Be Visible to the Right People

Have you ever put in the work, made sure people saw it, and still felt overlooked when the next opportunity came around?

Perhaps you can relate: you showed up to every meeting and you raised your hand at the company off-site. Maybe you made sure your name comes up in the "quick syncs." And yet, somehow, it never quite lands with the people who matter most.

Here's what I've come to realize: visibility to everyone is exhausting but visibility to the right people is strategic. 

I'll walk you through how to practice this, starting this week.

Before your next status update, off-site comment, or "quick sync," pause and ask yourself: is this person one of the few whose confidence in me actually decides what happens next?

Most of the time, the honest answer is "no." That tells you exactly where to stop spending energy.

The people who do decide are your Elevation Allies. They're senior leaders, cross-functional executives and "influencers" who have input on your next level. It's a short list, and purposefully so.

A few guidelines as you build your list of Elevation Allies:

Reflect about these decision-makers - who are they? And who among them are actually in the conversation when your career is discussed?

These people care about  revenue growth, profitability, strategic outcomes, value creation, and risk. When you communicate at that level, you become part of their world.

It's tempting to think more visibility is always the answer, but you didn't need more visibility. You needed to target the people who'll open the doors for you.

Think about the last time you shared a win. Chances are, you told the whole team. That's not necessarily wrong, but it's not real leverage. The higher leverage move is translating that same win for one of your Elevation Allies. 

For example, instead of "I worked non-stop on this." 

try "I uncovered a $30 million valuation gap, and the deal was repriced."

This week, I encourage you to write down your three to five Elevation Allies. Then, before you spend another ounce of visibility energy, reflect on how you're going to communicate with them strategically. 

Some of what you've been doing this year was never going to reach the people who matter most. That's okay. Now you can put that energy where it counts.

Remember, when you communicate strategically, you become part of their world.

I created a video where I walk you through the 4 T's of Strategic Visibility - four moves that make your impact visible to the people who decide. Watch it here: