It’s funny the memories that we hang on to. At secondary school, I remember when the history teacher told the class that I “hid my light under a bushel.” Of course, we all sniggered. We were teenagers, and everything sounds like innuendo at that age. He was right though. I’ve never been particularly great at, well, saying if I’ve done something great. It’s far too easy to remember that one mistake you made over the 20 successes, or focus on the minor critique received over a flurry of well dones.
While I was making the decision to launch a freelance career, I started looking at the work I had carried out over the years – including the campaigns I’d run, and the breadth of coverage that had been achieved. This was something I’d not done for a very long time.
Looking for examples for my new website, it felt hard to select just a couple of campaigns that represented me and what I do. Searching through the body of work was nostalgic, in some ways cathartic, and in many ways a boost of much-needed confidence.
Now, I’m the first to admit that I’m not the best at shouting out about my achievements. However, it really surprised me when I started re-looking at my accomplishments, the organisations I’d worked with, and the outcomes from them. Considering I’ve been lucky enough to have had a career working with charities, social enterprises, and organisations that specialise in making a difference, I feel proud to have been instrumental in helping to engage people with those initiatives. I’ve been in a privileged position to be able to share those stories and help to increase the impact.
So, with a little bit of hindsight and the wonderful perspective of distance, I’ve discovered that perhaps I should shout out more about what I’ve achieved. Which got me to thinking, is anyone very good at recognising the enormity of what they do and, in particular, having the confidence to tell other people about it?
Modesty or the inability to shout out about our skills seems to be a common attitude in small businesses, charities, and individuals. We’re never very good at recognising our ‘best’ and telling other people all about it. So perhaps that’s where having an external perspective can help?
Having a second pair of eyes to be strategic with your work can be incredibly beneficial. Someone external to your business can pinpoint your USPs and highlight your work in an engaging way. It might feel strange at first, but perhaps we all just need to be a little bit better at shouting out about our achievements. Because, let’s face it, you’re pretty great.
Image from a campaign I ran for Peterborough Libraries around a decade ago, designed by the talented Lee Mason.
