Brag!: The Art of Tooting Your Own Horn without Blowing It

by Peggy Klaus

Brag! is a whip smart tool kit--one that tampers with our beliefs about humility by defining bragging as an act of authenticity. Peggy Klaus, a Fortune 500 communication coach, sharpened her strategies in Hollywood, "the bragging capitol of the world," where she learned the art of tooting your horn, without blowing it. "To brag is to talk about your best self with pride and passion in a conversational manner." explains Klaus. She includes a snappy "Bragging Dictionary" with highly practical techniques including instructions for the "Bragalogue," a brief memorable elevator pitch and a "Brag bag," the collection of your greatest hits with colorful details that can be easily accessed.

Bragging rights and responsibilities are surveyed in a variety of situations: the co-worker who takes credit, techno-bragging online, performance reviews, job interviews and working a room. Klaus peppers her points with examples from her coaching sessions and seminars, sample dialogues and self-assessments. Although several examples may seem too studied, Klaus has much to brag about. This is a book that will change the way you think about the slippery skill of selling yourself. --Barbara Mackoff

Genres: Business, Nonfiction, Self Help, Professional Development, Leadership, Psychology, Personal Development

224 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[Kressel Housman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of the books recommended in Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office, and it's right along the same lines, but it focuses specifically on self-promotion. It might just as easily have been called How to Talk So Employers Will Listen and is full of "bragologues" to give you the gist. Here are the keys to a good bragologue: (1) tell it like a story (2) be enthusiastic about the subject and (3) sprinkle in your contribution to it along the way.

Here's my sample bragologue: "I never thought of myself as a numbers/accounting person; I was decidedly a word person. But my most challenging responsibility in my present job is to prepare estate tax returns. I was thrown into it, sink or swim, and not only did I learn to swim, I actually enjoy it. I like taking all those chaotic financial records the clients provide and turning them into a coherent report good enough for the eyes of the tax authorities. Basically, I enjoy the feeling of a job well done."

Here's another. "My daily commute is an hour and a half each way, and I spend most of it reading. My tastes are pretty eclectic, not what you'd expect from a Hasidic woman. That's why I cite so many books in ordinary conversation. Reading is a big part of my life."

So now you've got an inkling of what this book has to teach, and if you don't feel like reading the whole thing, you can go to the website at www.bragbetter.com and download the "Take 12" questionnaire. The book is a little repetitive, but I'm grateful for the bragologues. May Hashem help that I get to use a few in job interviews.

[Avolyn Fisher · Rating 3 out of 5]

In a nutshell, this book is about elevator speeches. If you have studied up on this subject before than this book may not prove to be all that ground breaking. If not, then you should definitely pick it up as it covers a very important topic in the business world and provides valuable nuggets sprinkled throughout.

I didn't care all that much for the format which was essentially a bunch of stories of other people, which is all nice and dandy but I could have analyzed the same stories and concluded everything on my own without her interpretations but I am still not quite so sure about how to convey my own success. Her examples covered mainly CEO's, Presidents, etc. so no wonder their story sounds amazing!! Gee, wouldn't have guessed.

I also got distracted by several spelling/typo errors throughout her book, it becomes even more glaring when the book is covering the topic of effective communication.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened to this audiobook as part of my women's group at work. Like most motivational books, this book is just fine. It has a lot of good tips and reminders that make common sense, but are easy to forget or not think about. I must admit I did have a few "a-ha!" moments, where I realized areas in my life that were severely lacking in the bragging department. My big takeaway is that I need to come up with a written list of my accomplishments, talents, interests, etc. (basically, I need to go through her 12 step list of questions) and have some mini-speeches prepared. For example, I ALWAYS stumble when asked what sort of law I practice. It is hard to explain to non-lawyers, and I need to come up with a pithy and interesting way of saying it. Another takeaway I had is to be more excited when talking about myself. The attitude you have can shine through the words you are saying. The audiobook version that I listened to is only 3 hours, so this is a "quick" read, which I appreciated.

[Tony Canas]

A quick read recommended by a learning solutions specialist at work. I really enjoyed it. She recommended it after I gave a toastmaster's speech about branding yourself and self-promotion. She told the story of how in a former job everybody in her department was required to read it and how much she recommended the book. I'm already a pretty shameless self-promoter who is very confident but I figured I could learn a little about the "not blowing it" part. The book explains why making the numbers is simply not enough, and you have to make sure you brag about them in a way that gets your name out in front of the right people without sounding like you're being a jackass. I think this is essential reading for anybody in the business world, especially those who are naturally shy and might be getting overlooked even though they're doing a killer job.

