The “Ego-nomics” of Humblebragging
Over the past year a number of former colleagues have reached out to grumble about people using the ‘humblebrag’ in social channels. Ahh, the humblebrag — you know, that 10-year old term for most-mockable self-promotion technique where ersatz modesty serves as a ‘mesh T-shirt’ covering naked ambition. I listened politely to their grumbles — even joined in a couple times if the “h’bragger” in question was insufferable back when we were colleagues — but basically, I think the online ‘humblebrag’ about professional accomplishments is an objectively powerful and effective tactic and deserves our tolerance, even acceptance, as digital marketers. In short, you should humblebrag.
Here’s why: First of all, it will encourage you to be original, rather than ‘robo-share’ existing content. An h'brag on LinkedIn is more likely to appear in your followers feeds and can get you noticed by that desired audience beyond your network — future employers, prospective clients, and desired recruits for your company and team. Sure, there are great ways to build a LinkedIn audience without humblebragging, but a well-placed h’brag that represents your point of view is at least (we hope) the result of your original thought and/or individual accomplishment - so it should deserve more attention ...
Second, self-promotion — the act of ‘showing off’ is a valid, psychologically healthy (well, mostly) act. We humans don’t advance professionally, or personally, unless we impress other people — so why put down the online manifestation of what is essentially normal behavior? Social media has only inflamed this psychological setting, but that doesn’t make it any less true. Sure, the h’brag can at times be a bit ridiculous — recently an old colleague posted about receiving an award which, upon further inspection, was the result of participating in a paid platform for positioning yourself as a thought leader. Nice! I prefer the approach of an h'bragger I noticed recently who wrote “I'll allow myself a humble-brag every other year…" which struck me as a fine compromise between that need to self-aggrandize and looking like an arrogant twit. You should do likewise …
Third, it seems that humble-bragging, like a selection of behaviors that emerged these past two years, is well-suited to the unique dynamics (i.e. white collar WFH) of the pandemic. If you're stuck at a home and inter-personal office kowtowing is out —how can you ensure you are recognized for your contributions by those who you'd normally inform in person? There are no conferences, there's no office drop-by, and staff meetings on Zoom prevent the ‘hey I did this’ or ‘received that’ that scratched that office itch before. Enter the humblebrag — a nice virtual ‘see , I’m getting it done’ for that boss who needs to know these things, or for that former colleague who needs to know that you’re doing better than they are...
Ultimately, and despite some shenanigans around the edges, showing that your career has had a positive impact, and sharing this on a suitable online platform with those who've opted-in to receive these updates—is moderately-healthy for everyone involved. I only ask that you turn down the volume (no spamming) and perhaps ditch the excruciating “humbled to be …| humbled by receiving … ” phrasing (you run the risk of putting off the sort of followers who might actually be impressed by your accomplishment!). Let's face it—nobody is looking to be “humble” when they post online, and to be “humbled” is not to be “humble” anyway. So, to the haters — don’t be miserable and complain about the humble-braggart — go do a bit of humble-bragging yourself. It’ll make you feel good and advance your career, and isn’t that really the point of all this?
