My gift to you - get my FREE 6 hour power course - the 3 most important secrets to getting promoted!
Or insert your email below and get newsletters:
You’ve tried everything to beef up your resume for internal promotion. And you’ve tried countless seminars and workshops (see my story of Melanie).
And you’re tired. And you’re disappointed. But no, it’s not time to give up. Here are the top five reasons mid-level managers give up...and how you can beat them. and continue corporate development career path
You blame the organization. You blame your boss. You blame your co-workers.
You might even blame your dog.
You’re the victim of a raw deal. You’ve been dealt a bad hand.
So deal yourself a new hand - and stop playing the blame game.
Though you’re a leading candidate, that promotion is going to someone else just this time around.
That’s all right, because you’re sure they mean it. And you dutifully wait patiently - dreaming about that next time around.
But deep down inside, you know that you’ll never be promoted. Time to wake up from dreaming.
Under the right conditions, you will be promoted. That’s the way it works at your company. After all, it’s their vested interest to see you succeed.
But when will these “right conditions” come about? Ever?
Don’t let yourself get stuck in the same place.
Your job. Your family. Your friends. Your obligations.
But what about your career?
Is everything OK?
What about the little disappointments? The lack of clear direction? Decreased motivation? Inadequate reward?
These symptoms, if left untreated, are guaranteed to get worse as time goes by. And one day, you’ll find yourself dreading your job.
Don’t get to this state. Find a way forward.
You’ve been passed up in the past. And it’s left some pretty hefty scars.
Maybe you’ve experienced sadness, anger, or even embarrassment.
Your self-confidence has been rattled. Perhaps you’re just not promotional material.
This thinking is self-destructive and misuses the energy needed to “get back on the horse.”
Based on these five reasons, I want you to commit to not committing the Five Deadly Sins of career mismanagement:
1. Do not hide from trouble; embrace it.
2. Do not wait passively; be proactive.
3. Do not confuse being asked to wait patiently with a real offer for promotion.
4. Do not say, “I don’t have time.”
5. Do not declare anything “out of your hands.” It’s in your hands.
And continue your corporate development career path
And always remember:
Great managers are made. Not born.
We’re all brands.
No, I don’t mean that we all wear certain brands of clothing.
Each of us is made of up characteristics whose combined effect is a brand. And like with others brands, we can create a need - a desire - for you in your organization.
So let’s get to work so that you can pave your corporate development career using the classic 4 Ps - Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. look on corporate development career path
Who are you? What do you have to offer your organization? Certainly not “more of the same” - otherwise people won’t be able to differentiate you from the others. (Read my story of Jane, who realized this just in time.)
And take a lesson from marketing and hammer out your USP - unique selling proposition.
Make yourself priceless. How? By making sure that you are the “go-to person” when it comes to an area of specialized knowledge. Pick an area of interest to your organization and make sure you are the most up-to-date - and watch the others come flocking for your input.
Be available. With the plethora of social networking tools out there, availability is a no-brainer. And in our 24/7 world, sitting at your desk in your office isn’t enough. Ensure that key contacts know the best channels for reaching out to you.
It’s not a dirty word. Yes, many of us were raised on the idea that “modesty is the best policy.” It certainly is, if you don’t want to get recognized by others.
Of course, I’m not talking about running the halls of your organization, shouting out your latest achievements at the top of your lungs. Or spamming your colleagues with each triumph. There is a happy medium between keeping things under wraps and being obnoxious.
Just keep in mind that to be successful, brands must be promoted - and identify how you can promote yourself.
Over the years, I’ve met with managers who’ve resisted self-branding and other career advancement solutions. They view the whole idea as possibly artificial and sometimes even pretentious. And they’re right. There’s a little of both in self-branding, but they’re still essential for earning the recognition of others.
Perhaps begin with one of the Ps and see how it goes. Once you feel comfortable, move on to another P until you’ve completed the whole marketing mix.
