Talking about your achievements — in the Asian culture

Asians are known to be modest and less open to talking about their achievements and accomplishments in business. We don’t like to shout it from the mountain-tops about our achievements or even if we did, we don’t usually race to be the first.

Sometimes, Asians also will downplay their achievements, eg, “I don’t think I contributed much in this matter or project”.

Self-promotion and discussing achievements in public is not the norm in the Asian culture; however, in a global setting, Asians may need to adjust their approach.

Previously, when I worked with lawyers and business leaders on profiling themselves in proposals and directory rankings, I often had to coax them to talk about the significance of their contribution and how the client benefitted. Being able to articulate their contributions and benefits to the client is critical if they want to stand out from the competition. 

Why does it matter

For lawyers and professional services leaders, their main selling point is the experience gained from the matters and projects they have worked on. Significant wins, developments and achievements should be shared with their colleagues and clients on a timely basis. By doing so, there is a higher chance of being recommended and clients are more likely to remember you.

Compelling proposals: When you are preparing proposals and capability statements, you should feature relevant and significant experience to draw the attention of the client — make sure this is adequately articulated to demonstrate your experience.

Standout in rankings and awards: For legal or professional services directory rankings and awards, if you are not articulating your achievements and contributions, how are you going to be recognised for your efforts?

Attract talent: If you are growing your firm, you would want to attract the best talent. How will you do that if you are not highlighting your firm’s achievements and what you do? 

The Asian way of self-promotion

Focus on how the client benefitted from your contributions, eg, tell people about the role you played and how that helped the client achieve the desired outcome. 

Talking about your achievements on social media is less daunting - you can write it in  your own words but remember to also give credit to the team if others were involved.

When talking about your achievements, always remember to back it up with facts — the work will speak for itself.