Young, smart, educated, after university they begin to work as a manager in a company that resembles a zoo: its own snakes, drones, sheep and deer. Moreover, even if you live exclusively by work and almost spend the night in the office, but at the same time you are not in a family relationship with your superiors, you can forget about the existence of a career ladder.
If you respect yourself, it’s better to run away from such a place right away, which, unfortunately, not everyone does. But in vain, because it is then that everything begins to go like clockwork for young professionals: they quickly find a place to realize their own potential and in a short time can significantly climb the career ladder.
However, not only newcomers, but also people with extensive work experience spend a long time in minor positions. It would seem, why is an adult who is well versed in his business still junior, when this young guy with almost no experience was promoted to senior yesterday?
The answer is simple - someone knows how to climb the career ladder.
Tip #1:Already at the start, don’t hide your ambitions and desire to develop. Since modesty is the first step towards poverty and the unknown.
During the interview, do not hesitate to ask questions and show the future manager that you are exactly the person the company has been looking for for so long. And if you are already working, it is never too late to show your activity and interest in the success of the company.
Tip #2:The person who deserves a promotion is not the one who works harder, but the one who has the best reputation.
To achieve success, it is imperative to establish communication with everyone. Good heredity, a course in eloquence and ethics at the university, several trainings for success - use all this so as not to remain among the novice simpletons.
And remember that you cannot be good to everyone. Choose people who have “weight” in the company and on whose decisions your success depends. This could be the director, her entourage, several successful managers, and, of course, the secretary. 70% of your success depends on this walking radio point.
Tip #3:Even if you yourself don’t quite believe what you’re saying, speak confidently and you will receive recognition.
The right compliments, a convincing tone, punctuality and royal precision in everything? The steps on the career ladder have just begun to become clearly visible.
Tip #4:The main thing is that the suit fits. Since showiness is very often converted into efficiency.
I also immediately realized another important point: in the modern business world, no matter how you look at it, everyone looks at your intelligence and ability through the shell of a suit. Therefore, if you have directorial ambitions, and the appearance of a teenage boy or an unkempt robber or a nerd, believe me, your highest level of IQ will not save you. Spectacular shoes, expensive watches, stylish phones, cool suits are at least half the battle.
Tip #5:Don't be afraid to use others when they don't know it.
The ability to unite work around you, even without having a single person under your command, will help you a lot! Intelligence, charm, plus the right strategy of not going too far, and people, even those of the highest rank, without even realizing it, will be ready to carry out orders. When management sees that you can organize others, they trust you. This means you are on the right path to moving up the career ladder.
“The bad soldier is the one who doesn’t dream of becoming a general.” Suvorov A. V
The same can be said about an employee who is not interested in career advancement.
There are two concepts: careerism and career.
Careerism- unprincipled pursuit of personal success in any activity. It is believed that a careerist only outwardly demonstrates his devotion, when in fact he pursues only his own selfish interests.
It's a completely different matter with the word career. Career- a trajectory towards success that a person builds himself, in accordance with his own goals, desires and attitudes. In terms of meaning, the concepts seem to be close, but attitudes towards oneself give rise to different things.
It is better for a person to be a careerist than for someone who does not dream of becoming a general. Careerists are specific people who clearly understand what they are doing. They have a plan to advance their career. But you need to understand that you won’t rise high if you don’t know how, so you have to learn. Of course, a careerist is more of a person who wants to have more than to be able to. And through force he begins to learn to do what is necessary to get to a higher level. All because he understands that there is no other way.
A much smarter approach is to love improvements in the business you are doing and, as a result, receive offers from managers and bosses for promotions. There is always a shortage of good managers, so if you focus on skills, they will come to you with an offer.
Careerism is better than complete passivity, but it’s not entirely smart because people who think more about how to move up the career ladder actually don’t get much pleasure from self-improvement in their profession. Jack Welch, based on his experience, came up with the following formula:
From 100% of employees:
1. 20% are stars;
2. 70% are good people who will never become high-level leaders;
3. 10% are C and D students who need to get rid of.
You can work with good people if you monitor them closely, but only stars become leaders. The remaining 80% of employees, even when promoted, will never occupy leadership positions.
In order to climb the career ladder, the most important thing is to work well. Working well means doing the right thing, in the opinion of your boss, the person who pays you. You need to find a smart boss, because 99% are fools. We need to look hard for this smart boss.
There is such a law:
“If you want to find something, you need to look.”
If the boss is good, then he will be your coach, boss, and teacher - everything. You need to go to a meeting with your boss and then he will go to a meeting with you. Going to a meeting means working on yourself. You need to deserve to be on the team of a very strong leader. When you get into such a team, then you begin to grow quickly. And before you find a smart boss, you need to satisfy the needs of the person you work with and show results. To climb the career ladder, you need to be effective and efficient.
To become a better employee you need:
1. Start your day earlier and end it later than other workers. Nothing distinguishes a star from a mediocre employee more than initiative in work and ability to work. People who work more on their own initiative stay in their jobs longer than those who work from call to call.
2. Work efficiently and always do more than is expected of you. Working hard does not mean working smart. You need to learn how to make the most of your time and regularly raise the bar for yourself. This will be the first signal for the manager to promote you.