And always remember that when it comes to career goals for managers:
It is important for you to be promrted ? this is for you. ? corporate development career path
Great managers are made. Not born.
We’re all brands.
No, I don’t mean that we all wear certain brands of clothing.
Each of us is made of up characteristics whose combined effect is a brand. And like with others brands, we can create a need - a desire - for you in your organization.
So let’s get to work branding you using the classic 4 Ps - Product, Price, Place, and Promotion.
Product
Who are you? What do you have to offer your organization? Certainly not “more of the same” - otherwise people won’t be able to differentiate you from the others. Take a lesson from marketing and hammer out your USP - unique selling proposition.
Price
Make yourself priceless. How? By making sure that you are the “go-to person” when it comes to an area of specialized knowledge. Pick an area of interest to your organization and make sure you are the most up-to-date - and watch the others come flocking for your input.
Place
Be available. With the plethora of social networking tools out there, availability is a no-brainer. And in our 24/7 world, sitting at your desk in your office isn’t enough. Ensure that key contacts know the best channels for reaching out to you.
Promotion
It’s not a dirty word. Yes, many of us were raised on the idea that “modesty is the best policy.” It certainly is, if you don’t want to get recognized by others.
Of course, I’m not talking about running the halls of your organization, shouting out your latest achievements at the top of your lungs. Or spamming your colleagues with each triumph. There is a happy medium between keeping things under wraps and being obnoxious.
Just keep in mind that to be successful, brands must be promoted - and identify how you can promote yourself.
My advice
Over the years, I’ve met with managers who’ve resisted self-branding. They view the whole idea as possibly artificial and sometimes even pretentious. And they’re right. There’s a little of both in self-branding, but they’re still essential for earning the recognition of others.
Perhaps begin with one of the Ps and see how it goes. Once you feel comfortable, move on to another P until you’ve completed the whole marketing mix.
And always remember:
Great managers are made. Not born.
To make success happen, you must actively manage how others perceive you - your talents, accomplishments, and your chances of succeeding in your next job. These are key factors affecting career development.
Sounds confusing, I’ll admit...
You’ve been told all your life that you just need to “believe in yourself” and now I’m telling you that this is only part of the story. ( and see how you can tempting your career advancement. )
The more important part is that you need to begin recognizing the gap between how you see yourself and how others see you.
And there is definitely a gap, so don’t try to sweep it under the carpet. Unfortunately, I’ve come across plenty of managers who refused to recognize the gap, resulting in career crisis - and spoiling chances of tempting career advancement.
So here’s my message to you:
Identify the differences between your self-perception and how others perceive you. Then, actively influence how you are perceived.
Take action today by following these steps: and tempting career advancement
1. Understand the big picture. What values does your organization focus on? What qualities do managers who’ve been promoted have? Do your research.
Organizational values (e.g., employee commitment, community service)
a. _________________
b. _________________
c. _________________
2. Get pleasantly surprised. Many managers, when seeking feedback from others, focus on negative aspects. Instead, ask what you see as your strengths. You’ll probably be surprised to hear things that you’d perceived as nothing special - but others see as exceptional.
Strengths that I think that I have and how others perceive these
|
My strenths (as I see them) |
Function I have consulted | Function’s perception of my strength | Is this perception new to me? |
3. The follow-up. Understand what others have not identified as something you think you’re especially good at. Ask about these, as they either could be perceived as negative or not as noticeable as you’d thought.
Based on my investigation, here are the skills that I need to develop to be valued in my organization.
a. _________________
b. _________________
c. _________________
4. Get caught in the act. You now know what’s valued at your organization and what skills you need to develop.
Not hard, is it?
But what’s so surprising is that most managers aiming for promotion don’t follow these simple steps, leading to a failure rate of a staggering 70%!
And what’s even worse is that their education, experience, and talents are often on par or even better than those who beat them out on promotion.
Understand that while believing in yourself is important, it isn’t the whole picture.
