Gaining Power In Your Career: A Guide to Getting Promoted at Every Level

by Dana Theus | Nov 20, 2024 | Career Development, Coaching Advice

Key Takeaways

• Getting promoted is not just about hard work: While dedication is important, getting promoted requires a deeper understanding of how the system works. You need to be strategic and play the game effectively.  
• Toot your own horn: Don’t be shy about your accomplishments! Make sure your boss knows how your work has made a real difference.  
• Leadership starts now: You don’t need a fancy title to be a leader. Take initiative, even in small ways, to show you’re ready for more responsibility.  
• Build your brand: What makes you unique? Cultivate your professional image and align it with the kind of work you want to do.  
• Network like a boss: Build relationships inside and outside your company. Networking can open doors to new opportunities and valuable insights.  
• Show savvy about the next level: Show that you’re ready for the next level by demonstrating the skills and mindsets you’ll need to succeed there. (Hint: The problems of first line manager are different than a VP. Show that you know the difference.)  

You may not want to become CEO, but you do want to feel as though you’re progressing in your career, gaining new skills, gaining more meaningful work, making more money, and broadening your scope of authority beyond your current role. This is particularly true if gaining a leadership role is appealing. Climbing the ladder isn’t all there is to career development, but over the course of your career, some vertical progression and moving to a bigger role simply makes you feel better about yourself. Getting promoted gives you a greater sense that you have more control over your life than if you stayed in the same job year after year.

The problem is that sometimes earning a promotion feels like a treasure hunt with no map. It’s a mystery as to how to get ahead, and very frustrating when you think you’re doing things right, but the promotion doesn’t come. It’s very common in these situations to feel like:

• No one sees your potential
• Other people are getting more attention than they deserve
• Your hard work isn’t valued
• You’re hitting a glass ceiling of bias

While some or all of these things may be true, I notice that the clients who come to me in these situations often don’t understand some fundamental things about what actually earns people promotions to new jobs with more responsibility and authority. This is especially the case if they read articles like this that basically advise you to just do a good job. Doing a good job may be helpful early in your career, or as an individual contributor, but to move into a leadership role, you have to get smart about how the system works and adapt your career moves to be a player in the game you’re playing. To many people’s surprise, the following does not usually–by themselves–earn you the step up.

• Hard work
• Expertise
• Visibility
• Results
• Positive peer and staff reviews
• Who you know

In addition to playing the game better, there are some very specific approaches you need to take to earn promotions at the different levels of leadership. These are addressed at the end of this article. First, let’s focus on the core skills you need to master for moving up.

Understanding Your Value And Promoting Your Key Accomplishments

When you want to get promoted, understanding and articulating your value is crucial. Working hard isn’t enough. Your efforts must also be noticed and appreciated beyond your performance reviews. Start by taking stock of your key accomplishments, which is also a great way to build your confidence. Reflect on projects where your contribution made a significant difference—whether it streamlined a process, boosted the company’s revenue, or improved team morale. Put the top accomplishments into a story that form the backbone of your professional narrative.

Once you have refined the narrative of your career-to-date, you need to connect it to the story of the career you want to build and what excites you about your future. This gives you a context to position yourself for new kinds of success.

It’s critical that the people who will give you the promotion believe you’ll be successful in the new position. Their belief is based on your ability to communicate how you’ve added value in your current job and your excitement about earning new things that will make you even more valuable in the future, especially if you get promoted. Be clear and direct when discussing your ambitions with your supervisors. This isn’t just about trying to get promoted; it’s about seeking opportunities for professional growth and expressing your readiness to take on additional responsibilities. Your boss will more easily believe you’re ready for a new job when you show them you believe it, too.

Developing Leadership Skills from the Ground Up

Leadership isn’t reserved for those with a better title or corner office. It begins with how you handle responsibilities and interact with colleagues and co-workers at any level. To be seen as a higher-level leader, start by embracing opportunities to lead, no matter how small they may seem. This could be anything from managing a project to organizing a team outing (but beware of volunteering to do too much non-promotable work!) Such initiatives help you practice decision-making, use new tools, solve problems outside your box and learn to be a great team player, essential skills for any leader.

Active listening, communicating clearly with the bottom line first, and providing constructive feedback as a role model and managing up are all foundational to developing strong leadership qualities. These skills not only help in building rapport with your team but also enhance your ability to manage projects and guide your team towards achieving business goals. Remember, a good leader is also a good role model and effective communicator—focused on priorities, clear, concise, and open to dialogue.

Being open and welcoming of diverse people and viewpoints is another critical trait. It fosters an inclusive work environment and encourages open communication, making team members feel valued and understood. This approach not only improves team productivity but also boosts your reputation as a leader who cares about team dynamics and individual contributions.