3. Ask your manager to be your mentor or find a mentor in your industry. The more experience and wisdom a manager has, the greater the desire to help beginners build their careers.
Few people approach their boss for help, only stars. But this is neither good nor bad. We need to face the truth. Basically, all people are lethargic and lack initiative because they lack energy, so they work from bell to bell. A person first subconsciously feels how much energy he has, then he lives his day so that he has enough of it. And if there is very little energy and a person arrives earlier, you are delayed, it seems to him that he does not have enough energy, so most people do not do this.
There is an expression: “It is better to earn more than to save a lot.” It's the same with energy. But most people try to save money instead of getting more. They think that the later I get up, the more energy I will have. But everything works the other way around. The earlier a person gets up, the more strength he has, the more he puts himself into action, the more strength he has.
According to observations, people have no energy. Either God didn’t give it to them, or they just don’t rock it. Energy also needs to be pumped up. You need to do the right things, then more energy will appear, and then you will have the strength to do quality work. Quality requires energy.
For an intelligent person, work brings great pleasure.
1. So why deprive yourself of pleasure?
2. Why limit yourself?
3. Why, first of all, be an “idiot” and not love your job?
Love your job!!!
4. Jack Welch writes that if your manager checked your work and was unhappy, correct the mistakes. Don’t give up and don’t let him finish what you couldn’t finish. For the manager, correcting your mistakes will be a signal that it is time to look for another more capable employee.
5. Take initiative every day. Managers dream that you will cope with your work, and he will be able to delegate new projects to you. The more he can betray you, the more indispensable you will become to him. Constantly improve all processes, help your colleagues improve, and also do not forget about the delicate manifestation of initiative. It is important that the boss does not feel that you are aiming for his place. A person who is not very developed will begin to put a spoke in your wheels. Take initiative sensitively, with the intention of making your manager's job easier.
Initiative- this is the most important sign of a bright, potential person. Initiative is punishable because when you show it, you begin to act, to play. And when you actually play, you either win or lose. You start doing things you've never done, you start moving forward. Initiative is a risk. Therefore, in 70% of cases you will be punished with defeat. But initiators lose more often in the initial stages, because they have initiative, but lack wisdom. And viewers who look at those who take initiative notice this and diagnose that initiative is punishable. Active people who really want to succeed must take the initiative. You need to understand well that sometimes you will be punished for your initiative, and still move on.
6. Complete the task assigned to you.
7. Know how to follow instructions. Only those who know how to obey a leader will be able to learn to lead in the future. Sometimes the manager needs your innovation, but often he needs you to simply complete the project in accordance with the task. You will become invaluable if your manager is confident that you can entrust any task to you and forget about it, knowing that you will do it right.
It doesn't work that way. He says there must always be an ironclad agreement. You don’t need to assign or set tasks, but you need to agree on the result. And then just control it. Otherwise, much will not be done. You need to give him freedom in how he will do it, and often when, but you have an agreement not on the process, but on the result.
8. Respect your manager. If you do not respect a person who is at a higher level, find yourself another job or another boss who will be an authority and leader for you, only then will you be able to learn and grow from him. There are laws of hierarchy. If you don't respect those above you, your subordinates won't respect you. Show signs of respect and never allow yourself to become familiar.
Subordination is the level of culture, and culture is the level of spirituality. Spirituality is subtlety, insight, when a person feels, knows, understands. Spirituality develops the feeling - love your neighbor as yourself. You must feel, as you can tell your boss, feel where the boundary is. And the boss must be cultured and respect subordination in relation to his subordinate. There must be distance.
9. Treat your work as your own business. The more you take responsibility and love what you do, the more you will develop the habit of working like an owner. It is these employees who later become partners and develop the skills necessary to manage their own business.
A person punishes himself when he does something without a soul, because it makes him feel bad. Because the more you put your soul into it, the better your mood appears. This is how nature works. We can only be happy if we give our 100% and put our hearts into it. Therefore, you need not to be lazy and find a business in which you would like to invest your soul and, as a result, there will be career growth, a lot of money and self-esteem. There will be human happiness. And happiness begins with love. It's very simple.
Important points can be noted. You need to understand that there are no trifles in moving up the career ladder. The most important thing is initiative, responsibility, desire to develop and grow professionally. If you want to become a star you must be educated because stars cannot be just beautiful and shining. The ability to please a manager not because you are well dressed, but because you are responsible, efficient, and know how to admit your mistakes, and not blame them on someone else and hide behind someone else’s responsibility.
Work hard, then you will have everything you want!!!
Which interfere with career growth. But you also need to follow specific steps to quickly advance at work. There are some things you already know and do, and some things will be new. This article contains simple tips that will help you climb the career ladder. If these steps are not taken, the path to the top may take a long time.
1. Know how to listen to people
Try to participate as little as possible in useless conversations and do not initiate them, but participate more in constructive conversations. Listen to what the other person is telling you. Believe me, when you are silent and think about what is said, you look smarter.
You must be able to listen carefully, try to do it objectively and understand what your interlocutor wants to convey to you and why. Learn to speak when you really need to. And during the conversation, listen as if you are being told an entertaining story.