If you treat it that way, you’ll move away from your goal because you’ll lose touch with the way you’re perceived by others. So work on actively influencing this perception .
And always remember that when it comes to tempting career advancement
Great managers are made. Not born.
Thank you!
My gift to you - get my FREE 6 hour power course - the 3 most important secrets to getting promoted!
Or insert your email below and get newsletters:
Tired of chasing your tail?
Follow these 7 Steps to Career Management and pave the road to your corner office.
But before you begin, a word of caution: do not just “think through” these steps. For maximum effectiveness, write out your answers. Here’s a handy planning sheet you can download. this is my career advancement solutions
Decide on your “dream job”. Be as specific as possible: job title, name or type of organization, your salary, etc. The more detailed you are, the more commitment you’ll develop.
Figure what you are ready to sacrifice for your dream: weekend sports? Occasional family dinners? After work drinks with co-workers? Remember that achieving your dream requires some sacrifice.
Figure what you are ready to sacrifice for your dream: weekend sports? Occasional family dinners? After work drinks with co-workers? Remember that achieving your dream requires some sacrifice. a specific date for achieving your dream job - don’t allow for any slacking off.
Identify all of the jobs you’ll need to have before reaching your dream job. Determine the specific dates that you’ll be holding these jobs.
Determine the date when you should begin your next job.
This is the fun part. Imagine yourself in your dream job. What are you doing? How do you feel? How does it affect you? Write it all down.
Read out loud what you’ve written in Step 6 twice a day: once in the morning and once in the evening. Visualize yourself in your dream job.
Working through each step ensures that you take an active part in achieving your dream job. Don’t stay behind with the pack by just wishing that you would be promoted. Make it happen.
One more very important thing: studies show that the effort expended on achieving a goal is equal to that of dealing with disappointment. For more on this, see my post . What to do when your boss doesn’t think you’re ready for promotion The choice is up to you.
And always remember:
Great managers are made. Not born. and look for career advancement solutions
The New Year’s festivities have come and gone and many of us have returned to work with renewed excitement and optimism for 2016 - great for getting started on those New Year’s Resolutions.
But it’ll take more than just good vibes to keep you going throughout the year. One way of knowing how to measure success at work and towards your next promotion is through one magic word: STEP
Of course by STEP, I mean step-by-step. Consider which of these scenarios will work out for the long term:
1. You decide to go running every morning, so you wake up the next morning and begin your new daily routine.
2. You decide to go running every morning, so as a first step, you begin with twice a week, eventually increasing to three times a week and so on.
I don’t know which scenario you chose, but here are some really interesting numbers about a past experiment in which respondents were asked this question before they attempted to meet their long term goals.
On the whole, 60% of respondents chose scenario 1, while the other 40% chose scenario 2. This isn’t really surprising, as most of us approach new challenges imbued with optimism.
But here’s the really interesting part:
Of the respondents who chose scenario 1, less than 10% were able to meet their own goals, while of those who chose scenario 2, this number was over 90%. Talk about the power of outlook on achieving goals!
So let’s place our bets on the goal achievers (and not just the optimists) and meet your goals for 2016 with STEP.
State your Goals.
This isn’t about your vision or general direction. This is about clearly expressing what you want - as specifically as possible. A good example might be: I want to be promoted to regional sales manager between September and November 2016. Fleshing out your goal in this way increases your commitment.
Talk your talk.
Once you’ve written out your goal, talk it out. Read it to yourself at least twice a day - treat it like your personal mantra. This will keep you waking up and going to bed with your goal, so that no matter what distracts you during the day, you’ll always come back to what’s most important.
Estimate the time to complete milestones.
Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither will your goals be accomplished in a day. When you stated your goals, you gave yourself an overall timeframe for completion. Now, you have to break up your goal into smaller milestones, estimating the amount of time it’ll take to meet them. An example of a milestone might be: I’ll hold a meeting with my immediate supervisor by the end of February. Estimating the time for completion will help you meet the milestones on the way to your ultimate goal. It worked for Jane - and will work for you.
