During my 4 years at Level Up, I would always get approached by office mates asking for advice on what they can do to get promoted. Other than asking them to evaluate their own performance, my other favorite question would be – “Have you talked to your boss about this yet?” Guess what? 99% of the time, the answer is no. This, I think, is one of the biggest hinderances for promotion. Friends, your bosses are not psychics. They cannot read your minds. In a perfect world, all bosses should be able to discern who they should train and promote but that’s not always the case. It’s better to be sure that you’re on the radar by sharing your intentions with your manager.
There’s nothing wrong with asking
First, your career is not just dictated by you. Obviously your boss has a role to play in your professional growth. Going up to him/her and asking for some time to discuss your goals in the company is not something that they would frown on. In fact, I know that a lot of managers really appreciate it when their subordinates initiates discussions like this. The worst situation is that you’re told that you’re not ready yet. If that’s the case, follow through by asking what you can improve on or what skills you need to learn so that you’re ready to go to the next level. After that ask if you can get some training so that you’re really prepared to climb the corporate ladder one rung higher when the opportunity presents itself.
It beats just waiting
The alternative to talking to your manager about promotion is just waiting. By assuming that your boss is psychic, you’re setting yourself up for failure. Here’s what will happen:
- You assume that you’re doing a good job.
- You close yourself to improvement because you think you’re already fine.
- You keep on waiting… and waiting… and waiting…
- You see your other peers get promoted but you’re still left behind.
- You start feeling bad and become a pessimist. You start talking crap about your manager.
- Your work suffers because you have low morale.
- You either resign or get fired.
Don’t assume that you’re doing a good job. There might be things that only your manager or your other peers can see that you don’t. The last thing you want to do is to be blinded by your own glory to the point that you don’t see and even ignore your own faults. There is always room for improvement and growth. The best person to let you know what those points are would be your boss.
If you feel like you’re doing good and you deserve a promotion, don’t get intimidated with the idea of opening the idea up with your manager or supervisor. If after talking there are no results and you really want to get promoted, then that’s the time you should consider moving companies if you can’t really wait anymore. There will be times that your manager wants to promote you but there’s just no opening or spot for you in the company. If that’s the case, make sure you have a sound exit strategy before turning in your resignation. That’s for another discussion though.
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Tags: Career Advice, how to get promoted, i want a promotion
This is so true….. gratz Carlo….
Haha. I thought I heard the phrase from a book, and I remembered I heard it from you. Thanks.
Interesting posts Carlo
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