Early in my career, I assumed good work would speak for itself. It didn’t. I watched others gain visibility and recognition while I stayed behind the scenes. The truth is: you often need to teach your boss how to advocate for your work—and make it easy for them to do it.
In an ideal world, your boss would proactively champion your contributions. But in reality, they’re juggling competing priorities, and your visibility might not always be one of them. If you want their support—whether that’s a shoutout, introduction, or promotion—you need to take the lead.
- Frame the win for them:
Connect your request to their goals. Ask: “How does this help them look good or meet a target?” Position your ask as a shared win. - Be specific.
Identify where and how they can advocate—e.g., “Could you mention this success in Monday’s team meeting?” or “Would you be willing to flag this idea to [Stakeholder]?” - Provide talking points:
Make it effortless. Draft a short summary or email they can copy and paste. You control the message and make it friction-free. - Send a weekly win email:
Regular updates help them remember your contributions. Include achievements, challenges overcome, and upcoming milestones.
Don’t wait for validation—engineer it – basically make it happen . Influencing upward is a career skill worth mastering. Your work deserves to be seen and celebrated. And sometimes, your boss just needs a little help helping you.
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