Peg your progress and look on career goals of a manager
Keep track of your progress, noting any gaps between what you’ve planned and what you’ve achieved - making any necessary adjustments along the way. By pegging your progress, you renew your commitment to your goal, ensuring its accomplishment.
So join the people who know how to achieve goals. Follow the STEP process in 2016 and make your career dreams come true.
And always remember:
Great managers are made. Not born. and career goals of a manager are very important .
A few statistics about promises to ourselves:
Only 28% of our promises will actually be kept.
12% of our promises will be changed (to make things easier).
A whopping 60% of promises won’t make it until this time next year.
What this means is that less than a third of our tempting career advancement promises will survive!
And the reason? Our habits. These are the number one factors affecting career development in mid-level managers.
So let’s see how we can take our habits by the horns and triple our chances of keeping true to our promises.
Every new week, month, year, etc. can fill us with heightened optimism, renewed energy, and certainty that we’ll finally get the promotion we deserve. We come up with ambitious plans to impress our bosses, and we resolve to bring in results unlike anytime before. But, as the numbers above tell us, something veers us off track along the way.
It’s our habits.
Promises to ourselves are always more difficult to keep than we think. And when the going gets tough, our habits kick in to shield us from these difficulties. For example, let’s say you promise yourself to go running every morning. But one morning, you wake up and it’s really cold outside. You can bet that your old habit of sleeping in will creep up and hijack that promise...and you’ll find yourself hitting the snooze button instead of getting out of bed. But it’s not unusual. In fact, you might be surprised that on average, our habits control about 40% of what we do during the day. Yes, nearly half of what we do all day long is more or less done on autopilot!
So how can we keep this autopilot from interfering with our promises?
The antidote is determination. Developing and nurturing your determination to stick to your decisions is the one thing that will keep you honest with your promises. To increase your chances threefold, here are 3 steps to follow:
Step 1: “Failure is not an option.” (my favorite quotation from NASA Flight Director Gene Kranz)
When you don’t allow for the possibility of failure (especially a Plan B), your goal has to succeed. Let’s say that your goal is to achieve a promotion. You’d want to beware of the following Plan Bs:
If I don’t get a promotion, I’ll find another well-paying job.
If they don’t promote me, I’ll change companies.
If the promotion doesn’t come through, I’ll take some professional development courses.
These Plan Bs, while admirable in general, are not and should not be considered part of achieving your goal. In fact, Plan Bs actually work to weaken your determination. Remember that developing and nurturing determination means keeping your eye on one ball only.
Step 2: There are no free lunches.
One thing that a truly determined person knows is that to achieve a goal, you’ll always have to give up something. So not only are there no free lunches, but also, unfortunately, you CAN’T have your cake and eat it, too. Whether it’s exchanging a longer lunch break for a shorter one or an early departure from work on Friday for a late one, developing and nurturing determination means making conscious choices in order to successfully achieve your goals.
Step 3: I visualize; therefore I can.
It might seem a little far-fetched to suggest that visualization is integral to determination. But consider this: if you were to talk to folks you considered as “determined,” you’d quickly discover how clearly they visualize themselves achieving their goals. So begin visualizing: your new office, how you’ll look the first day of your new job, your first staff meeting… The more you visualize, the stronger the imprint of success you’ll make on your brain - a key to developing and nurturing your determination.
So start increasing your chances of promotion by 300% - today.
And always remember:
Great managers are made. Not born.
Today, there doesn’t seem to be any aspect of our lives that isn’t...
When I welcomed Mark, the CEO of a very successful hi-tech company...
Ironically, many C-levels don’t even consider working with...
I’ve said it before. There’s a chronic illness plaguing our...
“What’s bothering you, Marlene?”
As I watched...
For those of you...
What seems to be the dream of every number two in an organization...
I believe that coaches can help leaders with an ego by focusing on...
COMMENTS