Find the One Idea You Want to Be Known For

You don't need to promote yourself more. You need one idea people can't separate from your name.

People ask me all the time how to get noticed at work and advance without falling into the trap of self-promotion. Most are uncomfortable tooting their own horn, and for good reason. Self-promotion rarely builds the kind of reputation that lasts.

What you need is an identity that defines your values, your attitude and the distinct qualities that naturally set you apart. An identity people automatically associate with you, one that is relevant and adds value to conversations, ideas and relationships.

I call it your big idea. It's your trademark, and you live it every day.

What is the big idea that fuels your passion, guides your entrepreneurial spirit at work and delivers on your promise to the people you serve?

Why One Idea Matters More Now

Generic competence is easy to find and easy to forget. What can't be replicated is a point of view that is unmistakably yours, applied with judgment in situations where it matters.

Your reputation also travels without you. It moves through what you consistently contribute, often into rooms you never enter. A clear big idea gives people a simple way to understand, remember and recommend you, even when you are not there to explain yourself.

What a Big Idea Looks Like

I found mine slowly. For 16 years, I built leadership frameworks that worked. Transformation would take hold, and then, gradually and persistently, standardization would pull people back. I heard the same phrase over and over: "Glenn, this is too hard to sustain." The work was right and the frameworks were sound, but sustaining transformation required something I hadn't yet named, the foundational capability my father had been teaching me all along. Conviction. That became my big idea.

Your big idea comes from what you stand for, what you believe in most and where your involvement has the greatest impact. For example, you may stand for continuous improvement: always making things better and pushing the envelope. That single idea can support innovation, high performance, teamwork and change.

That's what makes it big. It influences so many other things, and it connects you with people of influence who begin to notice your talent and the qualities that are rare in you.

Step 1: Run a Focus Group on Yourself

Ask five people in your network who know you well and can be objective to answer these questions:

1. What brand do you most associate me with?
2. What differentiates me most?
3. What do you experience when we spend time together?
4. Based on those answers, what types of people and situations am I meant to serve in my work?
5. What would be the title and subject of my autobiography?

When their responses come in, evaluate them carefully and write down your reactions. Take a week to outline a plan of action based on what you heard and your own point of view. Then bring the five together on a call, share your plan and ask for their final feedback.

Step 2: Write Your Story

People don't reflect enough. Take a couple of weeks to write a ten-page story about your life and career. Reflect on your significance and success, or the lack of it, the things you wish you had done differently and the regrets you still carry.

Then ask yourself: What common threads run through my story? What is the one big idea people would discover about me after reading it? What would be my legacy?

Be patient. It takes time. Once you discover your big idea, you begin seeing things others don't and doing things others won't. You also find the courage to keep going when prudence says quit. It becomes the foundation of your body of work.

Let Your Big Idea Do the Work

Once you know it, three habits let your big idea set you apart without self-promotion:

• Be consistent. Stay focused on the actions your big idea influences. Look for natural ways to bring it into conversations, meetings and how you execute plans.
• Be strategic. People who stand out know the connection points of their big idea. They weave their thinking across projects, conversations and relationships until others' work begins to depend on it.
• Drop the competitor mentality. When you live your big idea consistently, people come to rely on your talent and impact. Focus on delivering the value that is now expected of you instead of worrying about internal rivals. One day you may lead them and teach them how to advance without self-promotion.

Put Your Big Idea on Paper

Choose your five focus group members and send them the questions. Block two hours on your calendar to begin your ten-page story. Write a one-sentence draft of your big idea, even if it's rough, and then watch for the next conversation where that idea could add value. When it comes, bring it.

Time is your most valuable asset, so put it to good use. Leadership is about doing what is right for the organization, the people and the industry you serve. Don't get caught up in the self-promotion noise. Know your big idea, live it and deliver your full potential every day.

Want to explore these ideas further? Learn more about my work on leadership, identity and conviction at www.theglennllopis.com.