In my early career years, a colleague had the same profile as me. But he was not as good as me - technically and he still got a better raise and promotion. It took me some time to realize that he did the marketing and I did not. This has probably happened to you and will continue to happen in the future.
Most techies write technical qualifications in their resumes. They talk about their features: "I know X package", "I know Y framework". But very few people talk about the benefits they offer.
People don't buy features, they buy benefits.
Techies rarely talk about how they are overcoming challenges to deliver business values. Most of us come from a culture where people shy away from self-marketing. If you resist yourself, I want you to ask this question: "If you won't market yourself, who else will do it for you?". If you don't do it, you will prohibit yourself from the many opportunities that lie on the other side.
Importance of Marketing:
- It will help you showcase your worth.
- The higher-ups will see that you can do great work and that you're capable of achieving many things.
- Your managers will be impressed and you'll have a better chance of promotion and salary hike.
- May lead you to new opportunities such as new projects, jobs, etc.
- It will give you a competitive advantage over others.
There is a thin line between marketing and self-boasting. The former shows how you bring value to the table. The latter is more of giving self-credit and overdoing things that are ego-centric.
Marketing is an important step in your career that will help you build an image for yourself. It is crucial for your growth. It is up to you to strategize and articulate how to market yourself. I will try to cover this in the second part of the essay. Hope this was helpful. Let me know what you think.