Monthly Archives: December 2022

Career & Jobs

Career Promotion Advice: How to SHINE and Gain the Promotion You Want

You landed that first job and you have been at it for about a year or two. And you’re looking for career promotion advice to move up the ladder, successfully. Obviously, there are no hard and fast rules to this. However, there are guidelines that can help increase your chances of promotion.

In my years at work, I have had the opportunity to practice some of these advice and observed some of it being practiced too. I have also had the opportunity to give this career promotion advice to my staff. Many have gone on to greener pastures and they have told me these are some of the career promotion advice that works for them even now.

It is patent that to get promoted, you need to shine. But what do you have to do to shine to gain promotion? Here are some guidelines you can follow:

1. Serious

Be serious at work and be serious with your work. What does this mean? Being serious with your work does not mean that you cannot have fun at work. Neither does it mean you cannot enjoy your work. It just means that you need to focus on your work.

Be focused and never let anything detract you from what needs to be done on time with speed and consistency. No bosses like people who are not mindful of their job. When you are serious at work you minimize silly mistakes. Bosses and colleagues can feel your commitment. This career promotion advice does not stop you from having fun at work. Being serious at work means being focused and yet still be able to enjoy your work.

2. Hardworking

This is one career promotion advice that many career newbies find difficult to take. After all, they feel shouldn’t there be some form of short cuts? Being hardworking probably sounds laborious to many. And many would expect that a career promotion advice would talk more about working smart than working hard. Well, not this career promotion advice.

You see, no matter how much you work smart and no matter how many ‘tricks’ you know to work smart, you still need to work. You still need to be hardworking in order for the results to show. Any short cut that does not require being hardworking will not bear fruits!

3. Indispensable

Isn’t it true that no one is indispensable in this world? Well, it is true. But you should strive to make yourself indispensable in the unit you work in. To gain promotion and to shine at work, make “being indispensable” part of your career goals.

Strive to be a key competitive advantage to your bosses and your unit. When you do that you are making yourself indispensable. Being indispensable means taking initiatives, do what needs to be done on time. And take the initiative to do what is beyond the call of duty. When you take this career promotion advice to heart you increase your chances to gain promotion.

4. Nice

The advice of being hardworking in order to shine to gain that promotion is toughest to swallow for some. This career promotion advice then should be the easiest to accept – being nice at work. Being nice at work is to be a delight and pleasing to work with. It means to be polite and being able to handle your frustration and anger. It also means being able to lower your stress levels.

You would probably ask, why would being nice increase your chances to gain promotion? The answer is simple, when you are nice – polite, pleasing and able handle your emotions well; you demonstrate professional decorum. One who does that is more professional and shines at work more than one who does not.

5. Enthusiasm

If you want to gain promotion be enthusiastic at work. Put passion behind every task that is given to you to complete. Let that enthusiasm rub off on your colleagues. This career promotion advice works because when you put enthusiasm into every task, work becomes easier and lighter. You complete it with more accuracy and speed.

Enthusiasm does not just fuel you alone. That feeling of passion is also easily transferred to fellow teammates. It then fuels them to work harder for that common goal. When you work that way you naturally shine at work.

SHINE At Work

To shine at work remember to practice these attributes. It will help you increase the chances to gain promotion. Be Serious, Hardworking, strive to be Indispensable, Nice and Enthusiastic.

Coaching

Leadership Development in Recessionary Times – Choosing the Right Executive Coach

Are you working in a company or law firm where leaders are enrolled in an executive coaching program? How does your organization assess and select its’ executive coaches?

One of the most powerful questions one can ask is “What factors have contributed to the success of choosing the right executive coaches for our company leaders?” Emotionally intelligent and socially intelligent leaders have a clear plan for picking the right coaches for their executive coaching program.

Choosing the Right Executive Coach

In times of recession, companies must do more with less. Providing executive coaches to high-potential performers is one way to get the most out of untapped talent.

Willingness to be coached and a good fit are two of the key ingredients for a successful coaching relationship. This was reinforced in a January 2009 Harvard Business Review survey, in which researchers queried 140 top coaches about what companies should look for when hiring a coach.

According to the HBR article, there are two basic hiring rules:
1. Ensure executives are ready and willing to be coached
2. Allow them to choose the coach

Unfortunately, many executives select a coach based on referrals from colleagues, without adequately considering personal needs. The person sponsoring the engagement usually sends a few coaches for interviews and asks the executive to select one based on “fit.” But what does a good fit actually mean, and how do you avoid hiring a coach who feels right but may not challenge you to grow?

Without a greater understanding of what happens in a coaching relationship, it’s difficult to make a fair assessment and pick a good match. As the client, you should do the choosing, but you need some criteria to make the best selection.

In Your Executive Coaching Solution (Davies-Black, 2007), Joan Kofodimos says a coach should achieve most of the following:

1. Strike a balance between supporting and challenging you
2. Help create feedback loops with colleagues
3. Assist in clarifying your true strengths, values and purpose
4. Provide structure in the development process
5. Broaden your perspectives
6. Teach concepts and skills
7. Maintain confidentiality
8. Influence how others view you

Working with a seasoned executive coach trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating leadership assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-i and CPI 260 can help company leaders have a successful executive coaching experience by choosing the right executive coach. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence and social intelligence, and who inspires people to become happily engaged and aligned with the vision and mission of your company or law firm.