If you’ve ever watched an opportunity slip through your fingers, not because you were unqualified but because something about your visibility, confidence or preparation wasn’t aligned, you’re not alone. I spent years repeating the same pattern. I kept missing opportunities I deserved, simply because I didn’t understand the power of career positioning.

Looking back, the signs were always there. I had the capability. I had the experience. I had the work ethic. What I didn’t have was strategic positioning. And in the career world, positioning is everything. It determines who gets noticed, who gets shortlisted and who gets forgotten.

These are the four moments that changed everything for me and taught me how to position myself for job opportunities in a real and practical way.

1. When Confidence Made Me Invisible

There was a role I genuinely wanted. I prepared. I trained. I studied. I even ran induction sessions so I could be ready. When the interview day arrived, my confidence cracked like thin ice.

I walked into the room with the right skills, but the wrong energy. I felt judged. I felt small. I felt like everyone else deserved the seat more than I did.

In that moment, my competence didn’t matter. My self-doubt took over, and my performance suffered.

That day taught me the first rule of career positioning. If you shrink in the room, you lose the room. Confidence is part of your positioning. It makes your value visible.

2. When I Assumed My Work Would Speak For Me

This one still stings when I think about it.

I applied for the same role again while on maternity leave. I convinced myself I didn’t need to prepare because the company already knew my work. That thinking cost me the role.

I didn’t study the job description. I didn’t rehearse my answers. I didn’t align my experience with the role.

During the virtual interview, I kept worrying about background noise because I hadn’t arranged childcare. My mind was everywhere except on the questions.

The person they chose?Someone I trained.

That experience forced me to accept a reality many professionals ignore. Your work does not speak for itself. You speak for it. Career positioning requires intentional preparation and intentional communication.

3. When I Thought I Knew the Job Without Reading the JD

At one point, I applied for a bigger role because I felt confident that I understood what it required. I had watched someone do parts of it, so I assumed I could handle it too. When I finally opened the job description, everything changed.

I realised I understood only twenty per cent of the role. It required technical depth. It required clinical nutrition knowledge. It required recipe development skills.

I had none of these.

The company hired someone who had done the job before. As they should.

This was the lesson: Never assume you know a role. Study the job description like it were an exam. It is one of the most important steps in learning how to position yourself for job opportunities.

4. When I Ignored The Reality Of Career Politics

People rarely say this out loud, but career politics exists. It is real, and we have all felt it in one way or another.

Sometimes you lose an opportunity not because you failed, but because someone else was strategically positioned long before the vacancy appeared.

They volunteered. They asked questions. They built quiet relationships. They made themselves known professionally and visibly . They became top of mind.

That is not an unfair advantage. It is career positioning.

What people call politics is often just proximity. Proximity to information.Proximity to decision makers.Proximity to visibility.

And proximity is part of positioning.

The truth is simple. Opportunities do not go to the most qualified. They go to the most positioned.

What Career Positioning Actually Means

Career positioning is not a vague motivational concept. It is a practical strategy. It means being intentional about how you present your value, how you prepare for opportunities and how you build visibility where it matters.

Career positioning includes:

• clear communication of your strengths

• alignment of your CV with job requirements

• a strong and active LinkedIn presence

• confidence in interviews

• strategic relationship building

• consistent visibility

• proof of achievements

• self-awareness of skills and gaps

When these elements work together, you become the candidate who stands out before you even apply.

This is how you position yourself for job opportunities in today’s market.

Two Clients Who Proved Positioning Works

The Client Who Finally Landed an FMCG Interview

One of my clients applied to multiple roles for months with complete silence. His qualifications were strong. His experience was solid. But his career positioning was weak.

We restructured his CV using the Khumbu Digitals framework. We aligned his skills with real job descriptions. We used the STAR method to bring clarity and proof.

Within one week, he landed an interview with a major FMCG company.

His qualifications didn’t change. His career positioning did.

The Client Who Kept Getting Rejected Because Her LinkedIn Was Empty

Another client had international clients, strong projects and a powerful CV. Recruiters shortlisted her quickly.

Until they searched her name.

Her LinkedIn profile was blank.No headline About section.No banner proof.

One recruiter told her directly, “Your CV is excellent, but your LinkedIn worries us.”

Her CV opened the door. Her lack of positioning closed it.

Your CV Opens the Door. Your LinkedIn Gets You Inside.

If these two are not aligned, you lose trust. You lose clarity. You lose visibility. Recruiters always choose the candidate whose digital and professional presence matches their competence.

Career success is no longer about being the most qualified. It is about being the most clear, the most visible and the most positioned.

Your Next Step: Assess Your Positioning

If you have been overlooked, rejected, or ignored, your qualifications may not be the problem. Your positioning might be, I am offering a positioning audit service to submit a request for your audit, just click here.

To help you understand where your positioning is breaking down, I created a resource you can download today. You can access the free 2025 Employability Self-Audit Workbook in my LinkedIn Featured section.

It will help you evaluate:

• your CV

• your LinkedIn profile

• your keywords

• your achievements

• your digital footprint

• your visibility

• your gaps

So you can stop missing opportunities you actually qualify for.

Because your career does not reward the most qualified. It rewards the most positioned.