2. Be involved
If your colleague has some insurmountable difficulty, help him cope with it and sometimes offer your help yourself. And if you don’t know how to solve a problem, help the employee find resources that will help with the solution, don’t stew in your own juice. This way you will gain the favor of other people, and also gain invaluable experience for free.
This also applies to unofficial corporate affairs: holidays, birthdays, misfortunes of colleagues. Participate, help with the organization, get people interested. Be an informal leader, but don’t get carried away - there are cases when employees become good “social activists,” but nothing more.
3. Read educational books
An expert can afford to be anything he wants (remember Dr. House), but a leader must be the best among equals, an open person who can listen and understand a subordinate, say “no” in time, and be able to multitask and work from various situations.
It will also be a good help to attend trainings to develop your leadership skills; trainings with a practical program are especially good. You should attend at least 2-3 trainings a year, and don’t wait until they start offering them to you.
4. Admit your mistakes
Unfortunately, we gain the most necessary knowledge and experience through our own mistakes. When we work, every failure seems to us the end of our brilliant career. In fact, these are valuable lessons that later force us to be careful about the decisions we make and the tasks we set.
Many people would do well to do this in ordinary life: moderate your own pride and importance, admit your mistakes, understand them, analyze them and don’t repeat them in the future.
Trying to protect themselves from making decisions and responsibility, employees often do not take any action or do not complete the work in full. But there is a good psychological trick: “I have the right to make mistakes, even the great ones made mistakes, what can we say about me.” Don't be afraid to make mistakes, don't be afraid to repeat your mistakes. Take action!
Never hide your own mistakes at work, even if you know that the mistake will be punished. The secret always becomes clear. It will be worse if the mistake you are hiding leads to negative consequences. Your reputation as an employee will be lost forever. It is better to report your mistake to management and suggest ways to correct it, if possible.
Infusionsoft Sales/flickr.com5. Do your best to get the job done.
Try to complete the task as if you were doing it for yourself, and a lot depends on this task (within reason). Do more than what is expected of you, give 110%.
Consider all facets of the problem, modernize, introduce something new. Do it perhaps late, but surprise others with your approach and the results you get!
Remember, not everything depends on you, but you still have to make an effort. This quality will be appreciated by others.
6. Motivate people
Tell people that they can do it, that they will achieve more, and that their mistakes and failures are temporary. Discuss with them in conversations the topics of honesty, hard work, personal growth, and responsibility. Convey to them the idea that money is not always the main thing, there are other values.
Believe me, although the majority of people do not want to listen to conversations about high matters and may think that everything is just about money, you can hear something else in personal conversations. Pull people forward, no matter what, and you will receive support.
7. Responsibility in everything
Take responsibility, bear the burden, don't give up. Yes, you may be tired, but rest and move on. People like it when there is a responsible person nearby, and responsible in everything: he comes on time, gets things done, looks good, controls his emotions, does not abandon those who rely on him.
Become a guarantor of reliability in the team. You will not even notice how you will rise above yourself - and up the career ladder.
The main thing is to be responsible for your words and actions, be consistent. This will serve you well.
8. Find a mentor
To climb the career ladder well, find yourself a mentor. This could be your manager, the head of a neighboring department, or even your friend. Learn from him so that he can point out your mistakes and show you new horizons. Ask him questions about control technologies - he has much more experience than you.
You can also go even further and gain experience from your manager's manager. You will absorb knowledge like a sponge and will be able to expand your professional horizons. Don't think that no one will tell you anything: everyone is flattered when they are asked about their work, what they do and how they got there.
It’s not an easy path, because you have to constantly leave your comfort zone, be able to make difficult decisions and take responsibility for them when everyone around you is silent. In our time, a leader becomes a disciplined person, moderately talkative, able to listen, proactive and responsible. Moreover, he can be both an introvert and an extrovert.
The good thing about being a manager is that you have to develop yourself as an individual and at the same time climb the career ladder. Remember that leaders are not born, but made.
A career ladder, or rather career advancement, is the dream of many. Wages increase several times, social status becomes more privileged. The stakes are too high, so there are no small things along the way.
In this article you will read:
- What is a career ladder and why does everyone want to climb it?
- How to advance your career
- How to beat your rivals on the career ladder
- Why do many people stumble along the career ladder?
- What fatal mistakes can make you forget about moving up the career ladder?
What is a career ladder
Anyone who gets a job in any company wants to achieve success and rise through the ranks. career ladder. In most cases, the applicant starts working in a minor position, but as he gains experience and knowledge, he hopes that he will receive a higher position, as he will meet the necessary requirements. Of course, it is not possible to grow up the career ladder in all companies, since some have a small staff. If you get a job in a large and developed company, you can climb the career ladder, and at the same time you will have a highly paid managerial job.
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The article has a bonus: a sample letter of instruction for employees that every manager should write to increase productivity.
Every person wants to get a leadership position that will increase his authority and will be well paid. However, it happens that a person remains in the same low-paid job, while other newcomers quickly move up the career ladder.
How to make a career ladder plan
1) Determine your career goal. It is necessary to think carefully and thoroughly, weigh everything and take your time. Make a decision without pressure from family or friends, it should be your opinion. In this case, your career goal will be exactly yours, which means it will be interesting to you and will be able to come true.
