• Home
  • About Us
  • Our Team
  • Contact Us
  • Login

Join In!

  • facebook
  • pinterest
  • twitter

Progressive Women's Leadership

Empowering. Supportive. Bold

EMPOWERING. SUPPORTIVE. BOLD.
  • Training
    • Career Development
    • Communication
    • Leadership
  • All-Access
  • Custom
  • eGuides
  • Blog
    • Leadership
    • Communication
    • Community
    • Life Balance
    • Gender Partnerships
    • Women in the World
  • Resources
    • Free Leadership E-Guides
    • Podcasts
You are here: Home / Featured Home / Want a Promotion? You Should Already Be Doing These 6 Things

Want a Promotion? You Should Already Be Doing These 6 Things

April 19, 2016 By Lisa McKale

There’s an opening for a position that offers more clout (not to mention more money). It would be a promotion for you, and you’ve been eyeing a higher position for a while.

You’re giving serious thought about making a move on it. But you’re not sure if you’re qualified. You don’t want to anger your current boss. And is HR even considering hiring in-house?

While you were thinking about it, someone else in your department applied—and got the job!

You Make It Happen

PromotionThis ever happen to you? (Unfortunately, I speak from experience on this one!)

If it hasn’t, don’t let it.

Some promotions result from a great performance review or a certain amount of tenure. But it doesn’t pay to wait for one to bang on your Door of Opportunity. So be sure you’re taking these 6 steps to make it happen.

Build Your Own Ladder

  1. Keep track of company moves. Who’s leading that department you might be interested in? Did they recently just hire, or do they have openings—and if so what are they? Knowing the changes your company is making can make you privy to newly created positions or ones that have been vacated. You might be just the right person for that new position!
  1. Write your own promotion plan. Formulate a career playbook of sorts—mainly for your own benefit, but also to chart your course should the opportunity arise. Note ideas you have for furthering your own career goals, and for how you’d lead your department if given the chance. Create a list of possible new projects you’d like to have a hand in, or ideas for changes that could save time and money.
  1. Talk “promotion” in your performance reviews. Reviews done either formally (once a year on your anniversary) or even at monthly intervals present openings for you to discuss your goals within the company. Say you’d be open to taking on more responsibility. Or mention that you’d like to be considered once a higher position opens up. Your boss will get that while you’re not content to do the same job for 10 years, you’re still invested in the company long-term.
  1. Network with people you already work with. Take the opportunity to get to know co-workers who could affect your promotion. Socialize with them if possible—take time to chat in the breakroom, or ask them to join you for lunch if it’s appropriate.
  1. Cultivate your image as a problem-solver. According to Wharton professor Adam Grant, author of Originals, people who are known for their creative ideas and solutions are the ones who get promoted. Employees who take initiative give the impression that they’re focused on the company’s success and not just their own. Grant calls this “strategic non-conformity.” Instead of keeping your head down, look around and say, “What problems can I solve that will make a measurable difference for this company?”
  1. Mingle with people outside your comfort zone. Learn about what they do and how they do it. If you’re toiling in Sales but would love to break into Marketing, getting to know the marketers and how they get their job done could give you an idea of how to break in. 

The top tip for snagging a promotion? Don’t be afraid to ask.

Recommended For You

  • Inside the C-Suite: Meet Indra Nooyi, CEO, PepsiCoInside the C-Suite: Meet Indra Nooyi, CEO, PepsiCo
  • Take The Detour to Success: Avoid These 6 Confidence KillersTake The Detour to Success: Avoid These 6 Confidence Killers
  • Getting to the C-Suite (from a female COO who did)Getting to the C-Suite (from a female COO who did)
  • 5 Behaviors That Could Be Stalling Your Career5 Behaviors That Could Be Stalling Your Career
  • Inside the C-Suite: Meet Meg Whitman, CEO, Hewlett Packard EnterpriseInside the C-Suite: Meet Meg Whitman, CEO, Hewlett Packard Enterprise
  • Weigh the Options: 4 Career Moves That Need a Pro/Con ListWeigh the Options: 4 Career Moves That Need a Pro/Con List
  • The Most Effective Ways to Say ‘I Don’t Know’The Most Effective Ways to Say ‘I Don’t Know’
  • Inside the C-Suite: Meet Ginni Rometty, CEO, chairwoman and president of IBMInside the C-Suite: Meet Ginni Rometty, CEO, chairwoman and president of IBM

Filed Under: Featured Home, Leadership Tagged With: Branding, career advice, confidence, Gender Equality, Negotiation, Promotions

Looking to Make a Difference?

Join thousands of other leading women who have made the commitment to change.

GET MORE INFORMATION

KEEP UP WITH THE LATEST

Updates, discounts and content from Progressive Women’s Leadership straight to your inbox. Your information will never be sold or distributed.

Negotiating Skills: How to Ask for – and Get – What You Want | Course | Starts November 2nd

Popular Posts

  • Why It Pays to Praise: 40 Ways to Say ‘Good Job’
  • Employees complaining about pay? How to respond – and keep morale high
  • 6 Tools for Handling Difficult Conversations
  • Use your head – literally! 4 head gestures every leader needs
  • How To Deal With Those Time-Wasting Employees
Progressive Women's Leadership

Training

  • Live Training
  • On-Demand Webinars
  • Custom Training

Blog Topics

  • Leadership
  • Communication
  • Community
  • Life Balance
  • Gender Partnerships
  • Women in the World

Leadership E-Guides


Free Resources

  • Free Leadership E-Guides
  • Podcasts

Copyright © 2022 · Progressive Women's Leadership · Privacy Policy

WELCOME BACK!

Enter your username and password below to log in

Forget Your Username or Password?

Reset Password

Lost your password? Please enter your username or email address. You will receive a link to create a new password via email.

Log In