[Alexia · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this book had a cheesy Hollywood flavor, it did give good examples of bad and good storytelling. If you can ignore the fluff you can extract good tips on how to use humor and storytelling to share your key accomplishments without feeling uncomfortable. The author provides you with 12 questions to answer to help you think about stories that illustrate your accomplishments. One key learning is that you need to do the pre-work and write it out (paper, electronically) and practicing the storytelling will help this become more natural. Nothing earth shattering here, but a good reminder of techniques to implement. Step out of your comfort zone and try one of the techniques presented in this book.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great advice here. If you expect other people to notice your work and for it to speak for itself - well guess what? A lot of it won't get noticed. But by learning how to talk about it tactfully, you can change your career path! And this book is a great way to learn that skill. Here's an example of what you can expect from this author:

I went to the author's workshop and she did this great exercise. First people were asked to describe 3 professional accomplisments. Then they were asked to talk a little bit about a friend's career path. The difference was astounding. People were bored telling their own stories, unexcited and they listed accomplishments. But when it came time to talk about their friends, they were animated, their body language changed, and instead of a list they discussed their friend's accomplishments as an engaging story. And it begged the question - which would the listener enjoy? And that being the case, why not tell your own story like you would your friends?

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was recommended by my boss, who has been an incredible resource for me to improve my professional confidence over the last three years. Like most women, I've been conditioned to downplay my achievements and ambitions. Learning to talk about these things comfortably is a key part of success, even if it's few people's favorite thing to focus on. It's something I'm always thinking about, especially as I have more meetings with other people in the company outside my department and network. How can I present myself in a way that signals I'm important and need to be taken seriously without being off putting?

One great piece of advice is to regularly update a file about your accomplishments, which is hard to find the mental space to do, but is important to keep track of the next time you go in to ask for a raise, meet a high-up person inside or outside your company, or just want to feel great about the work that you are doing.

[Mikal · Rating 2 out of 5]

Useful tips. But I much prefer good in a room.
Quick read. BUt this book was more like a brochure with nice before and after photos; what I was looking for was an instruction manual.
Chapter 2 is the heart of the book. It's a twenty page overview of how to brag. The rest is a list of dos and don'ts about hangups that other people have.
I would have prefered 60% of the book spent as a workshop showing specific examples of how to create your brag bag- pros and cons for each one. As well as how to practice integrating it.
What followed instead was a list of snapshots that sounded like 'someone came to me with this problem by the time I was finish with them they sounded like this' in addition to a list of the authors pet peaves.

Instead I recommend 'Good in a Room' it doesn't cover the topic of 'bragging' in as much depth but it offers much better workshops for improvement.

[Joie Seldon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terrific book. Easy and fun to read. Most importantly, great advice on (and benefits of) how to promote yourself without coming off as self-serving. Points out how many of us, especially we women, diminish our accomplishments and value for fear of appearing egotistical. I found it refreshing and inspiring. It has helped me at networking events, getting speaking gigs, and speaking with potential clients.

[Tine Putzeys · Rating 3 out of 5]

This could easily have been a whitepaper or a blog post. A lot of what she says is just common sense. « Don’t be boring » . Uh, ok...

The many examples can serve as an inspiration, but the large majority of them were about people at high levels. I would have liked more examples for people at lower corporate levels or even just entering the workplace.

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

A book that has proven helpful and has made me a bit more selfaware, but didn't love it.

[Paul Longstreth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh...

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

review to come

[Ltorrealba · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had a few basic, helpful reminders but was mostly pretty boring.

[Maureen Buckley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick read to help you toot your own horn in a way that is positive and well received no matter who your audience is.

[Cay Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very timely for everyone looking to expand a personal or business network and/or to interview for that new job whether the next step or one you've always wanted.. It is especially useful for women who haven't been taught how to brag. There are 12 valuable questions in the book that take work to complete, and they appear to yield very good results when used as suggested in the book. This is a very good read!

[Yosef · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this book because its unconventional and direct way of delivering ideas. Its structures are clearly divided by points and followed by explanations. Whats more about it is that for me, this book really match with The Dip by Seth Godin. While The Dip intelligently describe how we can achieve our goals and going through the bad times with persistence, it somehow pass an important point of how can we enter into the road that leads to our goals. Brag! is all about leveraging your capability to enter the path of your dreams.

The book turns up side down the conventional notion of bragging and by calling "Bragging is an art" and pointing vital phenomenon that the 21 century workplace is no longer a safe and secure haven for anyone or any career because job security is virtually non existent.

