This week…

A client of mine who has been an employee of a large institution for some time headhunted by a competitor, and the institution they had been working at, despite being informed of the competing offer, simply ignores it…and then is shocked when my client hands in their notice. My client feels unseen by the organisation to which they gave their loyalty.

A friend, a genius in her field, through not clearly naming her value up front, is completely exploited by the company she have done several years of serious heavy lifting for.

Someone who really has no clue, being paid silly money, largely because he is a master at blowing his own trumpet in a way that lands for his potential clients.

Every day I see really good people… skilled people, being stepped over, exploited, ignored….because they made an assumption, as I have in my past, that my work will stand on its own legs and will speak for itself.

In a world filled with people shouting about their work, our voices are so easily drowned out with all the others. Even worse, if we assume that not saying anything, and having our work be the story, will attract attention. In rare cases it will…

We have to name our value. We have to be precise. We cannot assume. We have to place our selves and our work and value firmly in the conversation from the start. We have to assume, sadly, that almost everyone will exploit us if we do not. And love to bits the people who do not exploit, but see you fully in your value and honour it.

And in our value we have to be unforgettable. Because forgettable is just more noise.

Photo credit: Rubbertoe (Robert Batina) via Compfight