MASTER THE ART OF SELLING YOURSELF.

One of the biggest challenges in life is the ability to sell yourself. Another major challenge of people is an inability to separate who they truly are from who they are as a product. There’s you — imperfect, conflicted, fallible — and then there’s the “you” you’re selling — awesome, cool, superhuman.

You Don’t sell yourself well? Think of “you” as a superhero version of yourself. Make a list of your best qualities. Dress the way SuperYou would dress. Talk the way SuperYou would talk. Be SuperYou


I always advise you to sell yourself effectively in your application forms,business venture,interviews and Life general but this can feel uncomfortable and unnatural if you’re naturally self-effacing. In fact, modest people often downplay their abilities and sometimes don’t even mention them to recruiters, either because they don’t recognise them as anything
special or because they feel that they would be boasting.

But by doing so they’re not giving recruiters a reason to give them a job. So, if you are naturally modest, here’s how to get past
your inhibitions and sell yourself.


- Get to know your own strengths

The first step to selling yourself is to recognise that you have skills and strengths worth talking about. Start by looking at the different activities that make up your life and make a list of thevskills you used.

Also make a list on top of that of any extra
qualifications or courses you might have
attended. First Aid qualifications or IT courses are valued by employers.
It’s always good to ask friends, family, your
boss (old or new) and the tutors who know you best what they think you’re good at.


- Switch your thinking

If you’re worried about over-selling yourself or coming across as arrogant, you have to change your thinking. What you are doing in your interview isn’t boasting; you are simply providing recruiters with evidence that you are the right person for the job.

Recruiters aren’t mind readers. Unless you tell them about your skills and highlight what you are best at, they won’t know – and will probably hire someone
else. So approach an application or an interview with the attitude that you are going to tell them about all of the skills that are relevant to the positionbto help them make the best decision. Self-help books call this switch in thinking ‘reframing the
situation’. We just call it common sense.


- Say you’re good without actually saying you’re good

If you really aren’t comfortable saying ‘I’m good at managing my time’ you could talk about times when you managed your time well, using the CAR technique (describe the Circumstances, your Actions and the Results). For example: ‘There have been times when I have had to manage my time carefully to get things done. In this example, the candidate isn’t explicitly saying they’re good at time management, but it’s clear that they are.

You can also refer to feedback and impress your interviewer by saying something along the lines of ‘My manager complimented me on my time management skills’ (as long as it’s true, of course). Check the previous article on how to be a better sales person.