Building and Evolving Your Personal Brand for Career Growth

Your personal brand should be a true reflection of who you are and what you stand for professionally. When you show up as your best self, focused on the issues and opportunities that mean the most to you and your business, this attitude forms a reputation that opens doors for exactly the kind of work you want to do more of in the future. To enhance your brand, start by identifying what makes you unique and brings you joy. Do you love being a tech-savvy innovator? A creative problem solver? A resilient team leader? Recognizing and leveraging these traits can help you stand out and align with opportunities that fit your skills and passions.

Seeking feedback is a powerful tool for personal brand development. Constructive criticism from peers, mentors, or coaches can provide new perspectives on your strengths and areas for improvement, guiding your professional development. If you’re already managing and leading people, consider getting a 360 assessment to give you insights you can’t get any other way. Remember, your personal brand is dynamic; it evolves as you grow in your career. Regularly update your skills, seek new experiences, and adjust your brand as you progress.

Managing issues that concern senior-level executives requires a mindset shift. Start thinking at the next level, working to solve problems your bosses–what keeps them up at night?–and how you can contribute to strategic goals, even from your current position.

By focusing on these areas, you set a strong foundation for continuous growth and advancement in your career. Whether you’re an aspiring manager or preparing to step into a CEO role, building an understanding of your value and leadership skills into a robust personal brand are key steps on the path to career success.

Building Relationships and Networking

Building stakeholder relationships and networking are pivotal for career development and job promotion. It’s not just about who you know but how well you cultivate and maintain these connections and curate your reputation in the minds of sponsors. Start by developing a network of relationships within your colleagues, across the company, and within your professional community. This can range from friendly interactions with teammates to mentoring relationships with senior colleagues who can offer invaluable advice and guidance.

To build helpful relationships, be a human being. Show genuine interest in your colleagues’ work and well-being, and be mindful of how you present yourself in various interactions. Proactively seek feedback and use it as a learning opportunity to grow and improve. Attend company events, join professional organizations, and participate in online communities related to your industry to expand your network.

Network to stay informed about new opportunities and trends in your field. By building relationships with industry peers, you can gain valuable insights and advice that can help you advance in your career. Remember, strong relationships are the foundation of a successful career, providing support, opportunities, and a platform for continuous growth.

Embracing Your Leadership Potential and Self-Confidence

It’s important to advocate for your own advancement. Understand and articulate your value in performance reviews and beyond. Don’t shy away from discussing your achievements and career aspirations with your superiors. Taking on new responsibilities can highlight your willingness to grow and be seen as a valuable asset by supervisors. Self-advocacy is a powerful tool in your career development arsenal.

Mentorship and professional development can be very helpful. Seek out mentors who can guide you, and don’t underestimate the power of networking. Connecting with other successful people in the field you aspire to lead in can provide not only inspiration but also practical advice and support.

Lastly, let go of perfectionism and prepare to face and overcome challenges and make mistakes.

Overcoming Obstacles and Setbacks

Overcoming obstacles and setbacks is an inevitable part of career management and key to mastering if you want to get promoted. Challenges will arise, but it’s your response to these hurdles that defines your path to success. Developing a growth mindset and resilience is key. View challenges as opportunities to learn and grow, and don’t hesitate to ask for help when needed. People don’t see you as “weak” when you ask for help, they see you as smart for being self-aware of what you need to succeed in your current role.

Maintaining a positive attitude is crucial. Focus on finding solutions rather than dwelling on problems. Learn from your mistakes and use them as stepping stones for improvement. Remember, setbacks are a normal part of career growth, and how you handle them will determine your success.

Don’t be afraid to take calculated risks and step outside your comfort zone. Your stretch zone is often where the most significant growth and learning occur. By overcoming obstacles and setbacks, you develop the skills and confidence needed to succeed in your career and achieve job promotion. Embrace each challenge as an opportunity to prove your capabilities and strengthen your resolve, paving the way for future success.

Leveraging Coaching and Support Networks

Coaching can be transformative in your leadership journey. A good coach can help you refine your leadership style, improve your strategic thinking, prepare for your new role, and increase your organizational impact. Communicating with the HR department is also crucial for career advancement, as they can provide guidance, training, and support in planning for promotions.

Mentors are equally important. These are people who hold the positions you want in the future. You’ll gain great insight into “what keeps them up at night,” and they can help you to think at the next level, even in your current role.

There are numerous resources and programs designed to support people on your career path. Look for leadership development programs and professional associations that address the unique challenges in your field. These can provide not only training but also access to a community of peers and role models.

While getting a promotion from manager to senior manager to director requires different strategies than getting promoted to CXO or CEO, there are some general dynamics that apply in all cases.

