Part 3 of 3 by Brian Beatty
Your career narrative obviously determines the way people evaluate and respond to you. And I have some rather simple advice: tell a better story.
Tell it on your terms. Be sure to hold their interest. And tell them a story where the outcome, which happens to be your intended result, is clearly the best thing to do.
Perhaps you’re struggling in your career. Maybe you are miscommunicating with your boss. Or perhaps you are blowing the deal with a client. Have you ever fumbled a job interview? They weren’t buying your story or your work or you. “I just don’t buy it.” Ever heard someone say that after hearing a story? Like it or not, your career needs to be bought.
As a coach, it’s my job to listen to clients tell their story and then reflect back how it sounds when they tell it. If we don’t “buy it” in the coaching sessions, we rework it so they can tell it — and sell it — more effectively.
The story is self-promotion, which happens in a big way for some; for most of us, it’s a more subtle, step-by-step process that’s grounded in the details of our everyday work life. This is an ongoing process that pushes at a ceiling as the same old story.
Your story can be told with purpose and leverage. You can move through to the next level.
It’s been said that nothing is perfect in this world — and yet we keep on perfecting our narratives.
Create a story with your coach that your next employer is compelled to buy by engaging them in how your accomplishments merge with what they seek in a candidate.
