The power of giving due credit

In careers and business ventures, we all inevitably come across a choice: to share credit or to hold on to it. And as soon as we do, there's that little, paunchy devil on our shoulder telling us that taking it all—or most of it—for ourselves will get us ahead faster.

I'm here to tell you that you should grab that little devil, throw him in the toilet, and flush him down to where he belongs. Because he's full of crap.

Here, you will learn to harness the three powers of giving due credit to build your career quicker and make it more satisfying. You will also learn some practical techniques on how to become the grandmaster of credit-giving.

Power No. 1: It Keeps You from Being an A*hole

I put this one above all others, more obviously practical ones, because in my view, it is very important and doesn’t get enough attention. It concerns more extreme cases of deliberate credit stealing.

Few things in business and corporate life are more disgusting than people hogging credit and using their position to steal the laurels from others. A lot of the time, such credit hoarders do it sneakily, but sometimes they do it openly, as long as they know they can get away with it.

So, can this kind of behavior get you ahead? Sure, it sometimes does, especially if the organization’s culture allows it. And by the way, if you find yourself in a company that allows that, it’s a good sign that you need to bolt.

So, it can get you ahead, but then ask yourself these two questions:

1. First: What kind of person do you want to be, considering you may be dead tomorrow?

   If you feel that faking and slithering your way through a few steps on a corporate ladder is an achievement that you and your family would be proud of, if they knew... then go ahead, you are what you are. And that is petty, mediocre, and cowardly.

2. Though, I would still consider the Second question: What if you get caught out? What if someone with metaphorical balls and evidence publicly calls you out and exposes you for what you are? Would that be humiliating for you? Would it hurt your career? Would it expose you for what you really are?

The answer is yes, to all of the above. Maybe fear will help you make the right choice here. One can but hope.

Having said all that, for most of us, the dilemma of giving credit or not is not full-on nefarious and doesn’t concern stealing credit. It’s more about awareness of what drove your success in the first place, as well as understanding the benefits of being a credit-giver.

And that’s how we arrive at:

Power No. 2: It Makes You a Leader

Let’s face it, we all want praise, validation, and approval. It is simply in our nature, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

So, when we deliver something we’ve put our blood, sweat, and tears into, when we do something impressive, the natural instinct is to scream “Witness me!” from every adjacent rooftop.

However, a lot of the time, our success is a result of the combined work or influence of multiple people. Just think about it.

It could be people in creative that helped you refine your idea, the sales team that made a defining push, marketing that managed to reach out to a specific market segment, or data engineering that created a workable solution from your idea. It could be all of those together. And whether it was your grand master plan and your perfect coordination of multiple people, it’s still not fully your achievement. And guess what, people will know this.

So, a habit of giving credit to key contributors to your success positions you as a leader. A leader is judged by the achievements of the team or collective, not their own personal contribution.

And it’s not just about other people seeing you that way; it does, in fact, help you to be a better leader, to think like one.

So, it may not give you the instant gratification of getting all the praise for yourself, but the long-term benefits for your reputation and your mindset will outweigh the short-term guilty pleasures.

Get into the habit of identifying the people who truly deserve to share the credit and actually do it. Also, resist the temptation to share it with convenient but undeserving people. This will fire some really good synapses in your brain.

And the last point here: some of you may say – yeah, but I am a one-man business machine, all my successes are my own.

Fair enough, good point, but often not fully accurate. What about other entrepreneurs that inspired you, influencers on social media platforms who gave you actionable tips, or book authors that gave you a spark of eureka when you most needed one?

Do they deserve some credit, even if they didn’t hold your hand in your daily struggle? You decide.

Power No. 3: It Builds Trust

This one is simple: people who share credit are more trustworthy. They can be relied upon to watch your back. They are likely to stick their necks out for you if trouble comes. They probably recognize that your success feeds their own.

So, who would you rather go into a risky project or business venture with?

I would say it’s the person you trust more, unless you’re in it just for thrills, of course.

Power No. 4: It Snowballs Success

Your employees, who openly get credit for their work, will be more motivated and collaborative. They will be more empowered to bring up new ideas and have extra energy to pursue them.

This can be magical for the performance of your team or business.

Also, sharing the spotlight consistently and openly will inevitably breed a similar culture within your circle of influence.

Because it feels good and because people will see that their careers can benefit from the practice. And guess what, they will be crediting you too, sometimes even if you haven’t done any direct legwork.

So, you can grab a basket of apples now or plant a bunch of seeds that will grow into apple trees and give you a truckload of fruit a bit later… I’m not much of a farmer, but you catch my drift.

Either way, it seems like an easy enough choice to me.

THE CREDIT MASTER

Now, that we’ve covered the Powers of giving credit, here are some practical steps to make sure you become good at leveraging them:

Step 1: Identify

Just give it enough time and thought to identify the right people to share the spotlight with. Get more details and feedback from other people if you need.

Step 2: Skip

Skip people who do not deserve credit for the win, even if they are senior and powerful.

Step 3: Be Specific

Whenever possible, be specific and avoid general statements like “that team did a fantastic job.” Name specific people and exactly what their contributions were. For example, “Thanks to John Smith for arranging a meeting with that big client,” or “Kudos to Sarah Andrews for building a marketing campaign on such short notice.”

Step 4: Be Open

The whole point of giving credit is being open and public about it. Make sure this gets communicated to the managers and the teams of the people you share the spotlight with. The more, the merrier. Just don’t go crazy and include people who have no relevance whatsoever.

Step 5: Laminate It

In other words, use the right medium for giving credit. Emails and shared presentations that can also be used in conference calls are the best for this. If it is written down, then it is for the record. It is more real.

Now, I hope you found this useful. And may the Force of giving due credit be with you!