Each month we pose a career-related question to one of ASTD’s Career Center Coaches. This month’s featured coach is Roberta Gamza, resume writer, marketing strategist, career coach, and the founder of Career Ink.

I’m considered a top performer, but promotions and choice assignments are not coming my way. I feel invisible at work. How do I increase my visibility and credibility?

According to Jonas Salk, “the reward for work well done is the opportunity to do more.” But that’s not always the case at work. Waiting for management to recognize your good work with choice assignments or promotional opportunities will backfire on you. Doing a great job is simply not enough. Here are seven ways to boost your visibility and credibility at work:

1. Step out of your comfort zone. Become comfortable with being a little uncomfortable. Growth is expected with new roles and responsibilities. Admit you don’t know; find out the answer and share it with stakeholders.

2. Take risks. You may make a mistake and if you do, own it and remedy it. Always learn from your mistakes and share lessons learned. Every successful executive will tell you they learned more from their mistakes and failures than successes.

3. Raise your hand. Volunteer for strategic projects and assignments that have direct impact on the business.

4. Show initiative. Own a problem and create your own project. Streamline a cumbersome process or invent a new one. Focus on bottom line projects, those that enhance productivity, profit, and customer satisfaction while elevating the organization’s overall perception. 

5. Be a team player. Volunteer to represent your department on cross-functional teams, committees, and task forces to maximize your exposure throughout the organization and open doors to further opportunities.

6. Master small talk. Use passing in the halls to toot your horn. When someone asks how you are, don’t just say fine, say, “Fabulous--just today, I resolved the Windows problem that’s eluded us for months.”

7. Share information. Pass along an interesting article, book, or tip to a wider than usual distribution list once or twice a month. Inform peers and management of your progress with a very brief email status report. You’ll build new relationships and increase visibility quickly.

Increasing your visibility and credibility will position you in the right place and at the right time to get the choice assignments that will build your career.