2) Study the requirements for the career goal you have chosen. Make a complete list and keep it up to date. Also indicate in the list your education and level of professionalism; personal qualities that will help you achieve your goal; experience; presence of positive characteristics from previous bosses and managers.
3) Determine objectively how far you are from achieving your career goal. Check off those items on the list of requirements that you have and have achieved throughout your professional career. For example, you want to become a chief accountant. You do an excellent job as a staff accountant and know all the nuances of accounting, but you have no experience in a management position. This way you will understand what still needs to be achieved.
4) Make a plan to move from your current state to your goal. Determine what shortcomings you have, what qualities need to be improved and developed. For example, take advanced training courses or listen to business training for managers and bosses.
5) Write down the time frame during which you are going to implement all the points of your career plan. At the beginning of the list of requirements, indicate the most important items and those that will take a lot of time.
6) Take strict control of the implementation of your career plan. Periodically study your career plan, make notes about the stages passed and tasks completed, analyze the sub-goals achieved, and do not change the established deadlines. Make adjustments if necessary. Changes indicate that you are moving, not standing still, which means you are getting closer to your goal. And then the result will not keep you waiting long.
3 steps of the career ladder
The first step is awareness of your goal. Remember: a leader is a keg of gunpowder. Without fire, without purpose, he is just boards knocked together and gray powder. Every goal needs means of implementation. Your resources are time, health, energy, money sources, business connections, power. It must be taken into account that any resources may be exhausted. And those sources that you have at the moment help you now. New achievements require new sources. They must be drawn from outside. This means that they exist, but they are owned by other people. Therefore, your tasks are: finding a system that meets your goals; entering it; using the necessary sources, beating other players.
The second step is searching for a suitable system. There are leaders who create their own system and play by their own rules. Thus, starting from the second step, they walk along a completely different ladder. Not everyone is capable of this, and most consider such leaders crazy, because the risk in this case is too great. But, as you know, the more dangerous the hunt, the larger the prey. The remaining managers decide to choose a system that already exists and was previously created by someone else. In these systems, the leader begins to fight for his niche and sources of income.
Before we begin describing the next stage, let's look at the first two. You can consider them with a specific example. This will help you avoid difficulties when setting a goal and finding a system.
- Head of sales department: how to become an excellent manager
Let's say you are an accountant looking for a job. Your secret dream is employment in a large company, where the accounting department employs only professionals in their field, and the salary corresponds to your wishes. However, you no longer want to work as a full-time accountant, since you are confident in yourself and have many years of experience. Therefore, you are applying for the position of deputy department, no lower.
This is the goal setting stage. A person without leadership qualities would be happy to work in such a large company not only as an ordinary accountant, but also as a secretary. The leader realizes that in such a system the desired positions are occupied, and there is very little chance of climbing the career ladder from accountant to deputy head of the accounting department. The HR department tells you that you have no experience in management positions, so you can only be offered to work as a secretary.
- Leadership Development: Ways That Will Change Your Mind
You get upset and realize that you can choose between a small company that employs young professionals, or go to a large company as a secretary. This is the system selection stage. The system must be fit for purpose. For this reason, you, as a professional and leader, realize that taking the position of deputy head of accounting in the shortest possible time in a small company - with your knowledge and experience - is real.
Without interrupting the plot, let's smoothly move on to the third step of the career ladder. This is the highest and most difficult level, so you need to go through it in parts.
Here you are going to the HR office of the company you have chosen to have an interview. Take a walk around the company's office. After all, you will need to work with the employees of this company. Find out whether you will be comfortable working, will you work well with the team? During the interview, study the head of the company, because your career growth will depend on him. How attractive is he to you? Are you ready to work for him and carry out his instructions? Do the manager, the team and the company itself make a good impression? Do you see promising cooperation? This means that now is the time when you can start achieving your designated goal!
The third stage is establishing relationships with the system. A leader must have the qualities of a tactician and strategist. And that's exactly how it is. A professional leader takes on the role of a medieval commander and wages war in several directions at once:
1) battle for sources;
2) battle for statuses;
3) the battle to get closer to the “boss body”.
The battle for sources is a constant struggle for the management, distribution and use of the company’s available material, technical, financial, human and other resources. This is power. The benefits of holding power are obvious and require no explanation.
Battle for statuses. Status is an informal position in a company that gives an advantage to influence the decisions and judgments of other employees.
Getting closer to the “boss’s body” - the right to any interaction and communication with superiors, the opportunity to influence important decisions on the distribution of sources and statuses.
From my youth I wanted to be the first
Georgy Pogosbekov, General Director of the company "M.I.T" (Miele Innovation Center), Moscow
In my youth, I always wanted to be the first: in the army - a commander, in student - a group leader. At the university, I was both the head of the stream and the head of the Committee for the Protection of the Rights of Students of the Faculty of Law. By the way, the first half of studying at a university is necessary to “work for the academic record”, and the second half it works for the student. This happened in my life even after graduating from university: a teacher recommended me to the head of a Russian-Chinese holding company. I started working as a staff lawyer. Within six months I took the position of head of the foreign economic activity department. After the same period, I was transferred to the same position, but to a larger holding company. After 2 years, I became the second person in the company after the general director, who was the owner. There were no career prospects in this holding company, so I got another job. In a new place, after a short period of time, I began to work as general director.
