Your Promotion Playbook - Command the career of your dreams

With all the vanilla advice out there about career acceleration. It’s no wonder that 99% of people following generic tactics get generic results.

I was in a bad way a few years ago. Stuck in my dead-end job completely unaware of how to get to where I wanted to.

Over the past 3 years I’ve spent over 250+ hours interviewing and learning from incredibly successful people like hedge fund managers, CEOs, and VPs at Amazon, Microsoft and Deutsche Bank, as well as leading psychologists to bring you the truth about getting ahead in your career.

Since applying their strategies, within 6-12 months I experienced a serious increase in my:

• Payrises (30% +)

• Influence

• Leadership

• Negotiating

• Productivity

I’ve decided to call this bundle of knowledge:

Why the promotion habit?

Because that’s what happens when you commit to consistently practising it.

This will turn you into an indispensable asset that companies want.

Here’s a quick 1 min summary:

• The promotion habit is a string of micro-habits, like Christmas tree lights.

• Once connected in the correct sequence and actioned, they light up your Career Christmas Tree.

• So that Santa (your boss) knows where to deliver the presents and that promotion.

What this habit isn't:

• Generic work hard, work smart advice from your Grandad.

What this habit is:

• Principles of truth converted into small, simple, actionable steps.

What you don't need to do it:

• Standard knowledge (like a degree, MBA, or PhD)

• Connections

• Wealth

What this habit will give you:

• Specialised knowledge

• Powerful connections

• Leverage

• Influence

• Wealth

Most people are passive bystanders in their careers.

That’s why the first mindset shift you need to make is seeing your career as a business and you’re the CEO.

Over my 250+ hours of research and interviewing CEOs, VPs at Amazon and Microsoft, and various Hedge Fund managers. 1 thing was clear as day!

The most successful people aren’t employees. They’re premium products.

Employees are dispensable. Premium products aren’t. You need to build yourself into a premium product that executives and managers need.

You can do this with The Promotion Habit.

Why the Promotion Habit Works

The Promotion Habit comprises of a select group of science-backed soft skills, personal management, and problem solving habits.

A study in the Harvard Business Review found the correlation between education level and job performance as weak.

Harvard University, the Carnegie Foundation, and Stanford Research Center noted that 85% of your career success is attributed to well-developed soft skills (hard skills constituting only 15%).

Sounds a little like the 80/20 law no? If you haven’t heard this before here we go.

A review of several studies published in the Cambridge University Press found 5 key traits that companies want in their people:

1. Resource savviness - being able to identify and allocate resources. 

2. Interpersonal skills - being able to work with others.

3. Decision Maker - being able to acquire and use information.

4. Systems Thinking - being able to understand complex interrelationships.

5. Techie -  being able to work with a variety of technologies.

The study found managers complained of 3 types of “worker deficiencies”: 

1. Poor problem solving

2. Poor interpersonal skills

3. Poor personal / time management

Interestingly the study also found the greatest predictor of career success:

Being enjoyable to work with.

Ok, so a quick recap:

• Career acceleration isn’t tied directly to your smarts or education.

• Companies want adaptable, logical thinkers who can manage resources well.

• Companies want people who can make sound decisions with good time management skills.

• Being enjoyable to work with is career rocket fuel. 

LinkedIn’s Global Talent Trends 2019 Report provides the cherry on the cake.

Soft skills will become significantly valuable over time as AI automation cannot automate being human.

According to the Harvard Business Review, soft skills — and things machines can’t do — are becoming more valuable than ever.

LinkedIn’s report revealed:

So in summary, getting ahead, levelling up, and securing that promotion won’t necessarily be based on your hard skills or education. Rather it’s a combination of soft skills, personal management, and problem solving skills.

Here’s how you secure a promtion 👇🏼

THE PROMOTION HABIT: 

A quick note on habits. James Clear’s Habit Loop is key to ensuring these habits stick and take you forward. I’ve created habit loops for each component so you can apply them immediately.

VISION:

You need to have direction before you start, here’s how you find it:

• What lifestyle do you want?

• What role are you going after?

• What is the most important outcome the role requires you to deliver?

• What is the #1 problem you need to solve in the role?

• What fundamental experience and skills does the role require?

  • What is your skill gap?

  • What is your situational experience gap?

