Why Women Need to Brag More at Work (and How to Brag Better!)
“When you lift up women, you lift up humanity.” — Melinda Gates
More than ever, the world is waking up to the power of women leaders. This past year, along with the challenges of coronavirus, statistics emerged showing how female-led countries responded better to the pandemic…but can you name any of them? Did you hear them taking credit for their successes in the handling of this unprecedented global event?
It’s no new knowledge that women are expected to excel juggling careers and accomplish the lion’s share of domestic responsibilities in most cases. It’s as though women constantly achieving is a norm or expectation and it’s ‘unbecoming’ to talk about the things you’ve worked hard behind the scenes to bring about.
Despite the amazing things women in business continue to achieve, we are notorious for not bragging enough at work. Instead of shyness, it’s time to call this problem by it’s real name; self-limiting.
The problem is, that self-promotion is an essential leadership skill, and vital for career progression.
With a new world on the horizon from the reset of COVID-19, there’s no better time for women to start shouting about our successes.
Close the Gap
Glass ceilings, gender-pay gap… vague terms aside, a recent Harvard study showed men rating their own performance 33% higher than equally-performing women.
One of the common factors used in performance reviews is self-awareness, classically a boss will ask you how you think you’ve been working that year. With the inflated self-perspective of male colleagues from our previously largely male-dominated workplaces, we have to actively fill that space.
(On a test, men rated themselves an average of 61 out of 100 while women only rated themselves a 46 out of 100. This self-promotion paid off: workers rating their performance higher on the 0 to 100 scale were more likely to get hired and offered higher pay.)
And as women, we can do it even better. We already know women-led organizations return 90% of their investments back into their local communities—and that’s according to the UN!
A note for anyone in hiring positions:
Employers and recruiters, or anyone depending on self-promotion to make hiring, promotion, salary and bonus decisions should factor in this disparity between how women perceive their work and their actual achievements. Ask detailed, researched questions about their active experience and projects, rather than testing according to bragging skill!
The Rise of Remote Work
A major dilemma about the rise in remote work is a potential lack of visibility around achievements and milestones.
Compound this with the deficit women already have in self-promotion, and you realize why we need to empower female coworkers, employees and vendors, now.
Prioritize it in your remote team and when working from home. Build it into your schedule. Practice it like an elevator pitch. Write down 3 things you’re grateful for at the end of each day to fight the negativity bias, a primal leftover that makes us remember negative experiences more easily than positives.
Grab a Brag Buddy
Having a buddy big you up can remove some of the awkwardness around talking about your accomplishments, just like a LinkedIn Recommendation! Also known as a ‘visibility buddy’, they can even help reduce bias in your workforce.
It’s always easier to brag about a friend than it is about yourself, and it shows appreciation for your workforce and colleagues too – at a time many need it most.
Encourage your team to try it in meetings, or ask questions like “Is there anything a colleague has done this week you were impressed by?” (And try to do this by video or IM, without adding to the stress of email streams). Best of all, lead by example. Big up a buddy and get bragging!
Final words
March is the month of women, with International Women’s Day, Women’s History Month and the greening of Spring.
What are you proud of bringing into the world this week? There’s no better time to talk about it!!
Written for Empowering a Billion Women, March 16 2021