At 27 years old, I already have two years of experience as CEO. I am not going to change my place of work yet, since the employer will definitely think about my short experience in my position and my age. Therefore, only by the age of thirty do I want to rise one step higher. How exactly?
Organizations are divided into 4 groups, depending on the territorial scale of their activities:
1 – a company operating in one region (I currently work in such a company).
2 – an organization that has its branches in other regions.
3 is a large company with representative offices throughout the Russian Federation and the CIS countries.
4 is a multinational company operating all over the world.
By the age of thirty, I want to take the post of CEO of a company from the 2nd or 3rd group. What do I think will help me achieve my goal?
Hard work.
Education. I study at the Institute for Advanced Training of Civil Servants, I also study literature on business, attend industry conferences, communicate with colleagues, consult with them, and share ideas.
Useful connections. I make business connections by participating in conferences, as well as by solving assigned tasks in my company.
Family support. This is one of the most important components of a manager's career growth. Perhaps even the main one. If you constantly hear “why did you come home from work so late, we don’t see you at all,” there can be no talk of any success.
5 strategies to climb the career ladder
1. Create your dream job in your mind and then strategically add aspects of it to your current role. You may not like some aspect of the job today, and you may feel that you are highly qualified for it. However, do not focus on this, use your strengths in this workplace to the maximum. Think about which tasks are easy for you and which ones are worse, and for what reason this happens.
When you find answers to your questions, discuss them with your boss or company manager. Suggest how you can introduce into your work activities the tasks you dream of working with. Tell us how the company will benefit from implementing these tasks. If the manager sees that you are taking a very responsible approach to completing the work assigned to you now, then he will definitely give you the go-ahead.
This will prove that you are a highly motivated and valuable employee to the company, and you will be treated as such. The more tasks assigned to you are completed, the more respect your manager will have for you for striving to climb the career ladder. If the opportunity arises to offer you a job in a higher position, the manager will definitely do so.
2. Find a mentor (or two). You must dream, but you must have a mentor who has achieved the same heights that you dream of. He will be able to help you turn your dreams into reality through advice, ongoing consultation and support. There are mentors in different areas of activity. So, to be more successful, find several different mentors.
In the office, mentors will help you become part of the team and recommend you to your superiors if a career opportunity arises. Find another mentor who will be radically different from the previous one. Not only will he give you new ideas, but he will also help you advance your career in other areas of the company in which you dream of working. Constantly looking for a mentor shows your leadership qualities, energy and enthusiasm, which determine the choice of a candidate for a high position.
3. Find out the requirements of your dream job. In most cases, people stay in the same workplace because they are afraid that they do not have enough strength and knowledge. Instead of citing the uselessness of your higher education, identify a list of information sources that will help you advance your career and start studying them.
Your interest and passion should be your guiding principles during information training. And if you choose the right path, you will be involved in learning new material and will not stop learning halfway. Read books, publications, contact professionals for advice. Today you can easily find the right source of information, taking into account modern capabilities.
If you are fluent in the information you have studied and talk about your idea, then they will trust you and respect your opinion. This will highlight your passion for business, even if it differs from your current position.
4. Ask for feedback. If you have already implemented the above suggestions, but no advancement in your career is happening, then you can contact your superiors directly. Ask your manager to meet to find out what needs to be improved in your work. Some things you may already suspect (e.g., “I think you've stopped caring about...”) and some may surprise you (e.g., “You can't get a promotion until you learn how to manage relationships yourself.” with clients"). Most likely, your manager is not aware that you want to climb the career ladder in your company (for example, if everyone knows that you are a very active person yourself).
But you shouldn't stop there. Talk to your colleagues, find out what your strengths and advantages are, in their opinion, and what needs to be improved. Most likely, you will hear some criticism, and some of the answers will quite surprise you. Be sure to listen to the team.
5. Make friends with people from other departments. Of course, any person feels more comfortable when he has friends at work. Not only do you communicate well with them, but you also create a team culture within the company. This will help you always be aware of the emergence of new attractive jobs before general publicity to employees. You must communicate well with colleagues not only from different departments and positions, but also be friends with a person working in a similar position so that you do not lose enthusiasm and continue to move towards your goal.
Don't forget that you may be in a low-level position, but you are in control of your career. The responsibility rests on your shoulders, so make the most of where you are today. Even if all the measures on the path to career growth do not allow you to get promoted, they will help prepare you for a higher level in another company.
How to beat your rivals on the career ladder
Option #1. Sell yourself to your boss as a person. How to determine the possibility of success of such “self-selling”? The result criterion is very simple. Any management is engaged in the development of the activities of its company, that is, it thinks about introducing effective innovations. The basis of innovation is creative projects. This means that any leader’s idea must be adjusted so that it can be used and benefited. Therefore, he needs an interlocutor. He will not turn to just anyone he meets, but to the person who can offer something and whom he trusts.
This means that if a manager asks you for advice on a particular issue, then you have entered his circle of trust, and he sees you as a creative person. If you are given a previously developed task to complete, it means that you were not able to win them over, and you need to use other methods.
