Many workers think their hard work will speak for itself. They do their work quietly and stay late at the office in the hope that their boss will pick up on their efforts. However, when a job promotion or pay raise goes to someone else, many employees retreat into a corner and wonder what happened.

Many don’t realize that talking about your accomplishments with confidence is the best way to advance your career. Promoting yourself at work doesn’t have to be an embarrassment and you don’t have to brag.

Instead, you must develop a smart approach to self-promotion in order to advance your career. Being able to honk effectively without playing the wrong tune can only happen if you avoid these four common mistakes.

1. Don’t take advantage of a tragic event to launch your self-promotion campaign

   The recent hurricane that struck the US states of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama left millions of people homeless and cities in ruins. Hurricane Katrina is becoming one of the costliest natural disasters ever recorded in the continental United States. The tsunami that decimated 11 countries in South Asia in December 2004 is another extremely devastating natural event. Many people were displaced and, to date, more than $ 2 billion has been donated worldwide to help the victims of the tsunami. However, it is reaching a point where the publicity surrounding who it is giving receives more attention than people who lost their homes, belongings and family members. Celebrities, companies and even countries are taking this opportunity to show off the amount of money they have donated. Some businesses even buy full-page newspaper ads just to show what they’re doing to help. While Hollywood and the Fortune 500 choose this time to show off their contributions, this approach lacks dignity, tact, and modesty. Don’t make this mistake with your career. If your business has just lost an important client and is now facing a breach of contract lawsuit, this is not the time to brag about a new process you developed while working with that client. That shows a bad moment on your part and you will look bad in front of your boss and colleagues.

2. Don’t brag by belittling the competition

   In season 2 of the hit show The Apprentice, a contestant, Ivana, was the project manager for a losing team. While making her case to Donald Trump about why she shouldn’t be fired, instead of focusing on her strengths, she began to speak ill of another contestant. What made Ivana’s comments so strange is that it focused on someone who wasn’t even on the same team as her. By the way, Donald Trump did not look very well at Ivana’s comments and fired her without hesitation. Saying negative things about a coworker may make you feel good, but this approach does little to improve your profile at work. When he does this, he appears to be uncomfortable with his own accomplishments. Instead, develop a 30-second commercial about what you do well. That way, you focus on your successes and resist the temptation to make your coworker look bad.

3. Never include cheating in your self-promotion campaign.

   Remember Enron, WorldCom, and the adventures of media mogul, Conrad Black? The executives of these companies cheated to be successful. Despite being investigated for diverting company money into his own pocket, Black was outraged and claimed that people should thank him for creating so many jobs, not waste their energy accusing him of stealing. The things you do at work may not include being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission, but there are some activities you may be doing right now that undermine your company’s bottom line. Whether you take home office supplies from your company warehouse, take a two-hour lunch, or overcharge your company for fuel on your expense report, all of these actions are dishonest. You will make enemies at work very quickly if you gloat over your dishonest acts in the dining room. Also, this is a surefire way to stop your career since no one wants to work with a cheater.

4. Don’t brag too much

   There is a businesswoman I recently met. I had read his book and attended some of his teleclasses. When I found out he would be in my town on business, I emailed him requesting that we meet for coffee. We met and I was immediately sorry. You see, this businesswoman talked endlessly about herself for the entire 30 minutes. Here I was, one of his biggest fans and most loyal customers, and my idol was bragging about his product line and how much money he was making. This businesswoman didn’t take the time to find out who I am or why I’m her biggest fan. I walked away from that meeting and never bought anything from their website again. It is important that others know about your accomplishments, but don’t do it at the expense of bad manners. Find the balance. Know when it’s appropriate to talk about your accomplishments and when to keep quiet. A good promoter knows the value of listening to others. This skill can do wonders for your career.

How you advance in your career depends on your ability to promote yourself. If you don’t talk about your accomplishments, don’t expect anyone else to, but remember that your goal is to be smart in your approach and leave stupid techniques to someone else.