pro.innovator

Professional Innovator 2012: THE BLOG

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This year's blog is brought to you by Natalie Bromley, a trainee solicitor at Addleshaw Goddard and a participant in the Professional Innovator Challenge 2011.

Natalie will be bringing you a monthly insight into the fascinating world of a Professional Innovator Applicant.
Join her as she shares the highs and lows, the blood, sweat and tears and (above all) the joy of being part of one of the most exciting and rewarding challenges that Manchester has to offer … 

Edition Three:  "Why have you decided to enter Professional Innovator 2012?"

I am always thrown by questions of this nature.  It is that genre of question that appears on job application forms; the one that everyone disagrees on what is actually being asked of you.  One school of thought is that it an opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge and research, impressing your assessor with what you know and how much it would mean to you to be involved in their product.  The other is that it is your forum to sell yourself and convince your reader that you are the individual they are looking for.

As the deadline for entering Professional Innovator 2012 approaches, Manchester's finest are drafting their application forms and asking themselves why they decided to enter.  And after debating this with many of my fellow applicants in these early stages, it appears that a vast majority are adopting the 'sell yourself' approach.
The problem here, of course, is that many of us have real problems selling ourselves.  We can carry out our research and happily tell prospective employers or clients how good their product is and what market leaders they are, but we cannot bring ourselves to demonstration the same poise when discussing our own 'brand'.  How do you even start to sell yourself as a professional?  Some worry about staying on the right side of the boundary between confidence and arrogance.  Others worry about underselling and subsequently being overlooked for opportunities.

In my mind, professional confidence means having the belief and ability to do your job effectively.  The vast array of talent that we have in Manchester shows us that our professionals are knowledgeable, dedicated and proud of what they do.  But ask them to stand up and tell a room full of strangers that.  You can be aware of your own value as a professional without being arrogant. 

Assessing yourself is a good starting point – identify your own unique talents and personality traits and establish how they fit into the Professional Innovator 2012 jigsaw.  It's all about suitability; you WILL have attributes that demonstrate that you can be this year's winner.  If you worry about weaknesses that you have, turn them to positives and seek opportunities to learn.

However you decide approach the application form, believe in your submission, be honest with yourself and think like a salesman.  You are the most important brand that you have in your professional life.  Believe in yourself.

Enter the competition here