A Little Bit Of Bragging Goes A Long Way

It is all promotion, all the time. If you want to succeed you cannot be a shrinking violet.

By Danielle Dowling — Written on Oct 21, 2012

You have poured:
blood
sweat
tears
into your livelihood

Nothing more. Nothing less.

Now imagine you are one room away from a meeting with your dream agent/ national manager/casting director/network executive/magazine editor.

Notice how you’re feeling about your art, product, service, business or creative acumen. Maybe a tidal wave of anxiety floods your heart + head. Maybe you feel radically self-affirmed,
glowing,
or like you want to throw up.

Either way are you ready to brag about your accomplishments with such panache + dedication that they’ll be asking for more?

Or are you afraid that people will think less of you?
That you will appear too full of yourself, too cocky, too big for your britches? That you’ll be less than the quintessential professional if you’re trotting around, tooting your own horn?

Truth?
That mindset is bullshit.

You are, in fact, your own walking billboard.
There is no moment where you are NOT promoting yourself.

From how you interact with the cabbie and Starbucks barista to the hand-written thank you notes you mail to your clients.
From the way you respond to Twitter + Facebook messages, to how you introduce yourself + business at a networking event later that evening.

It is all promotion, all the time.

If you want to succeed you cannot be a shrinking violet. No one wants to brag or boast about their accomplishments but the truth is: if you want people to listen you have to give them a reason to do so.

There are just too many other stories around competing for airtime.

“No one knows who you are or why you are important.
They don’t know what you care about or what your causes are.
And the only way they discover this is if you tell them directly.”
-Gala Darling

I sell myself every. damn. day.

I sell myself on Facebook, Twitter, and here with you.
I brag about myself to the lady I met at the frame shop last Sunday afternoon.
I have a radio gig this Wednesday with Lisa Steadman on Rock Star
Radio – and you sure as hell know I’ll be tweeting about that.

Know instinctively that if you can’t get excited about your accomplishments– no one will. If you’re not passionate about your product or service you shouldn’t be selling it in the first place.

Period.

Of course, I’m not telling you to be a sleaze ball! You need to promote the Brand of You.

“Just don’t be me-first. Roll as many logs to others as you do back to yourself. Promote those deserving friends too humble to promote themselves and you’ll be tending the entire social-network ecosystem.” –Even Ratliff

Know undeniably that what you are offering the world is something you unreservedly believe in. Maintain that “You are anchored with integrity to purpose and meaning.” -Danielle Laporte

Your job is to show up as fully you, enthusiasm and all and let the right clients make up their mind about you. The ones that don’t resonate will go away + you won’t even have to send them packing.