Working up the corporate food chain 2

Are you tired of working your head off, exceeding all expectations but watching others take credit for your ideas and then being promoted while you sulk and seethe with anger and frustration? If so, then this series is for you.

Welcome to part 2 of our subject matter in this column.

The philosophy behind this two-part material is very simple. “You will never be promoted unless you market your work contributions and you will never be promoted unless you engage yourself in self-promotions.”

Now, before you raise up your eyebrows and wonder why I would teach worldly advices such as these put yourself first in suspended disbelief. Read thru the entire series and then pronounce your judgment.

You simply cannot wait to be noticed. You need to show initiative, you need to speak up and be seen. Your current boss is busy trying to protect his or her own hide and perhaps he or she has issues with associates in their level so you need to put into action a successful marketing plan.

Get real! This is a fact. If no one knows how much you contribute to the company, you will continue to miss the next great promotion opportunity. Letting people know that you are interested in advancing your career is the first step in an effective self-promotion plan. This is in no way suggesting that you need to be narcissistic, manipulative, egoistic and to be a total jerk just to have yourself known but this is to encourage you to be more active in presenting yourself as contributing to your business organization’s progress.

Study the prayer of Jabez in the Bible. He prays “Lord bless me, increase my borders…” Your intention in promotions is not because of the honor and the money, it is because you would want to be in a greater sphere of influence so that you can accomplish more. There is nothing wrong to this approach. Some people teach passivity as if it was a virtue and then mistake inferiority complex for humility. And then the naive people who listen to these teachers lose their work passion or worse, they blame God for their status quo.

You need to take the initiative and market your own work contributions. And here are the following steps:

1. Tell it and show it.

Talk to your immediate supervisor. Inform your HR that you are eyeing for a job promotion and that you will work hard for it. Telling them about your intentions will pressure you to perform and this is a good thing. Now that you are through with the telling part, make sure you do the doing part. Remember the old adage that “actions speak louder than words,” and plan to make a lasting impression.

2. Be a team player.

The danger with work life ambitions is that you may take on the job all by yourself and become an effective individual performer but a lousy team player. Understand this very important principle, “you cannot succeed alone.”

The moment you lose the support of the people around you, they will make your goals harder to achieve. So be a team player.

3. Face challenges boldly.

You can create a wonderful career opportunity by taking the initiative to single out an unresolved challenge that exists in your company. Try to pick a situation that will benefit from your combination of experience and skills. Be courageous with ideas, creative and innovative.

Don’t just think out of the box. Get out of the box and take the initiative to make things happen. But do not do this in secret and be accountable to someone. Find someone you can trust and be careful with your associates whose job is for them to steal your ideas and claim credit for themselves.

While you may be a hard worker, sincere, a selfless all loving person who takes pride in what you do, you need to face the fact that there will be people in the organization who are selfish, greedy, slackers and would love to grab credit at the expense of those who have been working.

The respected British philosopher CS Lewis says: “Life is a blessing. A wonderful place and a beautiful new adventure. But we cannot deny the fact that there is evil in this world.” You and I need to be wise as a serpent but be gentle as a dove.

Learn to survive and thrive inside the corporate food chain. Believe me, it is a very adventurous learning experience.

(Mark your calendar, as Francis Kong runs his highly acclaimed Level Up Leadership seminar-workshop on Jan. 16-17, 2018 at Seda Hotel BGC. For registration and inquiries contact April at +63928-559-1798 or register online at www.levelupleadership.ph)