6 Steps To Achieve 4 Promotions In 3 Years

The first ‘real’ job I had in my 20s I started at the bottom, naturally. But I’ve always been the ambitious type, I knew I didn’t want to stay in this position for long and had grown up around a family of progressive individuals. You’ll know what I mean if you’ve read my post 6 Life Lessons My Successful Dad Has Taught Me.

If you are not one to sit on your hands and wait for things to happen either, then use these 6 steps as a guide that helped me achieve 4 promotions in 3 years.

Keep in mind that I worked for a medium sized company, if you work for a big corporation promotions may take a little longer.

Step 1. Lay Your Cards Out Early

What I mean by this is that you have to tell your manager what your goals are. If you don’t tell them you want to move up in the company, they won’t know. Therefore they might not help you progress in the right way or put you forward for opportunities. Don’t be afraid that you will come across that you don’t like your job, explaining you want to work your way up the career ladder within the company is only a positive thing and promoting internally looks good on a company.

I made it clear from very early on that I wanted to move into a sales role and asked HOW do I get there. Whenever an opportunity came up to shadow the sales team I was first in the queue.

Step 2. Hustle Life

The ‘hustle’ life is not something I normally promote. As I think life is too short to be working stupidly long hours to prove yourself to a company. However, in the early days of your career, if you are wanting to climb the career ladder, this is something you will need to do. You need to show eagerness and willingness. That may mean working longer hours, even weekends or helping out with projects outside of your job role.The idea here is that you hustle early on to reap the rewards later.

In the early days, I said yes to almost anything that came my way that was extra curricula. This gave me lots of exposure outside my job role and introduced me to other people within the business.

Step 1 & 2 should take 9 – 12 months, by which time you should be ready to take on a new challenge and move up the career ladder.

Step 3. Know The Business

Think of a business like a puzzle, and you are just 1 small part of that puzzle. A key advantage to other candidates when applying for jobs is having the knowledge and experience of as many areas of the business as possible. Ask to spend time in marketing, sales or operations. Having a better understanding of a total business operation helps improve your abilities in your current role, as well as when you’re ready to progress into your next role. This will show you are proactive and take a genuine interest in the company as a whole.

Step 4. Say Yes

Early on in your career, you don’t have the luxury of being picky. If you are offered an opportunity for a new position, say yes. Even if you aren’t sure you’ll like it. I said yes to a promotion that I knew I didn’t want but it gave me a lot of experience. Ever heard of the term ‘Fake it till you make it?’. That’s what I did. It’s also a huge compliment if the company feels you are capable of stepping up so this is a great sign.

You can always say ‘yes’ but with a caveat. E.g, you are happy to take the position but it’s not what you want to do forever and still have X goal in mind.

Steps 3 & 4 should take another 9 – 12 months and by this time you’ll be recognised as someone they want to offer opportunities to first.

Step 5. Know You're In Control

You’ve now been at the company long enough to know the business well. Your colleagues rely and trust you and you’re doing a great job. This is a great position to be in and makes you indispensable to the company. Truthfully, no one is completely indispensable, but it’s costly and hassle to find and hire someone new. Keep this in mind.

You can now use this to your advantage. If there’s a particular job you’re gunning for, now is your opportunity to go after what you want having the upper hand. Showcase everything you have done for the company thus far and put your case forward for this position.

I was fortunate in that someone in the company was leaving and I wanted their role, so I negotiated keeping my current role whilst transitioning into their role, at the same time as training up someone else in the company to eventually take over from me. This was the least disruptive and cost effective for the business so they were happy to oblige.

Step 6. Get That Counter Offer

Your CV is looking excellent; you’ve been at the company for 3 years with multiple promotions and have plenty of experience and exposure. You’re in a great position where you’ve become a valuable asset to your current company and other companies are interested in poaching you.

Apply and get offered the job you want but for another company, then let your current company know the situation you’re in. They’ll either offer you what you want or if they do let you go, you’ve got the job you want waiting for you somewhere else! It’s the ideal position to be in.

Doing this enabled me to get the job that I’d had my eye on from the very beginning.

Though some of these techniques may come across aggressive, it’s important not to step on other people as you make your way up in a business. Firstly, you want a happy work life. Secondly, we all need friends and colleagues we get along with and thirdly you always want to be respected.

One of my biggest pieces of advice when it comes to your career is to be bold and brave. If you want something, you have to go after it because no one else is going to make it happen for you. If you need tips on negotiating salary, I recommend reading The Muse’s article on How To Negotiate Salary. Good luck!

Amber x