Why do some people get promoted, while other, seemingly more “deserving,” people get left behind? The answer lies in the way people (incorrectly) perceive promotions to be granted—that if you work hard, you’ll surely make your way up the corporate ladder. While there is an element of truth to this, you need to do more to ensure you get promotions.
There’s a simple step you can take to communicate your successes without appearing arrogant: send a simple email to your manager, every week.
Janet Choi, author of Why Some People Get Promoted (And Others Don’t), explains that success isn’t a straight line. If you want the promotion you deserve, you can’t sit back and wait for it to happen solely based on the fact that you do great work. Janet notes that the key to increasing your odds of a promotion is to communicate your successes with others. It’s simple: you do things, you tell people.
Here are three ways to tell colleagues about your accomplishments to help get that promotion you deserve:
1. Send a Quick Email
Most people have reservations about communicating their accomplishments to others. When done incorrectly, it comes off as arrogant and annoying, and can even alienate your colleagues. The problem is, you need to tell people about all the work you’re doing, and all the projects you’re completing, otherwise it might go unnoticed. You manager isn’t a mind-reader, and it’s especially problematic if you tend to work in teams, as your manager won’t be able to distinguish between everyone’s individual contributions.
There’s a simple step you can take to communicate your successes without appearing arrogant: send a simple email to your manager, every week.
By sending a simple, informal, description of all you’ve done that week, your manager will be able to see your progress—something that gets lost when looking at successes on a day-to-day basis—and won’t be kept in the dark in regards to all you’re doing, or wondering if you’re even doing your job. Sending a simple email turns an act of self-promotion into a friendly and ordinary update. It keeps you top-of-mind with your manager, and gives your manager a laundry-list of your weekly accomplishments he or she can turn to when determining who in the company should be promoted.
You can adjust the timeframe as needed, sending an email every two weeks or just once a month, incase you feel that once a week is too frequent.
2. Ask for Feedback
Getting help and asking for feedback shows that you’re dedicated to fixing problems, learning, and getting better at your job. People often avoid asking for help and feedback out of sheer pride, or even just being afraid of what other people will say, which leads to the same level of work always being completed, with no signs of improvement.
Asking for help and feedback also makes your colleagues feel good about themselves. You could have turned anywhere for help, even turning online, but you turned to them, and they’ll remember that.
If you keep your head down when you need help or feedback, you’ll never get noticed and your work won’t improve. Asking around and turning to colleagues keeps you visible, shows your commitment to your job, and improves the quality of your work—all important when hoping for a promotion in the near future.
3. Work on Visible Projects
Be as visible as possible. Work on projects that have the highest impact and highest visibility. If possible, work where people can see you in order to increase your visibility. If your work is visible and in public, you’ll be able to own it and show it off—what better way to demonstrate your capabilities when looking for a promotion?