Option #2. Find out in detail the goals and priorities of your manager. Current, non-urgent, long-term priorities - in the context of your function. You must learn to serve them. It seems to you that you are being hired in order to develop the company, promote it in the market, and increase its competitiveness. But not only for this. Each employee of the company who has a boss above him is obliged to carry out his tasks, that is, in the narrow sense, you work not for the company, but for your boss. Therefore, you must know its goals in order to serve them. To do this, you need to be interested in them and ask clarifying questions.
Find out what criteria your boss will use to evaluate the work you do. Find out which tasks are his priority. The evaluation of your work will not depend on its quality, but on how well you completed the tasks of your immediate superior. There is nothing like this either in the job description or in the department’s regulations.
You may be the first to ask where your manager sees the direction of your department. What goals did he set for the department? What is the measure of the result of work activity? You might think that other people's functions are handled by employees who don't have their own. However, it is impossible to realize your goal without serving the goal of another. Remember the example of an accountant who was applying for a job. It is impossible to realize his goal immediately without making efforts. For this reason, he decides to get a job in a small company, where he will carry out orders from the chief accountant until he achieves his goal. Therefore, you must learn to serve your manager's goals.
Option #3. Sell your work in the context of your manager's goals and priorities. There are many specialists who understand their work much better than their boss, they can make effective decisions and identify emerging problems. In fact, they enjoy performing tasks that are outside the established scope. They are professionals, so they sincerely believe that they know better than any boss how to solve this or that problem. But in order not to get bogged down in performing management functions, you need to clearly define your goals and distinguish them from the goals of your boss. In addition to performing the tasks of the manager, you can easily perform the functions that you like. Do what you love! But you need to present the results of your work in the context of your boss. In this case, you will be able to use statuses, resources and trust without any problems. If your activity does not bring you any positive emotions, then it urgently needs to be changed.
Development of leadership qualities of a manager: 6 rules of a real leader
Sergey Bykovskikh, President of Henkel Rus, General Manager of Henkel Beauty Care in Russia and the CIS countries, Moscow
Most people think that leadership skills contribute to effective communication between subordinates and management. I concluded that leadership is primarily about oneself. If you cannot understand yourself, you will never be able to lead other people. Therefore, if I want my team to follow the principles I have established, I show proper behavior every day by example.
In our company, this is the most important condition for leadership – lead myself (which in English means “manage yourself”). Then other principles follow, these include: lead team (from English - “manage a team”), lead stakeholders (from English - “manage stakeholders”), lead change (from English - “manage changes”) and lead performance (from English - “manage results”). Here is a list of leadership rules that guide me:
Pay attention to subordinates. You may not even think about it, but the team is always monitoring any changes in your behavior and attitude towards it. For example, you were very busy and didn’t say hello to someone. This may affect the employee's performance that day, and you will be at a loss as to why he began to perform tasks so poorly. Therefore, I try to pay attention to everyone in my company. A greeting, a smile, a handshake - it’s not difficult at all, and at the same time it perfectly increases the motivation and performance of all employees.
Behave correctly with subordinates. You must always remember that you cannot neglect the rules of working with subordinates, for example, talking to them in a raised voice. Let's say you are not satisfied with how a subordinate performs the task assigned to him. If you talk to him emotionally, it will not bring any results. It is more effective to determine the cause of low performance. I find out from the employee the essence of the task, the stages of its implementation and the final result. If everything is correct, then most likely he is not paying enough attention to the task. In this case, I will calmly explain that if this continues, I will have to say goodbye to him. In most cases, the employee understands and begins to take a more responsible approach to completing any tasks.
Select a team from those you really trust. I work with people who work in other regions, branches and departments. Therefore, controlling from a distance is quite problematic. It is very important to me that all employees comply with the rules and requirements established by the company. At the same time, I show that I trust the team. For example, when giving a task, I explain its essence and what I want to see in the end. This way I show that I trust him. The subordinate, seeing such an attitude, responds in kind.
Raise a successor for yourself. Before moving to the next level in my career, I find someone who can replace me. My successor will be able to finish the project I started without any problems. That is, my career principle is that I can move up the career ladder if I have people who can also rise higher and take a new step.
Don't show power. If a leader shows that he is superior to others and can manage them as he pleases, then this indicates low culture and insolvency of the individual. Collective hierarchy sometimes does not help in resolving certain situations. The team will follow the leader or will not even blink an eye. Every day I keep in mind that not only am I the head of a company, but I also have a family, a hobby, and a job. And I have to behave like an ordinary person.
Understand that the world is much more than work. Work is one of the main areas of life. However, I also have other activities. For example, I go for a run every day. When I run, I feel clarity of thoughts, I am distracted from current problems and begin to imagine the situation in the future. For example, I realize that I devote too much time to a certain task, but not enough to another, more important one. Running helps you prioritize. My first boss, a man of fairly mature age, walked along the boulevard for half an hour every day at lunchtime. 15 years later, I attended a business summit in Germany and learned that walking for 15 minutes at lunch helps keep your body toned and your mind clear. That’s when I remembered my first boss, he himself developed the same rule for himself. I trust this experience.
