Brown-Nosing 101

Brown-Nosing for Breast Cancer Research

No doubt you know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  Here is a story from my past that will illustrate how little things can make a big difference when raising your visibility and connecting with people. This one comes courtesy of a group of students who completed a marketing class with me during a particularly difficult time in my life.  It is short, but poignant.

I finished a class that was conducted in a hybrid modality - the first and last classes were held face to face with students on ground at the campus and the classes in between were held online.  This particular class was somewhat difficult because the night before I was to meet the students for the first time I learned that I had breast cancer.  After virtually no sleep the previous night I arrived early Saturday morning, April 29th, and needless to say, was not on top of my game.

In a posting in the online classroom several weeks later I shared  what had been transpiring in my life and as might be expected, several students made it a point to continually connect with me to ask how I was doing.  There was never any doubt in my mind that their concerns were sincere, so clearly they were accomplished students of the L.S.Teza Brown-nosing method - i.e. show sincere concern for others before you think about what might be in it for you  (visit www.brownnosingonline.com to learn more). 

Career Tip #13 - Take Some Initiative (Get Out From Behind Your Desk!)

Think about the Brown-Nosers you’ve known. What’s the first thing they do when they hear the boss or some other VIP (very important person) coming down the hall? They get up, put on their jacket (that hasn’t been worn in days, if at all) and step out to ‘accidentally’ bump into him or her, say "hello", offer a compliment, share a story or ask a question.

The rest of us roll our eyes and snicker behind the Brown-Nosers back, but the next time the VIP comes by, who does he say "hello" to, by name? You guessed it. Your Brown-Nosing colleague. Why? Because he knows the Brown-Noser. Not very many of us walk up to complete strangers and start a conversation. Why do you think this is different at work?

 Wouldn’t it be nice if the VIP said "hello" or asked about your work? He might, if he only knew who you were. How is he to know who you are if you don’t look up, don’t nod, smile or acknowledge him in some way?

Take a lesson from the Brown-Nosers. Take the initiative. Be friendly and approachable. Make it easy for the VIP to know you. Go first. If yours is a small organization, at the very least you should raise your head and make an effort to say "hello." Just smiling at someone and calling him or her by their name is a courteous thing to do. Do this with everyone you see. You just never know who might be in the right place at the right time to mention your name.