"Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside you greater than any obstacle." ~Christian D. Larson
It is quite possible you have been frustrated, watching others at your level move up the career ladder while you remain firmly rooted in your current position. Chances are you are working very hard, but you are relying on others to take notice and offer you a promotion. It’s not going to happen.
Related:How To Be The Employee Your Company Wants To Promote
My project manager client went into the promotion conversation on the assumption that his director knew him very well. Unfortunately, that was not enough to give him the position he was after. Someone else was able to articulate his value, and was promoted instead of the client.
Modesty has its place, but if you don’t learn to tell stories about yourself and take credit for your accomplishments, you will miss out on opportunities for promotion. Consider this situation: After being stuck in her position as an Assistant Manager in a bank for four years, one client said to me recently, “I am busy producing results. It’s my manager’s responsibility to promote me.” This was after the manager told her she needed to start speaking up and letting others know about her achievements.
How often does one hear a manager encouraging a direct report to speak up and brag about their achievements? Not often. In fact, one’s career trajectory is no longer the responsibility of a manager, the company’s HR or training department. If you are looking for a promotion, it is your responsibility to take charge and guide your career. The following career-enhancing strategies should help you win a promotion:
1. Start your conversation with facts and a well-thought-out plan.
Any conversation about a promotion must begin with facts and a well-thought out plan. Don’t assume everyone, including your manager, is aware of all that you do, so provide specifics about your successes. Refer to the notes you have been keeping and the comments and testimonials you have received. When you are able to provide evidence of your accomplishments, it increases your chances for a promotion.
2. Use the “vacuum theory” as a stepping stone.
The term vacuum theory, used in this context, has nothing to do with physics, but more to do with someone recognizing there is a job to be done and just doing it without being asked. You fill this vacuum by volunteering for the mundane tasks that no one else will do—work that is necessary, but might not carry any prestige. Jump in, fill that vacuum, and make a difference. Then, take the theory one step further and document what you have done. Your notes will become valuable in later conversations.
3. Ditch the negative self-talk.
Stop all the self-sabotaging conversations with yourself as these will stifle your chances of being promoted. Self-defeating, negative conversations such as, “Why should they promote me?” or “They already have someone in mind, so why bother?” or “What’s so special about me, anyway?” have no place in a promotion strategy. They keep you stuck. Focus your energies on your talents, abilities and contributions, and use them as leverage when discussing promotional opportunities with your manager.
4. Go the extra mile.
Not only should you continue to be absolutely amazing in your current role, but you need to go the extra mile where it’s never crowded. Your aim is to stand out. Become the “go-to” person; the one with the expertise that everyone turns to when they get stuck. Volunteer for assignments that are slightly outside your comfort zone; something that will stretch you, but gives you an opportunity to learn new skills or demonstrate your expertise. When you take on additional tasks and projects, it proves you are who you say you are, as well as who you want to be.
5. Develop a marketing strategy to get noticed.
You need to become visible to influencers. These are individuals who will be able to attest to your abilities. Now, do not interpret this act as kowtowing or brown-nosing. It is a way to bring awareness of your existence and contributions. The reality is that if you don’t toot your own horn, no one will know that you are coming.
How do you keep these influencers informed about your accomplishments? Identify projects you are working on and provide them with updates, especially if they have a connection to some of those projects. Share informative resources – audios, videos, books or links to articles – that would be of interest to them. This not only shows your unselfish nature, but showcases the quality and level of your engagement.
The above strategies will help you tell your stories, stand out and get the promotion you deserve.
Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
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Make a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
How did I learn about this job?
How did I apply for the job?
Did I earn an interview?
What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
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Are you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
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Your job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.
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