Typical mistakes that cause you to stumble up the career ladder
1. Waiting passivity. Very often, an employee works in the same position for a long time, responsibly fulfilling his professional duties. And when a vacancy for a department head appears, the employee is confident that he will be hired. But they take a person “off the street.” Why is this happening? Because the majority thinks that there is no need to ask for anything, everything will come on its own, someone will give something. This does not happen on the path to career growth.
If an employee does not approach the head of the company with an offer of his candidacy for a vacant position, then the manager is sure that the employee is completely satisfied with the workplace he occupies. By contacting management about the vacancy in a timely manner, the employee could clarify the responsibilities of the head of the department, and simply notify him of his desire to work in this position. No management would think of appointing such an insecure person as the head of a department, because he would have to manage other people.
2. Incorrect speech and gestures. "Petr Petrovich... I wanted to know... (with a trembling voice and stuttering). I would like... (constantly adjusting his glasses). You know, in our company... (lowering his head). In general, I decided that it would be good... ( hesitantly pronouncing every word)." Your communication with your superiors and gestures say a lot about you. Of course, we will receive appropriate answers to such questions. In response to uncertainty and embarrassment, you will receive sympathy and care. Is this the impression you want to leave after a conversation with your manager? Will such a person be able to occupy a management position?
You must remember that excessive unnaturalness, insecurity and inertia will not help in moving up the career ladder. A leader does not possess such qualities. Your failure is characterized by a trembling voice, a downcast gaze, inappropriate laughter, an unnatural smile and playfulness, a guilty look, and endless introductory phrases about nothing.
Weakness and fear will be demonstrated by “cautious” speech patterns: “I’m trying to make this happen,” “could you…”, “it seemed to me,” “I didn’t quite understand,” “maybe,” “as if.”
Before talking with your superiors, you need to highlight the main idea and start the conversation with it. The manager will ask you clarifying questions if necessary. You must be open, express your thoughts briefly and clearly, and look your interlocutor in the eye.
3. Demonstration of emotions is the key to failure. All people are emotional. Emotional breakdowns in the form of tears and screams in response to any sideways glance will not help you climb the career ladder. Coolness and impartiality will show that you can make thoughtful and rational decisions about any problem. Naturally, an emotional person is not always inconsistent, but this cannot be explained to everyone.
Anyone can figure out the meaning of other people's words. There is no need to demonstratively show dissatisfaction with your superiors if they misunderstood you. Ask directly what is the reason for this attitude towards you. Or maybe there is no reason? Maybe you came up with something yourself? Or is it not you?
Don't allow your feelings to be manipulated. If you do your job well, then the reward should be appropriate. Neither attachment nor past mistakes should affect this.
You can hide your emotionality by minimizing personal conversations. Never take critical statements directed at you as an insult to your personality.
4. Not all work is good. Let's consider it in practice. Two friends worked - Andrey and Kirill. They completed all tasks very responsibly and carefully. Andrey did everything that was asked. Kirill performed some tasks perfectly, but refused others, with the exception of direct duties. Therefore, all the employees, in order not to do routine work, asked Andrey to help. Everyone was surprised when Kirill was promoted and not Andrey.
The reason was that Kirill took on tasks that could increase his professionalism. Any employee can scan documents all day long or look for information in folders. This was his principle. And as it turned out, he was acquitted.
Therefore, carry out assigned tasks that will help you improve your skills and expand your scope of work.
5. Everyone in the team likes the desire. The employee is in a bad mood and doesn’t want to stand and scan documents all day. A colleague asked to take half a day off to see the doctor, and you take over his duties.
You were taught to help people. But in this case, you cannot fully do your job. Your boss is very angry. Everyone knows that you are a sympathetic person, but you are slow. You won't see any career growth!
Know how to say no. You must clearly and clearly explain to your colleague why you are refusing him. Colleagues need to understand that you have important tasks that must be completed carefully. But agree to tasks that will contribute to your winning position in the eyes of your superiors. Then the manager will see that you are capable of more.
3 fatal mistakes after which you can forget about climbing the career ladder
1) Lack of patience. If you are the initiator of your career growth, you must realistically assess your capabilities and goals. Often, in cases of untimeliness, the initiative is not justified. For example, a person works in a company for a short period of time, even if he is already over forty, he is still considered a “young” specialist. This is the psychology of a group of people. Therefore, during the first year and a half, do not rush with the initiative. Study and analyze the company's plans for the future, gain the trust of the manager and establish friendly relations with colleagues. Of course, no one has canceled leadership qualities, but know how to listen and obey leadership when necessary.
2) Intimidation, intrigue, mobbing. When there is great competition, any means of achieving goals can come into play. However, management respects ambitious employees. Therefore, do not use prohibited techniques. Praising your own merits at the expense of humiliating another person will show you from a not very good side. Most managers adhere to this principle.
3) Self-PR and presentation of your achievements. This seems inappropriate when a person is new to the company. Selfishness can turn away from you not only the entire team, but also the leader himself. And for such a careerist there will always be someone worse. Therefore, if you want to initiate career advancement, you must always achieve the indicators set by management and only then take the initiative. It is important that you achieve real success in completing tasks that will generate monetary income for the company. But even in this case, your status will not change immediately. An employee’s authority is built over a long period of time. You must realize that moving up the career ladder is a complex process that cannot be solved overnight.
