If you’re going to brag, do it straight out instead of covering it up. Or just complain, it’s even more likeable than pure bragging.

According to this new research, hiding your brag inside a complaint makes you less likeable – probably because you appear insincere.

The researchers started with Twitter but went deeper through 5 studies and found this isn’t unique to social media posts. The results were similar when people interviewing for jobs used humblebragging to answer “What’s your biggest weakness?”

I look forward to their next round looking at whether power influences humblebragging.

‘Humblebragging’ is a Bad Strategy, Especially in a Job Interview