Everyone needs a success diary. Preferably in pink (but that's totally your call).

How am I supposed to remember outcomes of projects from years ago?

When your professional brand focuses on impact and achievements, you'll have to face the hardest part... remembering your impact and achievements.

When I work with clients, I advise every client to I recommend everyone start a success diary.

When I was younger I had several diaries and I still have several from my teens (they are LOCKED tight because that content is cringe!). I'd always buy the prettiest, most embellished diary and then agonize over the write pen color so it matched my vibe. I'd spend time periodically (I wasn't dedicated enough to be a daily writer) writing about what was going on.

I advise every client I work with to keep a success diary. It can be the pinkest, most rhinestone adorned diary you've ever seen, a simple piece of paper, a Google doc, or a note saved in your phone... however you work best.

Just make sure it's on your personal device, files, notebook, etc. so you can take it with you from job to job. Make sure you've anonymized the information (no client names, customer information, or other items protected by your NDA or privacy policies).

As you finish projects write down one impact or outcome from the project in your success diary. Periodically, take a minute to think about what you've learned lately, experiences you want to remember, and what your salary looks like.

Set a calendar reminder (if needed) to gather ongoing success data.

Example: project team with marketing, sales, and customer success to improve client retention rates. I developed a client-facing survey from trends in client retention data. Used data to edit client renewal workflow; improved client retention by 28% in the first 90 days.

Example: I'm a project coordinator; $55k. Had my first meeting with a CEO and I was terrified. Pretty sure I said "ummm" too many times. My boss (Alicia) said it was okay, but I should work on my presentation skills more.

This success journal serves a few purposes:

💗 a reminder you can pull out on days/weeks/months/years when you are feeling like nothing has gone well at work (I also include cards, etc. from clients, coworkers, bosses in mine).

🌟 data to pull into your professional brand (resume, LinkedIn profile, bio, speaker summary) to very specifically and clearly call out where you've made major impact and the unique experiences you bring to the table.

💗 reminds you of where you were and how far you've come along with way so you can quiet that voice that tells you that you're still in the same place where you started.

🌟 makes interviews a BREEZE! Tell me about a time... You have LISTS of examples. Pick your favorite, practice those concise interview responses, and nail your interview.

Do you track your wins and successes?

#careeradvice #careeradvisory #careercoach #success #womenatwork #successfulwomen #womeninleadership #leader #leadership