Persistence Gets Promotions

Posted on December 1, 2021 | Leave a comment

People wait in lines. We get upset when someone cuts in front. So we wait back until it is our turn. We don’t want to be greedy.

Tim was competing with three others for a promotion at EDS. He was prepared. He was a good choice. He told his boss, “I do want this promotion. It is the next step I need to take in my career. But I don’t want you to choose me for the job if the other guys should have it. I know it is important to them too. I don’t want you to feel any pressure to give it to me even though I want it.” 

Tim did NOT get the promotion.

Tim also waited a full year to get half of the bonus he was promised for putting in a lot of overtime on a project. During that year he reminded his boss twice of the bonus. Then Tim waited patiently with a smile. Tim was a nice guy. He was getting beaten up because he was afraid that being insistent that he was the correct choice was uncouth. Tim was politely waiting in line.

Let’s compare that to me. Same area at EDS, different job. I wanted to move to a special technical team. There were 4 openings. I asked my team leader and manager to help me get in. I reminded them every few days. I visited the manager who was leading the new group every other day. I brought a word of cheer or another accomplishment. He had no doubt how much I wanted the job. He got an email after every contact. I got the job with 3 years of experience. The other technicians were 5 to 20 years my senior. They were well known and earned twice what I did. I was nobody in comparison. And I know I beat out a whole bunch of other folks who had way better credentials than me.

I waited, but I was persistent while I waited. I made sure my references were checked. I offered more proof of my accomplishments. I never let the manager forget I wanted that job. Towards the end he would see me in his doorway and grin, “Bryan, I haven’t made that decision yet, but I’m going to. Don’t worry. I know you want the job.” But I kept coming for 3 weeks anyway. I wanted the job more than I wanted to be polite. I was willing to out work any of the more senior guys he could hire. This was my only way to prove it.

There were a lot of very surprised people when I got the job. They were obviously better than me. But I was persistent. I made it a big deal. I got the job. Unfortunately there was nothing left for the others waiting in line.

Something to do today

If you are job hunting or looking for a promotion, be persistent. The job seeker who offers contagious enthusiasm often gets hired over the guy with experience. For the job that is a quantum leap forward in your career, refuse to wait in line.

Leave a comment

Posted in Promotions

Tagged ,

Clean up messes in your career growth

Posted on November 29, 2021 | Leave a comment

Jason has had 3 promotions in 2 years. His pay has gone up 50%. His attitude is a delight. If there is a tough job, he’ll rally the team and get the job done. Jason not only gets the chance to fix disasters, he fixes the problems behind the disasters. No one has ever done that before. He is having a huge impact. He seems to whistle a magic tune that improves attitudes and gets unbelievable results. 

Jason also just quit. He took a new job that pays a little less than he earns now.

Two things happened. First, Jason realized his boss would always be a loose cannon and Jason would always get to clean up. Second, with a boss like that it was obvious the company would never go out of business, but it would never get much bigger either.

The best part is that all the things he did looked great when he applied for a job. He applied at their strongest competitor. Jason is going to a company that is really growing. It is a company with a plan and a history of doing things right the first time.

Wherever you are, whistle a happy tune. Put an accomplishment list together that will carry you into a better job, and if necessary, get that job in a better company. 

Something to do today

Just for the record, all the stories I tell are true, but the names are changed.

Document your accomplishments for each week. Give a copy to your boss in a format he can use for his reports. That way you can be sure he knows why you are the best employee he has.

Leave a comment

Posted in Attitude

Tagged ,

Every conversation is an interview

Posted on November 26, 2021 | Leave a comment

Our office was small, 5 desks. We always wear office casual. Our interview style is casual. We ask a lot of tough questions, but we try our best to put candidates at ease.

A candidate was making some rather crude remarks about former coworkers. He shoveled up some really inappropriate dirt on some characters he knew. Finally he was told, “Saying things like that in an interview is going to keep everyone from wanting to have anything to do with you.”

He replied, “But this isn’t an interview.”

