5 ways to promote yourself and attract opportunities
Read time: 5 minutes
Self-promotion gets a bad reputation, but my personal belief, controversial as it may be, is that we should all be promoting ourselves every day.
The fact is, if you’re not promoting yourself online in some way, you’re missing out on opportunities to grow your network, audience, and business.
And I’ve seen the impact it can have on your career and trajectory.
For the last year, I’ve shared my beliefs and experiences in the form of:
- The wins
- The failures
- My knowledge
- My observations
- The lessons learned
- My thoughts & ideas
- My fundamental beliefs
- The things I wish I’d known
- My story & personal experiences
- Things I’d do differently if starting over
And it’s definitely not easy; in fact, it’s daunting, labour-intensive, and can feel self-indulgent and a bit cringeworthy.
But when you boil it down, self-promotion isn’t about being self-absorbed or flashy. It’s about sharing your values, your work, and your perspectives.
People can’t listen to you, follow you, buy from you, or collaborate with you if they don’t know you exist.
And the reality is that with such crowded social platforms, bystanders go unnoticed.
Also, people’s reactions may surprise you.
When you share content, I’ve learned that people either:
- Love you
- Dislike you
- Want to join you
- Follow you for more
- Ignore you completely
Personally, the moment I stepped out of the shadows and started sharing more — showcasing what I’m doing and why it matters — people started paying attention and asking me questions.
And when people pay attention, you have the chance to build rapport and create opportunity.
So the question is what does effective self-promotion look like?
Here are some tips that helped me get started:
1. Share your personal story and journey
When you share your journey — including the messy middle, the pivots, and the U-turns — people connect with you on a human level.
I’ve shared a lot about my transition from full-time employment to the startup space, including the fear, excitement, and uncertainty, and have always been blown away by the support and engagement.
It makes you realise that humans really do love to connect and see themselves in others.
2. Educate people authentically on something real
Education is probably the least “salesy” form of self-promotion: you’re giving value first, which is always a safe bet.
Whenever I break down frameworks, share actionable tips, or give step-by-step advice, it often gets shared widely. It positions me as an expert and attracts people who want to go deeper.
3. Share your work in progress ("build in public")
I’ve seen so many people do this, and it works well. When you share your wins, your setbacks, and what you're learning along the way, as it happens, it invites people into your process.
It creates discussion and builds an audience who may then become paying customers because they feel invested from the start, and have developed a sense of loyalty.
4. Give opinions on controversial topics
I always admire people who aren’t afraid to share their take on something controversial! I’m not the best at this one, but when I read others’ takes, I always come away feeling I’ve learnt more about them, their values, and what they believe in.
It sparks engagement and visibility, which often leads to podcast and speaking invitations. If you can avoid rage-bait, and be open to dialogue, it’s usually a win-win.
5. Spotlight others and create social proof
I’ve learnt this year that promoting others can actually promote you. Whenever I highlight others’ wins or peers doing great work, it shows the type of people I’m associated with and tends to attract similar people.
Similarly, sharing and celebrating client or customer wins can bring inbound interest from people who want similar results. Social proof is powerful when it’s authentic.
In summary
Self-promotion isn’t about who’s shouting the loudest, it’s about consistency, honesty, and providing value. If you approach it as helping your audience see what you have to offer, you’ll naturally attract the right opportunities.
If you don't yet have a strong personal brand, consider starting to build one on LinkedIn — there’s still huge opportunity to grow an audience who cares about what you have to say!
Hope that helps!
Speak soon,
Dupé
PS: Whenever you're ready, feel free to enquire about working together: Get guidance on how to be more visible and grow your brand. Whether you need 1:1 coaching or ready-to-post content, hit reply and let’s chat!
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