Smart, Not Loud: How to Get Noticed at Work for All the Right Reasons

by Jessica Chen

While there is research that states being the first is not as advantageous as one would think, people still push their teams to be the most innovative, and the market elevates those who are the most disruptive with awards and accolades. In other words, if we want to succeed in the Western workplace, we have to embody what these companies expect: be assertive and communicative.

Instead of muting her accomplishments, she could show she was smart and capable, and know that it wasn’t self-serving to do so. And instead of thinking her contributions weren’t as important, she had to trust that she brought just as much value to the team as the person next to her.

As you reflect on how you’ve come to resonate with Quiet Culture behaviors, try pinpointing whether it could be certain principles your parents taught you that shaped your behaviors now. Were there sayings they reiterated? Stories they told you? Reflecting on your younger years is how you can better understand how you show up today.

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“It was difficult and unnatural for me to talk about my abilities so explicitly and directly without feeling like I was showing off or being boastful,” said Grayson.

in order for us to be noticed the way we want to be, we have to know when and how to show up and speak up in all environments, and in front of all people. How we reframe the way we show up will be the key to creating more visibility at work while staying true to ourselves.

Success is about finding a balance between our Quiet Culture upbringing and Loud Culture environment, so we can get noticed for all the right reasons. It’s about finding an authentic communication style that works for us and doubling down on our innate human desire to connect.

research has shown that people judge others based on their communication style much more than how they control a situation.

prioritize passing the “airport test,” which is determining whether someone would want to spend time with them at an airport. Albeit subjective, it highlights how important building connections and engaging with people is,

“I’d been so focused on getting people to hear and notice me that I neglected to think about the dynamics. I needed to step back, find the middle ground, and think more about others, not just about defending myself or my ideas,”

Finding success and building visibility in the workplace do not require us to behave loudly if we have quiet traits.

Reframing our Quiet Culture values can help us expand how we work in a Loud Culture without complete acculturation.

Engage others. Spend time. Handle wins. Manage conflict.

In a fast-paced world, our ability to listen, observe, and get things done is a tremendous asset. We are resourceful and great at solving problems, which we often can do on our own. However, our ability to go at it alone can sometimes cause us to stay alone. Or worse yet, we let things be, because we don’t want to inconvenience others.