His mistake

You are in an interview anytime you talk with someone who can help you get a job. Use your interview manners when you talk to friends, acquaintances, recruiters, people in Human Resources and when you talk to a company President. Your friend who knows a manager in another company is interviewing you when you ask him to submit your resume. A recruiter is always interviewing people.

Some interviewers, like recruiters, require more in-depth information than others. Give it to them, but don’t show hatred. Don’t viciously gossip.

That doesn’t mean you should hide things, it means you should get over them. Let them go. Forgive. Forget. At the very least stop bringing horrible things up. 

A way to measure what to say

The measure of what you should say now, is what you imagine yourself saying about the situation in 5 or 10 years.

When you are looking for a job in 5 or 10 years you will not say much about the SOB’s at your last job. They won’t be worth the time. You may have to say why you left, but it will only take 20 seconds. 

When you paint someone with a hateful brush, you expose your hate. Your hatred, loathing or disgust is never pretty. Those who see it will always wonder when you will say the same things about them. A rabid vicious dog is never welcome in any neighborhood. So, why would someone want you, a vengeful, spiteful, nasty mouthed person, working on their team? 

Get on with your life. Forgive, forget. Concentrate on the good things you do. Remember, you are always in an interview.

Something to do today

Think about the negatives that come out of your mouth in an interview. Figure out a way to clinically describe bad things that happened without emotion. Figure out how to do it in 20 seconds. 

Leave a comment

Posted in Attitude

Tagged ,

Imitate to succeed

Posted on November 24, 2021 | Leave a comment

An ex-NFL football player told me how he got to the big league. He chose a player he wanted to be just like. Then he learned to hold his hands just like him. He placed his feet just like his hero. He ran like his hero. He exercised like his hero. He did everything he could to play football just like his hero. He started in 9th grade football and continued through college. He made it into the NFL. 

When I met him in Denver, he was a couple of years into a new career selling real estate. He was doing the same thing. He picked one of the best real estate salesmen in Denver and was doing exactly what the new hero did. Once again he was becoming a superstar.

There’s a hint there. Find someone who is successful at what you want to do. Become like them. If they do something, you do it.

One more thing. Watch very carefully what your hero does NOT do. What do they avoid? What do they refuse to do? Too many people try to become a success doing the things that a successful person refuses to do. 

If you want to be a millionaire, I suggest you read one or two books by Thomas Stanley. The Millionaire Next Door is a bunch of stories about how millionaires became millionaires. The Millionaire Mind has some stories, but also takes a statistical approach. It tells what first generation millionaires do, as a group, to get their money.

Better yet, find a millionaire to personally learn from.

Do you want to be a Partner, CEO, CFO, CIO, or Project Manager? Find the best example you can, and do everything the way they do. Invite them to lunch. Ask them what they would do in your shoes. Become just like them at work.

Hero, mentor, example. Find one so you can become one.

Something to do today

Find your mentor and example. Learn to work just like they do.

Leave a comment

Posted in Perseverance

Tagged

Turn your weakness into a strength to get the job

Posted on November 22, 2021 | Leave a comment

What is one of your weaknesses?

The candidate gave one weakness. He was prepared for that question.

The interviewer paused and frowned. He couldn’t remember what he had planned for the next question.

The candidate got nervous. Why did the interviewer pause? He blurted out another weakness. This one was a little more serious. He hadn’t prepared to offer more than one weakness. 

This caught the interviewer so off guard that he blinked a couple of times and furrowed his brow. 

The candidate couldn’t hold back. There was another weakness. 

The candidate fell apart. He added even more weaknesses. He talked himself out of a job.

Be prepared to talk about one weakness. For good measure, make it something that could be a strength, but that you take too far. It could be working late or being a perfectionist. Tell how you correct the weakness.

Then shut up.

Never give more than one weakness. Otherwise YOU will ruin your chance.

Something to do today

Prepare for the question, “What is one of your weaknesses.” Make sure you also include in your answer how you compensate for that weakness..

