STRATEGIES TO HELP YOU GET THAT PROMOTION

You can’t always expect to be talent spotted, so you’ve got to work on what you can do to be seen as promotable, says Anna Mcnicholl.

Sometimes it’s not easy to figure out how to get that next step up. I’ve thought about this a lot over the years and worked on this for myself and others I’m supporting.

Here’s a few ideas that might help:

Don’t wait for your managers to notice you and what you do: By this I mean you can’t always expect to be ‘talent spotted’ so you’ve got to work on what you can do to be seen as promotable.

In New Zealand we tend to have a culture where if you’re too much of a selfpromoter this can be seen as a negative, so in my view there’s a real balance.

You can get noticed by doing small things like putting your hand up for a project or just offering to help someone with what they are working on.

Getting more confident at speaking up in meetings and having something interesting to say is also useful to get noticed.

Get to know people at work and get yourself out there too: Then there’s good old networking. Even just the word can spark fear in some of us.

If you only focus on work talk with your colleagues, then you won’t really get to know people and be lucky enough to find out their special insights.

Make the effort to connect with people you admire at work, find out what they have learnt and what makes them tick.

Go to events where you could meet like-minded people or people who are completely different to you.

Take the brave move to step out of your comfort zone and do it even if you think it’s not your thing – you might be surprised how this can actually increase your confidence. New people and their ideas, whether you agree with them or not, are great for growth.

Self awareness: Learning about who we are and how we can more successfully interact with others is probably the most valuable learning you can ever do. And this is life-long learning. Don’t put yourself in a box and say ‘this is who I am’ otherwise you can get stuck and not realise what you are capable of over time.

If you’ve had any feedback in the past, then really look at this and talk with someone you trust to get to the bottom of what this may mean for you.

It’s easy to ‘blame’ feedback you don’t like on someone else, but maybe there’s something there for us to work on.

Figure out what your own personal values are. It’s surprising how often people don’t know. Let’s say, for example, one of your top five is ‘integrity’. Think about what this means to you in others and check yourself that you are doing what you believe others should be doing.

Check in with your friends, family, manager and trusted colleagues on what your blind spots might be.

Be prepared to take this on the chin

“In New Zealand we tend to have a culture where if you’re too much of a selfpromoter this can be seen as a negative, so in my view there’s a real balance. ”

and think about what areas of your current behaviours may be holding you back from promotion.

There’s free online assessments you can check out, or some kind of training may be useful.

Leadership isn’t just about title: This isn’t new but we can often forget this simple fact.

Even if you don’t want a promotion that includes having direct reports, being promotable is a lot about showing leadership qualities.

Start with the basics that are so important: Are you reliable, do you show up and get the work done, do you have a reputation for doing what you say you will do?

Have a real honest look at yourself – if you haven’t got that basics right then work on these to start with.

Every business has different ways they describe their leadership qualities or competencies.

If you’re not sure what they are – ask and then find a way of developing these qualities in yourself.

Again, use free stuff online or ask to attend some kind of training to gain some tips and techniques that will support your growth.

Read books. Kindle has many books on leadership that you can read and try out ideas to see if they work for you.

I think one of the most important things about being seen as promotable is to be authentic. Don’t try to be someone you’re not. It’s good to model your heroes’ behaviours and the way they do things, but being you and using your own style, that feels like you, works better.

Confidence: All of these suggestions take confidence and sometimes a bucketload of courage.

If you’re not confident, but behind the scenes you’re amazing, then you’ll need to work on gaining some confidence or this could hold you back.

There’s plenty of free material online to help you. Plus talk to your manager about sending you on a course or training to work on any gaps.

Ask for feedback from your managers and trusted colleagues, as we often don’t know our own blind spots in terms of if we are perceived as confident (in the right way) or not.

Anna Mcnicholl is the group HR manager at The Skills Group. The Institute of Management New Zealand is part of The Skills Group.

“I think one of the most important things about being seen as promotable is to be authentic. Don’t try to be someone you’re not. ”