People Who Get Promoted In Every Job They Have Usually Share This One Critical Trait, According To A Career Educator
You may be reluctant to embrace it at first, but it's crucial to being successful.
Stock 4you | Shutterstock Ever notice how some co-workers seem to climb the ranks at work without much effort? It's like they just have a knack for knowing exactly what to do to make themselves seem indispensable to higher-ups. If you've been at your job for a while without a promotion, chances are you're wondering what these professional climbers have that you don't. Well, the trick might be simpler than you realize.
Career educator Hannah Goefft shared that the secret trait that your constantly promoted colleagues share is they are comfortable being a "peacock," which is also known as a person who humble brags.
People who get promoted in every job they have are experts at humblebragging.
Goefft shared that in the three jobs she has had, peacocking has helped her achieve a promotion each time.
She said that according to the pie theory of success, your work performance only accounts for 10% of your career advancement while your image makes up 30% and your exposure accounts for the remaining 60%. Your image is "how people perceive your professional capability," and your exposure is your ability to peacock.
Peacocking ensures that others are aware of "what you can do and the value that you can create."
She recommended a few ways to humblebrag at work without coming off as a"'corporate pick-me," including sharing your achievements as context and using positive statistics on work you have completed.
While some were on board with peacocking to gain a promotion, others were tired of the new games needed to navigate the corporate world.
While Goefft's strategies may prove helpful to many, others found it frustrating. "What if I am exhausted by all the mind games we must play?" one commenter asked. Another commenter questioned similarly, "How do I exit this game?"
The frustration is understandable. Shouldn't the indicator of whether or not you deserve a promotion be based solely on your effort and what you contribute, not office politics?
Well, according to the Harvard Business Review, you can't avoid office politics, and they are a key factor to becoming successful in the workplace. Every single workplace will have them; it's just a matter of what they look like across different organizations. So, yeah, you need to engage in office politics, but is peacocking within this social dynamic really the secret to success?
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Actually, Humblebragging or peacocking might not be as effective as Goefft argued. According to a 2018 study published in the "Journal of Personality and Social Psychology," people who actively humblebrag are doing so as a way to gain respect and admiration from those around them. Unfortunately, researchers found the behavior to have the opposite effect. Instead, humblebraggers were viewed as insincere. Research authors noted, "faced with the choice to (honestly) brag or (deceptively) humblebrag, would-be self-promoters should choose the former — and at least reap the rewards of seeming sincere."
That being said, the behavior clearly worked for Goefft.
Office politics may be dreadful, but you have to engage in them if you want to further your career.
Goefft's strategy of humblebragging is important for a reason best explained by Carla Harris, Senior Client Advisor at Morgan Stanley, "You can’t let your work speak for you; work doesn’t speak."
The unfortunate truth is that just doing the work isn't enough; you must be willing to advocate for yourself if you want to advance your career. Perhaps peacocking is the way to do it. One thing is for certain: If you don't make leadership aware of how much they need you working for them, they won't do it for you.
So, maybe take small steps and start off with peacocking, then you can see where it takes you next — a promotion and a raise, who knows?
Sahlah Syeda is a writer for YourTango who covers entertainment, news, and human interest topics.