Leave a comment

Posted in Interviews

Tagged ,

Turn a bad career into a good one

Posted on November 19, 2021 | Leave a comment

Tim tells me why he has to leave his current company every couple of months. Then he says he has to stay. Leadership is lacking. The work ethic stinks. His office only stays alive because it is propped up by corporate headquarters. He and his boss both know what is wrong. Tim can’t fix it and the boss won’t fix it. 

Tim does have a good reason to stay. He had five jobs in four years before he took this job. He wants to make it to the two or even three year mark here to clear up his resume. If the office lasts that long without being closed, he will stay.

More important than collecting years of service, he is collecting accomplishments. Tim can prove he produces 2/3 of the output at his office of 6 people. He has proof that his occasional training of coworkers has had a deep impact. Tim has numbers. Tim has projects and accomplishments. Those numbers look even better because of his unproductive coworkers.

This is not a race away from his old job. Tim is slowly rowing away from the rocks in his career. He may need a new job tomorrow or in two years. There is no telling how long corporate will suffer losses cheerfully. So he is preparing to leave. 

If you are in a dead end job, use it as a lifeboat to your next job. Be the most important person in your office. Keep track of exactly how good you are. Slowly row away from the rocks in your lifeboat job.

Something to do today

Whether you plan on it or not, your current job is the boat you are in until your next job. Collect accomplishments, projects and cheerful statistics.

Write those accomplishments in your job journal. Give a list of them to your manager. That is the only way to be sure he notices what you do.

Leave a comment

Posted in Quitting or Fired

Tagged ,

Keep your job without getting promoted

Posted on November 18, 2021 | Leave a comment

Not everyone wants to get promoted. I knew an accountant who was approaching retirement who had done nothing but the lowest level accounting positions since he’d gotten out of college. When I offered him a promotion, he laughed and said “I’ve been doing exactly what I wanted for the last 40 years. I don’t want a change.” 

Some businesses have an “up or out” style of promotion. Get passed up for a few promotions and you may find yourself out of a job.

How do you get respect and a chance to keep a job that people usually get promoted out of?

Wrong ways that keep you from getting that promotion

Keep dice in your drawer.  Whenever your boss asks for a decision, roll the dice.  Pull out a chart and run your finger down the rows.  Then give the correct answer, not the one from the chart.  That will keep you from getting promoted, even if it only LOOKS like you’re using the dice to find a solution.  Of course you may lose credibility with your boss, but not all plans are perfect.

That’s a terrible idea. Don’t do it. 

The right way to prevent getting promoted

You can keep from getting pushed out if you don’t want a promotion.  First of all, let your boss know you love your job and don’t want a promotion.  

Next, don’t get stuck in place.  You should become the company’s greatest mentor. You can be a mentor as a technician, manager, HR specialist or assembly line worker. Just help others with their careers. 

Keep an eye out for complainers and whiners.  Avoid them.  There is usually very little you can do for them.  Look for people who sincerely want to advance.  Find the diamonds in the rough.  These are people who put in extra work, take night classes and are always helping others.  Find the one or two shining examples in the workforce and help them advance.  

Often the biggest thing you can do is to recommend one of your diamonds for a project.  Then help them to see the critical path for the project and follow it.  Give them encouragement along the way.   Make sure they know where the levers of power are.  They need to know who really makes things happen in the company.

As a person who doesn’t want a promotion, you need to help the people blocked by your permanence.  Help them move up beside you or to hop over you.  If you get a reputation for developing leaders, you will never be laid off.  Good companies covet good leaders.

Something to do today

You should be developing leaders whether you want to stay where you are or not.  In your job journal write down the names of the top one or two candidates for promotion in your group.  Help them out.  Be a mentor even if you aren’t above them

Leave a comment

Posted in Career choice

Tagged ,

How to get your boss’s job

Posted on November 16, 2021 | Leave a comment

You have to kill your boss, or the senior technician to get a promotion. They have the job you want and are not leaving. They don’t want a promotion. They are fat and happy. They are like a big wad of hair and grease in the sink trap. They clog up the career track for everyone else. So, where is the Drano? How do you get them out of your way?

