I attended a training class many years ago on coaching and feedback. The two big things that I remember from that class were: give feedback to someone in a timely manner and that your manager is your top client. I had lots of clients at the time, but never considered that my manager was one of them. It was one of those aha moments for me and it made a lot of sense. This type of thinking shifts how you…
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Can being visible make a difference for you and your career? The short answer is absolutely yes without a doubt. Everyone that I have worked with clients, mentees that I have mentored and people that I have interviewed for my book. Everyone of them found that visibility is important to their success. Many people view this is a gender based challenge that women struggle with the most. Many studies have been done to show that it is true that women do struggle…
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Are you thinking about taking on a new role in your company? How will the leaders who make the hiring decisions know that you are ready? It comes down to taking action and raising your visibility. Management needs to see that you can do what is required before you get the role. That means you need to be visible to them. Think about the key responsibilities in the role that you want and how can you demonstrate those things? Show them that what…
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There are many benefits that you will gain by being more visible. I will share a few to help you see why visibility is important. First, this may seem basic, but people will know who you are. This is especially important in larger organizations where there are many team members that are not known to senior management. They are known to their team members and manager, but that is it. When it comes time for succession planning, if you are…
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Think about a meeting you have been in with a large group of people. A question came up for you, but you hesitated to ask it. What happened in that moment? For some, they may assume that everyone else probably knows the answer and they are embarrassed to ask, so they keep quiet. For others, it may mean that they don’t want to stand out by asking the question, so they don’t say anything and choose to ask someone else later. In both of these…
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There are two ways of thinking about being visible in the workplace. One is that “I work really hard and my management knows that I do a good job so I don’t need any more visibility.” The other is that “I work hard and do a good job, but I also recognize that getting in front of my management is important to my success.” I was someone who believed in the first example above. Being visible felt like “playing politics” and I…
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There are three ways to move up in an organization more quickly. You may take advantage of one of them or a combination of all three depending on what support you need. The first is to take advantage of what your manager has to offer. For those who are working for a strong leader who develops their people, you will learn a lot and gain opportunities based on that relationship with them. They will support your growth and advocate for opportunities…
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I remember the initial stress I felt when I had been assigned a VP business mentor. It was a benefit of being in a leadership program which seemed really great until I had to think about what to say to her. Up until that time, I had only met with mentors who were in IT, so we had a common language and understanding about what our roles were. There were three reasons this mentor meeting brought me a bit of…
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Do you have a mentor in mind for yourself? Would you describe them as someone who is similar to you and your style? It is common to look for people who are further ahead in their career with a strong personal brand, but in many ways they are just like us. Choosing a mentor who was exactly like me is what happened in my career. I didn’t think about it that way at the time. I just saw this female leader…
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If you are a strong performer, you will look for opportunities to get high exposure projects to show your value. The goal you have is to do a good job, but isn’t it also to get noticed for your next role? At this point, you may hear that you should get yourself a mentor or sponsor to help you progress in your career. They can help you make progress faster than you would be able to do on your own. Mentors provide perspectives for…
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