The Promotion That Went to Someone Else

Are others taking your career achievement opportunities - what you need is an authentic voice to succeed and get noticed.

I had coffee last week with a director who'd just been passed over for a role she was born to do. Brilliant track record. Respected by her team. Delivered a transformation program that saved her organisation millions.

The feedback? "We weren't sure you were ready for this level."

The Director had assumed her work would speak for itself. It did speak - just not to the right people.

I've worked alongside over 500 senior leaders navigating challenges like this. Exceptional performers who believe visibility is vanity, that putting yourself forward is unseemly. They stay quiet. Less capable colleagues step confidently into roles they were built for.

The people who get opportunities aren't always the best at the work. They're the best at making their work visible in ways that matter.

When you find self-promotion awkward, there's an art to this. It's about translating what you do into a narrative of impact that lands with the people making decisions about your future.

Your work deserves to be seen, and communicators call this #personal_branding. Who needs to see it, and what do they need to understand about it?

If you're brilliant at what you do but invisible where it counts, let's talk.

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