The costliest myth in a woman’s career
Read time: 4 minutes
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The costliest myth in a woman’s career
Picture this: a meeting ends. A decision gets made. The idea that shaped that decision was yours. You raised it three weeks ago in a document nobody read, or in a conversation that didn’t have the right people in the room. But the credit lands somewhere else.
You say nothing, because saying something feels self-promotional. You go back to your desk. You work harder.
For many high-achieving women, this is not an occasional frustration. It is a pattern. And the painful part is not just the missed credit – it is the slow accumulation of evidence that seems to confirm a quiet, private fear: maybe being good at your job is not enough.
It isn’t. And that is not your fault. It is the most important thing nobody told you.
Performance and visibility are two different skills.
You have likely spent years honing one of them. The other has been left largely to chance.
The unspoken rule of professional life – that good work speaks for itself – is one of the most persistent and costly myths in a woman’s career. Research consistently shows that women are evaluated on proven performance while men are promoted on perceived potential. Women have to already have done the thing to be considered, while men are considered before they have proven themselves.
This is not a personal failure. It is a structural pattern documented across industries and career levels. Performing well is necessary – but it is not sufficient.
How to ensure your hard work is SEEN
3 places to start:
- Name your thinking, not just your conclusions. Share the reasoning behind your recommendation, not just the recommendation itself. “The reason I’m proposing this is…” makes your judgment visible, not just your output. It is the difference between being seen as someone who executes and being seen as someone who thinks.
- Claim your contributions with precision. Notice when you say “we” out of habit in contexts where “I” is accurate. “I led that work” is not arrogance. It is accuracy.
- Choose one visibility act each week. A LinkedIn post. A raised hand in a room that matters. An idea shared upward before it is fully formed. Not to become someone you are not – but to make your leadership presence a regular and deliberate practice.
If you recognise yourself in any of this… if you have been the person doing the work, holding the thinking, making things happen, and still feeling like the room does not fully see you – know that this is one of the most common and least talked-about experiences among high-achieving women.
Visibility is not about being seen for its own sake. It is about making sure the impact you are already creating actually lands.
The work you are doing is real. Let it be seen.
Free 2-min quiz to assess your visibility
Not sure where your visibility currently stands?
I created a short Visibility Quiz to help you understand how you’re showing up today – and where your next shift needs to be so you’re not just working hard, you’re making sure your impact is being seen by the right people.
It takes just a few minutes, and you’ll get a clear sense of what’s working, what’s holding you back, and what to focus on next.
Bhavna