While I am sure you are the best employee in the company and they could not survive without you, everyone may not have the same sentiment. The following are a few tips to help you understand if you are truly ready for the next steps in your career.
You Are Not Willing to Learn. There are several examples of employees receiving a promotion or even a job offer when they do not meet all the qualifications for the position. This is not uncommon nor is it unfair. However, if the employee is not willing to take the necessary steps to learn the position and expand their knowledge of the role, then that is a problem. Do not allow your not checking all the boxes or your assumption of what the manager will say limit you from applying for a promotion. However, if you are not willing to continue your education or learn the additional skillset required for the position, then you need not apply.
You Currently Struggle with Work-Life Balance. Promotion may not mean gaining a team, but it does always mean additional responsibility. If you currently struggle with separating your personal life from your work life, or you complain that you do not have enough hours in the day to get your current job done. Then, you should hold off on applying for that promotion if you are not currently doing the work for that position. Why? Having the help of a team does not guarantee your workload decreases. You do not have a team so you can overwhelm them to lessen the load on your plate. Yes, tasks should be delegated. A team allows you to have others that you can work with to meet organizational goals. Even if your specific workload does not increase, your level of responsibility does as the output from the team is your responsibility. If you struggle handling your current day-to-day, work to lessen this load before adding the additional responsibility of a promotion.
There is No One to Take Your Place. I believe the ownership for this issue can be two-fold: the employee and the organization. As an employee looking to grow in your career, you should always be willing to share your knowledge with others. It shows you are a team player. Additionally, you have others on the team who can support you when you want to take time off or additional time is needed. Most importantly, sharing your knowledge with others puts you in a position to move to a new role. However, all organizations do not support knowledge sharing and appear to be okay with single points of failure. There are times, even if another employee has been trained, the organization will pin the employee into completing specific tasks simply based on preference. Making it hard for that employee to gain additional knowledge or move to a new position. Needless to say, if this is your organization and your growth is not supported, your goal should be moving out, not moving up.
The Transform Tuesdays newsletter was created to help professionals in corporate positions overcome the hurdles hindering them from growing to the next level in their careers, including knowing their value, using their voice, and being authentic to themselves. This weekly newsletter provides details to professionals on how to navigate this world of corporate America.
Sherrika Sanders was an accountant by trade for over 15 years. During her years as an accountant, Sherrika progressed through various roles from Revenue Accountant to Corporate Controller. She worked to develop consolidated business processes, post-acquisition financial integration, and Fresh Start Accounting upon emergence from Chapter 11 within seven months of initial filing during her time as an Assistant Controller. Sherrika resigned from her role as Corporate Controller to take a leap of faith and start her own company, Transform the GAAP (Goals Assigned Achieving Purpose), where she specializes in helping the employees on the accounting teams of small and medium-sized, private, and PE-backed companies increase their productivity by identifying errors and inefficiencies in their current processes. If you are seeking 1:1 or group coaching sessions, click on the following link where you and I work together towards helping you Become the Best YOU in Business. This is a judgment-free zone where we are both contributors working towards a common goal. Visit https://www.transformthegaap.com/ to learn more.
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