Episodes

In today's episode of the ManagingACareer.com podcast, we take a look at a framework you can use to evaluate whether your current role will have a positive impact on your ability to advance your career. This framework is supported by four E's: Enablement, Empowerment, Engagement, and Enthusiasm. Enablement: The first E is Enablement. In Episode 51 - Success or Failure (https://www.managingacareer.com/51), I use the quote from Alexander Graham Bell, "the only difference between success and failu...

Having regular conversations with your manager is important to ensure that you are on track for your desired career growth. But just as important is to occasionally have similar conversations with your skip level leaders. When it comes to skip level one-on-ones, there are three key outcomes to look for. First, is to build a relationship with your leaders. Second is to have an opportunity to highlight your contributions to the organization. And third is to have more insight into the direction th...

I was hosting a coaching call the other day and I wanted to share the problem that we discussed in case you are experiencing a similar situation. The person I was speaking to has an issue where their manager is actively sabotaging their career development. If you want to be successful, you have to take control of your career because no one else will do it for you. And when your leader creates roadblocks that prevent you from growing the way that you wish, it becomes even more important to own yo...

At the time of this episode, we're a little more than halfway through the current year. Most companies have an annual goal setting process and it's a good time to check in on your progress towards those goals. Waiting until the end of the year to review your progress doesn't give you enough time to react and adjust to ensure success. In Episode 47 - Annual Goal Setting (https://www.managingacareer.com/47), I go through several frameworks you can use to help define your goals. If you followed th...

Let's talk about credit. I'm not talking about the financial mechanisms by which you borrow money from a bank using plastic card. I'm talking about the type of credit involved when someone receives recognition for work performed. If we consider our relationship to credit: we can TAKE credit; we can GIVE credit; we can STEAL credit; and we can GIVE AWAY credit. In today's episode, I'm going to talk about each of these different modes and how they can impact your career advancement. Taking credi...

I firmly believe that you have to own your career. If you rely on someone else to drive it, it will likely not go in the direction that you want -- if it actually goes anywhere at all. In each episode of this podcast, I cover a topic that makes you think about your career, but taking action is still up to you. Sometimes, we find ourselves procrastinating even when we know we should be acting. This week, I want to cover several reasons why you may be procrastinating and how to get past them. We ...

The other day, I saw a post on the co-Founder of the Maven learning platform. Her post was a synopsis of an issue of her newsletter that really resonated with me ( ). It was on the topic of Finesse in Communications. You could also...

The goal of most people in the corporate world is to get promoted. Along with that promotion is usually personal growth, more responsibility, and increased pay. But, what happens if you find yourself promoted too soon? There could be many reasons that you receive a promotion. Someone more senior could have left -- either the team or the company. You could have also pushed for it with your leaders and everything aligned for them to promote you. You may have even received a promotion that you wer...

I was reading an article on LinkedIn by that was titled . This article talks about how a new leader could build a AAA team - a team with the three A's: Accountability, Autonomy, and Authority. From a leader perspective, it's important to...

The past few weeks, several of us at my job have been working on a slide deck that will be presented to an executive that is a few levels above mine. The final deck is just three slides, but it took a lot of time to get those three slides nailed down to the ideal content. Most of the time was spent on simplifying the content to only the information that the executive would actually care about and refining the slide design to be more visually focused. For a deck to only be three slides but for i...

I was reading through LinkedIn the other day and there was a where he had made a mistake but owning up to it and correcting the issue lead to an overall great outcome. That post inspired this podcast episode. It can be scary when you...

I focus a lot on the Individual Development Plan or IDP as a tool for managing your career. As a singular document, it encapsulates where you want your career to go and the steps it will take to get there. If you need to review the IDP, refer back to Episodes 036 through 040 where I break down each section. But if you are unsure of what that end goal should be, understanding your WHY may help you resolve that problem. Have you ever spent time of self-reflection on your motivations for choosing ...