Tips for moving up at every level

It’s possible to do all the things already mentioned in this post and still not succeed at your goal to move up. This is because each level of leadership requires a unique mindset shift, and these become specific challenges depending on what level you’re aspiring to. When you learn to do this for the level you’re going to next, you’re demonstrating you’re ready for the transition. Each level requires different things to show you’re ready to operate there.

Moving from individual contributor to manager

While individual contributors are expected to use their expertise to produce output, managers are expected to develop and lead people who can do that. Managers need to be able to interpret larger goals and objectives into team- and individual-specific goals. To get promoted, they need to represent their team’s needs and contributions to senior management and other stakeholders inside and outside the organization. When an individual contributor conducts and presents their work with a clear understanding of these kinds of perspectives, hiring managers at the next level will take note that they have a manager’s point of view and can probably succeed in a management role. Expertise is important, but learning to empower people and hold them accountable is a greater indicator of success.

Moving from manager to director (middle management)

While managers succeed if their team produces results that matter with highly functioning individuals, middle managers have to do this on a larger scale and by developing leaders. They need to translate higher-level, more strategic goals and objectives into targets multiple teams and matrix teams can hit. They have to think and act at a departmental level, building stakeholder relationships across groups and more senior decision-makers. While a manager needs to demonstrate these abilities in a contained team, those ready for middle management must demonstrate they can handle the complexity of greater scale, more responsibility, and more authority. This is a very hard job, and it requires enough expertise to credibly lead teams of experts; prioritization, administrative, and people skills become a successful middle manager’s greatest strength.

Moving from middle management to executive leadership (VPs, CXOs)

Middle managers become very good at the operations of their functional areas of expertise, while executives focus more on cross-functional strategy. For example, Finance managers know the most about the accounting of the company, while Sales managers know what sells and why. Executive leaders know these things because their managers tell them, and they validate that what they’re hearing is true. But executives don’t know these things because they’re doing very much of the work. They don’t have time to do the work because their scope of authority is so broad, and a great deal of their time and energy is spent with their executive peers working to deliver company strategic objectives that cut across functional lines. While a Chief of Operations will spend a lot of time making decisions about operations, they will bring a perspective to these decisions honed in executive meetings where they are negotiating with the Chief Program Officer and the Chief Financial Officer about how the Operations groups can operate more efficiently to help cut expenses without cutting headcount (an example of a company strategic objective). For a middle manager to be considered seriously for executive leadership, they must develop a perspective that demonstrates they understand how their teams interface most effectively with peer organizations and show they can lead across functions to execute on strategies larger than their own functional area.

Moving from executive leadership to the top (General Manager, President, CEO)

While executives are setting and delivering against company-wide strategic goals and objectives, the folks at the very top are providing them organization-wide leadership and prioritization while also managing the needs and interests of major external stakeholders and investors, including the board. Regardless of the organization’s structure and definition (e.g., commercial, non-profit, government), every organization has external stakeholders with an outsized impact on the organization’s continued success and viability. These audiences must not only understand the organization’s strategy, they must believe in it so they can justify continuing their support. This means that the people at the top spend a huge amount of their time selling the organization–its successes and challenges–to these stakeholders. People ready for a top job must not only demonstrate that they understand what motivates outside stakeholders and investors, they must demonstrate they have and can build strong relationships with these people and institutions before a recruiting panel will make a bet on them to run the show.

Practical steps to getting promoted

Navigating a promotion from each level to the next is its own challenge, and each organizational culture will require slightly different approaches. But there are a few soft skills you can develop early in your career that will hold you in good stead at each step.

1. Get in your boss’s head: Ask questions and listen to your boss talk about what their boss(es) expects of them. Sit in on as many higher-level meetings as you can and pay attention to how people at the next two levels present themselves and what issues they grapple with. Learn what keeps them up at night and what success looks like from their point of view. Present your work and yourself to answer questions your boss hasn’t asked yet, but will if you don’t get ahead of yourself and think at the next level. Don’t present the facts, present the situation as you think your boss will see it, and tell your boss how you’re planning to handle it in a way you believe your boss will approve of. The more you show up in ways your boss can simply nod and offer tweaks, the more you’re demonstrating to them you’re already working at the next level, you just need the title and authority to produce more results that matter.
2. Learn to influence people above you: Everyone has buttons that will make them act. Learn what they are, why they work, and how to present your work and yourself in ways that punch the right buttons to gain their support.
3. Produce results that matter: Become an expert at cutting off activity and projects that don’t matter so you and your teams can focus on what does matter. Learn to pivot quickly when certain strategies demonstrate ineffectiveness. Use your influence skills to gain support for utilizing your resources against the highest priority work. Learn to work smarter, not harder so as not to burn yourself and others out in the effort to make a difference with your results.

There are a lot of subtleties in doing all this well, but if you focus on building these skills into your personal competencies, you’ll figure them out and get ahead.