“Somebody Sat on Me Again”

There were times growing up when I wanted to be invisible. I liked nothing better than to float under the radar. I never got in trouble, but I never got any recognition either. Looking back, I think part of it was my shy childhood personality, and I think part of it was probably the environment where I grew up (a cult is not exactly the nurturing environment that develops individuality).

I was so good at being invisible that when I took the private school’s carpool van, the driver constantly thought he forgot me. Years later, when I watched Princess Diaries for the first time, I was completely able to relate to Mia when someone sat on her:



In complete contrast to my childhood personality, I gave a presentation at work today about how my team could become more visible in our company. This is such an important topic in today’s business world, and one that I am learning about first-hand. For the meeting, I focused on five main methods for gaining visibility:

1. Speak up – volunteer for projects and suggest new ideas


2. Find and share pertinent information – talk or post about an interesting article or blog related to your job


3. Attend optional meetings and events – be seen in the room and ask the presenter a question


4. Join a group or start a trend – attending classes at the company gym had more benefits for me than just getting in shape! I learned how easy it was to make friends when suffering together. LOL


5. Learn how to announce a job well-done – see it as a way to share ideas that were successful and gain insight on other opportunities to build off from an effective project.

The presentation went really well, and I had fun preparing and delivering it. Though, I think the best part was seeing my co-workers getting excited about how much we contribute to the company and how we can gain more recognition for what we do.

In case you did not notice, the shy girl from my childhood has slowly changed. I have been lucky enough to find a job where I can contribute and be a part of something important and relevant. It took me years to find it, but the searching and the jobs/classes in between helped prepare me to no longer be the invisible girl I used to be. :)