Chasing a promotion is something that many employees choose to pursue from time to time, if only to help increase their salary while also improving the general challenge and satisfaction of their job. Yet while it’s important to consider some career advice that can help you (such as working harder, making sure to think creatively, and not being afraid to think outside of the box), much of this advice is geared towards prostrating yourself towards your employer instead of investing in yourself and becoming more competent in that role. Below, we hope to discuss 3 essential principles you can use for getting the best out of this approach.
By Team Savant
Image: Carl Heyerdahl
For instance, investing in yourself, such as by learning additional skills or training with Easy as HGV can can a great boon, and it may be totally self-directed. But what additional tips can we use to give ourselves the best chance of a successful promotion without having to lose your dignity and working individuality in the process?
Learn The History & Values Of The Firm
Management are more likely to consider you for a promotion not if you bend over backwards to do anything they say, but if you take a healthy interest in your career with the firm, and care about the place you work. It’s good, then, to learn about the history of the firm if you haven’t already, and to emphasize its values, and to truly internalise why you’d want a promotion here of all places. This can help your application gain the authenticity it might need to succeed.
Underpromise, Overdeliver
One of the oldest tricks in the book is to underpromise and overdeliver, but it works so well, it’s worth a mention here. If your staff regularly see you outperforming expectations, and seemingly going the extra mile despite not loudly declaring that you will, and that you seem to apply yourself with independence and think out of the box for time to time, they will see you as promotional material. Sometimes, that simply means not letting your promises run away with you. The lower the expectations (within reason), the more wriggle room you have to break them. It’s not hard to see how that can go in your favor.
Be Present & Observant
Most of the task is just showing up, and being prepared to pay attention. This is why it’s healthy to be present and observant regarding your potential life at the firm. What does this promotion actually entail? Who might you be replacing? What do they do every day, and how can you potentially think of defining your own stamp regarding that role through and through? These kinds of efforts can make a massive difference, and will potentially help you seem like the natural choice, rather than someone who has gone out of their way to be perfect, but not human, in the run up to the selection process.
With this advice, you’re sure to give yourself a better chance of being promoted.