Information about the author and company
Georgy Pogosbekov, General Director of the company "M.I.T" (Miele Innovation Center), Moscow. "M.I.T" (Miele Innovation Centre). Field of activity: retail sale of household appliances (official representative in Russia of the Mile CIS company). Form of organization: LLC. Location: Moscow. Number of staff: 25. Length of General Director in position: since 2008.
Sergey Bykovskikh, President of Henkel Rus, General Manager of Henkel Beauty Care in Russia and the CIS countries, Moscow. Henkel Rus LLC. Field of activity: production of cosmetics, cleaning and detergents, as well as construction mixtures and technologies. Number of personnel: more than 2500. Territory: head office - in Moscow, eight production plants - in Kolomna, Nevinnomyssk, Noginsk, Perm, Tosno, Ulyanovsk, Chelyabinsk, Engels. Global sales: €16.4 billion. Sales volume in Russia: 1.093 billion euros.
In the Western value system, financial well-being and personal and professional growth are of great importance. Today, careerism is not a pathology, but a norm of life. Only a few question whether they are really capable of coping with a new role and whether they need a leadership position at all.
However, such a position is still considered shameful, so if an employee is offered a promotion, he, of course, agrees. And then he comes to his senses, drops everything and goes to live in Barbados. If everyone sensibly weighed their capabilities and desires before agreeing to a promotion, such a phenomenon as downshifting would not exist at all.
Therefore, in order to avoid disappointments, nervous breakdowns and professional burnout in the future, we suggest considering several compelling arguments against.
Fear of responsibility
Perhaps the most common reason for refusing an appointment is fear of additional responsibility. It is one thing to carry out one’s own responsibilities in a linear position, but quite another to manage even a very small team and competently organize a continuous work process.
If you don't like taking responsibility, but you work great as a performer, that's normal. Remember: one is not better than the other, both types of workers are valuable to the company. The main thing here is to know yourself well and act accordingly.
However, the fear of not being able to cope with new responsibilities is often not justified and may subside over time. If a person is offered a promotion, there are two options: either he was prepared in advance for this position, or not. If a person assumes that he will not be able to cope with his duties after training, then perhaps it makes sense to try after all, since you have received the necessary knowledge. If you are thrown out of a boat into a river, you should think twice, or even three times. People need to be trained for leadership positions.
Thirst for change
Often the reason for refusing a promotion is the desire for change. It is clear that career growth and a stable high salary are very attractive, which is why they so often demotivate people to give up what they love. If the prospect of a promotion looms before you, it becomes much more difficult to refuse even a job you don’t like, which means you risk getting bogged down even deeper in a job structure you don’t need. It is quite possible that you are not afraid of being a manager, but you would be more willing to manage your subordinates in some other professional environment.
It all depends on career plans: if a person is focused on career development, vertical growth and his priority is to increase personal income, it may make sense to stay at his job and agree to a promotion. Work for a year. This will allow you to gain experience and apply for something more in the labor market. If you change profession, you will have to start all over again. If you're tired of everything at your current job, if comfort in the workplace and the desire to do what you love are important to you, you shouldn't take on additional responsibilities that you don't need.
Administrative routine
Oddly enough, reluctance to receive a promotion can be caused not only by a dislike of work, but also, on the contrary, by the most reverent attitude towards one’s current responsibilities.
“I worked for almost two years as an ordinary designer in one company,” says illustrator Mikhail. - I always tried to help my colleagues as much as possible. If necessary, I took upon myself the training of newcomers, but most of my working time was still spent on creative tasks. When the boss offered me to head the division, his main argument was: “Nothing will change, you will also drag everyone on yourself, but now for money.” I believed and agreed. In fact, it turned out that I had no time left to work with orders; instead, I had to do the routine: calling someone, instructing, delegating, and going to boring meetings and conferences. In general, very soon I asked to return to my place. It all ended sadly: the boss was offended that I let him down like that, and I had to leave the company.”
The reluctance to switch from interesting professional tasks to boring administrative routine work often makes one refuse to be appointed to a new, even higher position. This is especially true for representatives of creative professions, and in general for people who are passionate about their work. In addition to the fact that the position of a manager is simply not interesting to you, there is also no guarantee that you will achieve greater career success in the managerial field than in your current position.
Busy schedule
Often, a promotion entails not only an increase in personal responsibility, but also involves an increase in the amount of work, and often a completely different, more difficult schedule. Will you be able to get used to the new conditions?
Unfortunately, many companies do not provide appropriate training: a person who has received a leadership position continues to perform his function, and an administrative burden is added to this. Such situations are far from uncommon. Often, in addition to the increased workload, a person may not only gain nothing, but also lose money in salary.
So even if the material component of the new position is significant for you, you should not immediately cling to the new appointment and agree to the offer from your superiors. Think carefully about whether you really qualify for financial benefits. If so, then think about whether it will be worth your effort and whether it is worth working twice as hard to end up with only one and a half times more.
Alexandra Ilyina, Andrey Sidelnikov
Based on materials from Trud