The motto of this book is that if you don't speak up yourself then who will? The idea lies in bringing out a new paradigm in which we are the product, nevertheless of where we work and how long we have already work, we are a product for employer. Therefore, the goal is for us to create the most valuable product that worth to be offered.

What I like about this book is the so called Myth of bragging.
It really open up a whole new horizon about what bragging truly is. In the book it is presented 7 point on the Myth of bragging.
Of all of those points, number 1 and 4 are what gets me excited about learning to brag because I have done exactly these myth and now that I know that, I can change.

1: a job well done speak for itself
2: i don't have to brag people will do it for me.

What I don't like about this book is the assumption that introvert is the same as shyness. Because bragging is not just for an extrovert, but for all. In fact, the best performers are often an introvert and as Malcolm Gladwell repeatedly remind us, performance and introversion could go along really well.

A last note about this book will be besides learning the art of bragging, it also gives a resourceful tips for those who struggle with performance review and and will help with tips for those who need to pass job interview.

Related Book:
The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to QuitSeth Godin

[Gerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

How to access your Higher self to present your best self and present your skills to any employer. Peggy Klaus has a great way of teaching how to present your skills and successes to grow in your work environment. I found it a little to pushy at first but this book would work well for anyone in a cutthroat environment where achievements will be recognized. How to formulate brag bites and bragalogues.

Bringing your authentic best self to every interaction both personally and professionally is at the core of competent bragging and there are some good tips in this book to achieve it in the corporate environment.

Be your best,authentic self.Think about to whom you are tooting,Say it with meaningful and entertaining stories. Keep it short and simple, Talk with me and not at me, Be able to back up what you say, Know when to toot, Turn small talk into big talk, Keep bragologues and brag bites current and fresh, Be ready at a moment's notice, Have a sense of humor,Use it all:eyes,ears,head and heart.. All good tips.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

If "brag" is a word you don't really like, "self-promotion" is probably even more accurate. As she talks about in the book, most of society is uncomfortable with self-promotion and even talking about their own strengths no matter how important or grounded in truth they may be. She tackles this social truth head on decomposing the issue and why it's important for people to just get over it and finding a balance between being that obnoxious person who only loves to toot his own horn and being an confident self-promoter who's socially aware of good timing and situational appropriateness.

Overall, it's a pretty good book, though as mentioned in other reviews the chapters are more about retelling client stories (which is good for people who learn best through other stories). Personally, by the middle of the book I got a bit tired of hearing story after story based in the same principles. The principles of this book are the most important, which could probably be conveyed in a more striaght forward manner as a checklist.

[Daniel Silvert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peggy Klaus makes a persuasive case that self promotion is as valuable a career and business tool as any technical skill. Most of the book is spent demystifying the do’s and don’ts of quality bragging. The book’s biggest obstacle is the title itself. “Brag” has such a powerfully negative connotation in our culture that it’s an uphill battle for Klaus to transform bragging into something the average person, not to mention a shy one, would look forward to mastering. There are many examples that draw distinctions between tactfully promoting oneself to open up larger opportunities and simply annoying people to death. Keeping bragalogs and mastering bragbites liven up the lessons, as do both funny and painful stories that illustrate her points throughout. Overall, if you are concerned that opportunities are passing you by, this book will offer practical, if daring, strategies promoting your qualities and accomplishments. And if you won’t do it, who will?

[Debra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is like exercise. You may not like to do it, but you do it because you know it's good for you.

Everyone should know how to tell a good story. It makes you more interesting to others, helps others remember you and the things you said, and helps you connect and engage with others. And, any good story should be about something you know well -- in this case you.

This book reminds us how important communicating the right way is, and especially when we're sharing our own stories.

I recommend this to anyone who is introverted, shy or is worried they might be boring. It's also an important read for those on the other end of the spectrum, too. There something in this book for everyone, which means not every suggestion in this book will be right for you, but you'll find the ones that work for you.

[Unwisely · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book seemed a little more hands-on than the other one (The Hard Truth About Soft Skills: Workplace Lessons Smart People Wish They'd Learned Sooner). It was pretty much exactly what it says - how to sell yourself (for performance reviews or job interviews or just networking). She has a questionnaire to get you started and gives tips that seemed actually useful. It could be a little more of a workbook - I know I'm terrible at motivating to do things like that - but I feel like all the information is there.