There is a lot of uncertainty in the job market right now with so many news stories talking about this company or that company laying of large portions of their workforce. If you've been following the guidance that I've shared in the various episodes of this podcast, you've likely done all within your power to keep your name off of "the list", but sometimes, no matter what you do, you could find yourself impacted by a layoff. When you lose your job, it's ok to have feelings. Acknowledge them. W...

Manager, Leader, Mentor, Coach; all four can help you advance your career. This week, we take a look at each role and how each one can help you in your quest for a promotion. At the most simplistic level, the roles can be summarized as: A Manager tells you want to do. A Leader enables you so that you can do it. A Mentor shows you how to do it. And a coach changes the way you think about it. Your manager is responsible for what projects you work on. It's important to have a manager that recogn...

The other day, while browsing Facebook, a quote appeared on my feed that I found very inspiring. "The only difference between success and failure is the ability to take action" - Alexander Graham Bell. This week, I want to break down why I find this quote so inspiring. In general, I consider myself a fairly successful person. But most of that success has come from not being afraid of the results and just TRYING…..or using the language of the quote, taking action. If you are looking to make pro...

If you regularly listen to my podcast, it's either because you know me personally and want to help me out (thanks, I appreciate it) or because you found me because you are looking for advice on how to position yourself for a promotion. I hope that you find my advice targeted and actionable while being presented with simple clarity. But, I'll also be the first to tell you that you should listen to multiple people and synthesize your own plan about the best course forward because no one else live...

In , I touched on the subject of . In that episode, I talked about how you can position yourself for advancement by transitioning from process oriented tasks to higher-level tasks that leverage more discretion and judgement. This week,...

Early in your career, advancement is generally easier and is just a matter of doing "more"……more tasks, bigger tasks, more responsibility. But, transitioning to senior levels may require a different approach - being more innovative. Senior members of the team are usually expected to bring new solutions, approaches, and ideas to the problems the team tackles. These expectations can best be met by those on the team that are the most innovative. Innovative solutions can often lead to improved effi...

Most companies, at least once per year, go through an annual goal planning process. As part of this process, you are expected to have some number of company-focused goals as well as some number of personal goals. Company goals are usually related to revenue, profit, sales, projects, or initiatives. Your personal goals, however, have more freedom in what they target. With the company goals, you'll want to start by analyzing how you can personally impact them. This may take a little bit of creati...

Periodically, I check back and highlight the last few episodes to remind you of things you can work on to help set you up for career success and this most recent group has a lot of solid content. Episodes 036 to 040 was a five-part series that covered the Individual Development plan in detail. It starts with an Introduction that emphasizes the importance of the IDP and is followed by episodes that describe the key sections: the Vision and Roadmap, the Assessment and Next Steps, and the Action P...

If your company has a hybrid policy, how can you best use your time in the office? Well, first you should make sure you understand and comply with all aspects of the new policy. Are there specific days that you must be in the office? Do you have a designated space or are you participating in Community shared desk system? Which days and what locations will most of your coworkers leverage when they work from the office? Most companies, as they roll out these return to office policies, state that ...

In several of my previous episodes, I've mentioned that one way to stand out is to produce status reports that are value focused instead of task focused. This week, I go into more detail about what that type of status report would look like. Purpose and Audience The first thing to understand about a status report is its purpose. By knowing who the audience is you can properly tailor the report to meet the purpose that they care about and summarized appropriately. For your clients and stakeholde...

This week, I'm going to talk about your personal brand and how you can build one. When you hear the term, what impression does that give you? For many, I'm sure you associate the term with celebrities, athletes, and social media influencers. But, I'm here to tell you that it applies to everyone. So, what is a personal brand? At the simplest level, your personal brand is the impression that others have of you -- your reputation. But it's more than just that. Your personal brand statement is a co...

This week, we're going to talk about a very critical subject, your mental health. Each episode, I talk about subjects that can help you advance your career and understanding and addressing your mental health is an important one. If you aren't able to be focused on your work because of things happening in your personal life, it's going to impact you. So, let's take a look at what you can do about it. First, I want to start by saying, no matter what anyone says, your health and your mental health...