First be sure they are the biggest problem. It is embarrassing when you have complained for 5 years about your boss preventing you from getting a promotion, only to have him leave and a coworker is promoted in his place. 

You need to have a list of standout accomplishments that prove you are perfect for the job you want. That way you can get the job in your current company OR the next one. 

Become the obvious candidate. Ask your boss to help you get promoted. Also ask HR (Human Resources) and your boss’s boss. Find someone who will champion your cause and be your mentor. A mentor helps you prepare to advance and gives you visibility outside your team. Your mentor will help you to find high visibility assignments where you can prove your worth.

In a job journal write a weekly list of your accomplishments and projects. Use that list in your annual reviews. Also submit a weekly, monthly and quarterly list of accomplishments to your boss. Make sure he knows how much you contribute.

You can also look for a new job. If you have a list of undeniable accomplishments you will be a good hire for another company. 

The same things that prepare you for a promotion in your company will make you a better job candidate.

Something to do today

Write down your career goals. It doesn’t matter if they change tomorrow. Know where you want to go today.

Leave a comment

Posted in Promotions

Tagged ,

Patience gets you paid what you’re worth.

Posted on November 12, 2021 | Leave a comment

Henry accepted 30% more salary for a job than he was initially offered. Acme Corp. ended up paying 30% more. (Yes, the story is true, the names are changed.) Five factors affected it. I mentioned four of them yesterday.

The five factors are:

  • The company’s finances 
  • The other people available for the job 
  • The resume 
  • The interview 
  • Patience

Here’s how it happened.

Acme is doing well financially. Unfortunately finding highly skilled people for the job is difficult. Mediocre people earn Acme half the profit that a highly skilled person earns them. The resume proved that Henry was one of the top people in the country. The interview confirmed it. The initial offer was flat out rejected by Henry. Acme looked around for weeks and couldn’t find anyone of that caliber. In the meantime Acme was being hurt by waiting to fill the position. Acme and Henry got together again and came to an agreement.

A very important step was proving how much Henry was worth. First we used the resume, then the interview. The resume gave absolute, ironclad, irrefutable proof that Henry was one of the best in the country. We gave verifiable production numbers as well as comparisons to everyone else in his old company. 

In the interview the figures were repeated. Henry also interviews extremely well.

Last of all, Henry rejected a low offer. He waited without being offended. After a few weeks it became obvious the company made a mistake. Henry got his offer at a number he deserved.

You need to make a list of things you have accomplished that prove how much you can be worth to your next company. If you absolutely prove you will be worth twice what anyone else is, you too will get a lot more money. 

The next article is about how to radically increase your interview effectiveness. I’ll give you three things you can do to prepare for interviews. Things that could get you 10% more money.

Something to do today

Can you prove how much you are worth to your company? How many customers did you bring in or save? How much profit did you generate? How much money did you save the company? 

Make a list.

Leave a comment

Posted in Negotiating

Tagged ,

What the companies are really willing to pay you

Posted on November 10, 2021 | Leave a comment

You have interviewed with five people at the company. Your references have been checked. The background and drug checks came in clean. Your recruiter has more negotiating skills in his pinky than the whole management chain in that company put together. Now to see how much money you will be paid for the job. 

There is an upper limit you won’t get past. It may be the first offer you hear. It may be reached after a week of haggling. There absolutely is an upper limit. The best negotiator cannot get you more money than that limit. That limit was more than 50% more than the listed salary range for one position I’ve seen. But there is still a limit.

What are the factors that set the limit?

  • The company’s finances
  • The other people available for the job
  • Your resume
  • Your interview

That’s it. The first two are very complex, but you can’t do anything about them. The last two are closely related. Your resume and your interview work together to show possibilities. They show how you might affect company finances. They allow you to be compared to those other people.

The next two blog posts will deal with what information you need to get to your future bosses, and how to radically increase your interview effectiveness. They are about how to get that 10% more.

Something to do today

Make a list of the topics covered in your last job interview. Tomorrow we’ll see if you covered the most important information.

Leave a comment

Posted in Negotiating

Tagged