past few weeks. There are very good reasons to promote yourself and ways to do it with integrity. Here are 6 of them:

  1. No one is paying attention to you. That's not as harsh as it sounds. It means that people are paying attention to a million other things, and you are not at the top of their "pay attention to this now" list. Knowing this frees you to promote yourself. Stop waiting for other people to notice you.
  2. Your story is compelling. You are interesting. You have done amazing things. You have a point of view. All of that brilliance will get lost if you don't share it.
  3. You can help others. Shift the idea of promoting yourself from one of "how can I look good" to one of "how do I use my gifts and talents to help my company and the people we serve?"
  4. Promoting yourself is generous. You have an obligation to share your brilliance with others. You really do. Holding back serves no one.
  5. Make your promotion about real connection and real conversation. When you authentically connect from a place of interest in and service to others, you will no longer feel like a used car salesman.
  6. Promote yourself to people who are interested in you. Don't just plunk a calendar invite on some busy VP's schedule in order to tell them how wonderful you are. It's a great idea to invite a senior leader to lunch and start by getting curious about their vision, their fears, and how you can support their efforts. Then, once you are on their radar as a human being, you can talk about your accomplishments and desires for your career.

Real connection is always welcome. So, feel free to email me and tell me what you think about self-promotion or the current state of online marketing or anything else you feel like sharing with me. I'm here.

With rebel love,


P.S. I want you to stay at the Corporate Rebel for a good long time. And, I am a fan of choosing where you put your attention. There is always an "unsubscribe" button at the bottom of this newsletter anytime you feel like this content is no longer serving you.

P.P.S. The best way for the Corporate Rebel message to spread is through you. If you love this weekly dose of wisdom and humor, please forward this newsletter to friends. They can join our merry little band of rebels right here.