[Emily Markulis · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's alright. Honestly nothing groundbreaking, though some of the true stories from her clients are interesting. And as much as she says that "tooting your horn" (a phrase I got sick of quickly) is about being the authentic you, the "schmoozing" described comes across as more of the same self-serving type of networking, where one is always looking over one's shoulder to see how a person could one day help them "get ahead." Bleh. I do sense that the basic message, that you can "brag" in a way that is likable and real, is something I need, but it should be more about always projecting confidence and enthusiasm (which Klaus does speak of) than the calculating thing typical of books like these. So yeah, this book doesn't really offer anything new.

[Anne Stephenson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, this book serves as a great reminder to be okay with self-promotion. That is, despite the fact you're raised to be humble, it's not only acceptable, but a necessity to brag. It's a must if you're looking to sell yourself, move up in your career or just be perceived as someone interesting. Rather than brag, or bore the listener with a litany of facts, the author suggests using language that tells a story. While I like many of the examples in the book, some seemed incredibly long. For most C-types, lots of words won't help you be memorable. You will be cut off. Like most things in life, the art of tooting your horn requires thought, time and practice. Taking time to read this book gets the process started.

[Patrick Coakley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brag! is a quick, fun read about the basics of self-promotion and how we can help ourselves break away from what we've learned in school about talking about ourselves. The biggest takeaway for me was the importance of being able to have a story that speaks to your audience about what you've accomplished and how you got to where you are right now in a way that isn't boring or overly aggressive. I enjoyed the anecdotes peppered throughout, though I do think there are a bit too many in some chapters.

The content of this book might be covered in more depth in other materials, but I think it stands alone as a worthwhile read for someone who wants to get a good overview of the art of bragging.

[Tony Bergstrom · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has a lot of good material to think about and incorporate into ones take on self promotion. I would advise anyone to at least skim through the book and take a look at the Take 12 inventory.

That said, I found the writing style consistently off-putting for me; but this is not unusual for books of this type. The anecdotes provided are always of the form: "So and so had a problem, I talked to them, they made a small change, and now they are doing more fantastically than every before! If only they had thought to do so earlier!" It's a common trope, trying to be both pithy and informative when using examples (real or not). However, the rhetoric often strikes me as either fake or too self serving - making it a bit harder to buy into the message.

[Naomi Jayalaksana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Puas banget bisa beli buku ini! Dulu, terakhir lihat sampulnya di rak toko buku QB, di jalan Sunda, yang sekarang udah tutup. Harganya lumayan mahal, hampir seratusan ribu gitu. Tapi kemarin aku bisa beli dengan harga HANYA 20 ribu! Hihihi...benar-benar pucuk dicinta, ulam tiba! Masalahnya, udah lama banget pengen punya buku ini. Maklum, sebagai orang Indonesia, apalagi kelahiran Jawa, gue kurang mahir dalam "menjual potensi diri". Nah, kalau posisi kalian mirip-mirip gue, coba deh baca buku ini. Ada banyak cara asyik dan cerdas buat memproklamirkan potensi dan pencapaian diri kita, tanpa membuat kita terdengar seperti pamer! Bragging, ternyata ada art-nya! Baca ya! :)

[Rashan Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peggy Klaus is really going out of her way and answered every question that someone needs to know about self-promotion. The structure the finesse the delivery the purpose and the pitfalls are all beautifully displayed for you in this book. There are some companion surveys which when answered first make the book solidify even more. Probably the most interesting tidbit I got out of this book is why I should talk about my personal hobbies with clients (I didn't think i had to I thought they were mine personally) to connect with them on a human level as opposed to a static this is what I offer approach.

[Angela Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would say about 75% of this book was 3 stars. There were some interesting stories and certainly some helpful information on how to self-promote but it felt repetitive a lot. And a lot of the "bragalogues" didn't seem natural - they seemed overly scripted (the opposite of what the book preaches). However, in the last 25%, specifically the section on entrepreneurs and how to self-promote when you don't have a job or don't find your current job challenging/satisfying, I was interested and grabbed a lot of helpful pointers. In fact, it was inspiring, making me want to better myself and my self-promoting.

[Busy · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I first started reading this book I couldn't help but cringe. Talking about myself, making myself visible, and coming up with interesting tidbits about my life when I'm in the conversational hot seat are all things that I consider personal weak spots. But by the end I want to tell people to read this book. I listened to the audiobook but I want to get the paper copy and really workshop it. This is like STAR interviewing but goes a step further and tells you how to expand the skill to every day life. I am looking forward to being able to say something other than, "Nothing much," the next time someone asks me what I'm up to!