Editor's note: This story was featured in the summer 2025 issue of ASU Thrive.
By May Busch
Some people seem to be natural at self-promotion, while others struggle with talking about their achievements. Regardless of whether self-promotion feels natural, your career advancement depends on senior managers understanding your skill set and value. When you do not call attention to your achievements, you risk being overlooked, stalling your career.
To help you, consider using these five strategies for communicating your successes in a compelling yet authentic way.
1. Make the accomplishment the preamble to a recommendation
In conversations with senior leaders, instead of directly stating your achievements, incorporate them into a broader dialogue. Use them as a way to propose opportunities for progress.
For example, if your accomplishment is closing a big project, you might say, “Now that we’ve successfully delivered on the $1 million project, I would like to discuss how we can leverage this success to expand into new markets.”
This approach positions you as a strategic thinker who helps drive the organization’s success.
Get more career tips
Get additional advice on driving your career forward at maybusch.com.
2. Invite people to see you in action
Sometimes it’s easier to show than to tell. Invite senior leaders to observe you at your best — in situations such as leading a meeting, moderating a panel or presenting to a client.
I discovered this strategy when I asked my boss’ boss, John, to a key meeting with a senior client. Up until then, he had only seen me in my worst setting — internal meetings where I struggled to speak up. But with clients, I was at my best.
After the meeting, John called to say, “May, that was the best meeting I’ve ever been to. If I were a client, I would want you as my banker.” That invitation changed how he saw my capabilities and opened new opportunities.
3. Share successes along the way
You don’t need to wait for a project’s completion to formalize ways to share your progress. Regularly updating stakeholders on small wins—via a quick email, a team update or a bullet-point summary — keeps your work visible and brings people along on the journey to an achievement that may take months.
This approach keeps your achievements top of mind and helps you stay aligned with leadership.
4. Weave successes into an ‘elevator pitch’ story
Storytelling is one of the oldest ways to connect with others and make an impression. Try framing your accomplishment as a simple narrative that can be given as a short statement: Explain the challenge, describe your approach and highlight the outcome.
For example: “We noticed customer complaints rose by 30%. I led a cross-departmental effort to streamline onboarding, reducing complaints by 25% in six months. This not only improved customer satisfaction but also boosted team morale.”
Short stories like this make your achievements memorable and showcase your problem-solving skills.
5. Create a formal case study
A case study is a concise one-pager that outlines a challenge you faced, the actions you took and the results you achieved.
You can share it as a document or use it in a presentation.
If your work led to streamlined processes or boosted revenue, a case study helps share the details in a way that allows others to replicate the success, expanding opportunities for your organization while highlighting your contributions.
Reframing self-promotion
Remember, sharing your accomplishments is not about being self-serving. Keeping key stakeholders updated on your contributions is your responsibility.
By using these strategies to communicate your accomplishments, you can inspire others, elevate your team and open doors for new opportunities.
Which strategy will you try first?
About the author
May Busch, a former COO of Morgan Stanley Europe, is now an executive coach, speaker, advisor, author and executive-in-residence in ASU’s Office of the President.
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