“The toughest sale you will ever make is to sell yourself on how good you really are. ” – Richard Elmes
Not believing in yourself, your skills and your talents will effect your career more than any other factor. And many people fall victim to the “Justa Syndrome,” where they feel that they are justa technician, justa clerk, justa manager etc. By discounting the value we bring to our organizations we are not only doing ourselves a disservice, but we are cheating our company as well.
So how can you raise our self-esteem and avoid this affliction?
1. Discover where you fit:
Every position makes a difference to the success of the organization. If it didn’t the position wouldn’t exist. Discovering who relies on you, whether it is your clients or other employees, will help you realize that what you do matters.
2. Determine what your Distinctive Values are: What are the distinctive skills, talents and attributes? What do you do better than other people? Find out what that those are so you can focus on your strengths rather than on your growth points. Enhancing your strengths and minimizing you weaknesses, will not only help you stand out, but it will also help you feel better about yourself.
3. Define your personal Values:
Defining what you believe and what you are willing to do or not do in order to get what you want and still be able to look yourself in the mirror and like who you see is a key factor to your self-esteem. Because if you cross that line and go against your values a small piece of yourself deep within your soul dies. And you can’t ever get that back. And unfortunately sometimes you may be asked to do something that violates your personal values and if you know what they are with crystal clarity, you can stand your ground and say, ‘no’. Because you know the repercussions of crossing that line, are far worse than the repercussions of saying no.
4. Practice continuous attitude maintenance
Just like the food we take into our body effects our physical health, what we take into our mind effects our mental health. Be careful to take in more positive messages than negative messages. One of biggest contributors to this negative ingestion is your own self-talk. The person you will listen to the most in your life is you. So be gentle with yourself and realize that we are all flawed in one way or another. You don’t have to be perfect. I know many people who have the perception that everyone else has it all figured out. This simply is not true. Keeping a record of your successes in a journal is another good way to give your esteem a much needed boost when you are down.
5. Build your Network
The key to networking success is not to ask what your network can do for you, instead ask what you can do for your network. Taking the attitude of helping others without the thought of what you will get in return will also separate you from the crowd, impress others and help you feel good in the process. The rewards of taking this approach far outweigh the I’ll scratch your back only if you scratch mine approach.
6. Discover your bosses Love Language:
Connecting is the key to effective communication. By discovering your bosses Love Language or preferred communication style, you will connect more often. The rewards will be fewer misunderstandings and a better relationship.
7. Discover the critical 20% of your job:
20 % of your efforts will drive 80% of your results. Discovering which 4 or 5 critical tasks are that 20%, and then delivering on those tasks will not only help you succeed in your job, but it will also get noticed by your peers and your superiors.
By using these tips you will not only be helping you sell yourself on how good you are, but you will be selling other on that fact as well.
Insights by Richard Elmes 