• What can you do through a work or a personal side project to build the skills and experience you need?

  • Remember: through targeted side projects, you can build the experience it’s taken people 5 years to gain, within 6 months.

• What habits, actions, tasks, and behaviours do you need to stop to focus on closing the gap?

VALUE:

The value you bring to the table isn’t your education or hard skills. It’s in your ability to navigate uncertainty, solve problems, convert opportunities, and make lasting improvements.

• 5 Levers Thinking:

  • Description: Understanding the nuts and bolts of your company. Solving problems by considering 5 key company systems (Cash Flow, Assets, Profit, Growth, People).

  • Cue: When faced with decisions and solving challenges.

  • Response: Evaluate how your decision or solution will positively impact each system. E.g. improve sales, increase productivity, reduce payment times etc.

  • Reward: Showcase your strategic thinking and how you can lead a business unit.

• Creative Judgement:

  • Embrace becoming more of a generalist. The more experience you gain by experimenting with new skills and business units the more dots you’ll connect.

  • Collaborate with other departments, get the 101 on how things work in another team etc.

IMPACT:

What you know and what you can do are important, but equally so, is how well you apply yourself:

• Productivity:

  • Description: Prioritizing high-impact tasks for maximum effectiveness.

  • Cue: Start of each workday.

  • Response: Identify and focus on the 3 most critical tasks for the day, and start with the most important one. Use the 3-10-20 method. Here are 4 tiny habits that boost productivity.

  • Reward: Feeling accomplished each day.

• Deep Work:

  • Description: Dedicated, undistracted time for focused, high-quality work.

  • Cue: Start your workday by turning off all notifications.

  • Response: Block a specific time in your calendar for 90 minutes of deep work to work on your most important tasks.

  • Reward: Completing high-value work that moves the needle for your career progression.

• Problem Hunting:

  • Description: Proactively find areas and systems within your team and company that can be improved.

  • Cue: Observe inefficiencies, bottlenecks, and high costs in your current processes. Discovering tasks that’ve fallen through the cracks.

  • Response: Investigate the root causes, find a solution and fix it. It’s better to ask for forgiveness than permission.

  • Reward: Improved team efficiency and recognition for problem-solving. Make your manager’s life easier.

• Time Management:

  • Description: Efficiently managing your time for high-importance work.

  • Cue: Beginning of the workweek.

  • Response: Schedule time blocks into your calendar for high-priority tasks and strategic activities. Avoid people booking time-wasting meetings with you.

  • Reward: Increased productivity and a sense of control over your schedule.

• Journaling:

• Description: Reflect on challenges, meetings and presentations to dump your thoughts.

• Cue: Before the start of your workday or as problems arise.

• Response: Write down your thoughts, all of them don’t hold back. Pick your thoughts and problems apart to find the golden nuggets from your noisy mind.

• Reward: Increased self-awareness and persuasion skills.

• Solutions-Oriented Approach:

  • Description: Always present solutions, never problems.

  • Cue: Identifying a challenge, issue, or obstacle at work.

  • Response: Instead of just pointing out the problem, propose 3 practical options to solve the problem. Give your opinion on the best one.

  • Reward: Recognition for proactive problem-solving and improved team momentum.

OPERATOR:

People who deliver on their word will naturally land as first choice for kickass projects and promotions.

• Keep a Scorecard:

  • Description: Keep track of all the results you’ve delivered so you can remind your manager of how valuable you are.

  • Cue: When your boss gives you a task, job or project.

  • Response: Make it measurable. Ask your boss what is the result that needs to be delivered and how it will be measured. Record your wins in a journal.

  • Reward: Tangebile results you can use to negotiate your next promotion.

• Deliver the Goods:

  • Description: You need to be known as the person who delivers on your word.

  • Cue: When you say yes to a task, be clear on what you need to deliver and by when.

  • Response: Let the person asking for your effort know where the task sits on your priority list.

  • Reward: Build a trusting relationship with your boss and team.

• First Principles Thinking:

  • Description: Breaking down complex problems into the basic truths you can work from.

  • Cue: Encountering a challenging problem.

  • Response: Ask yourself, “What are the essential elements of this problem, what do you know to be true about it?"

  • Reward: Build your brand as the “solutions guy/gal”.

• Second-Order Effects Thinking:

  • Description: Considering the long-term consequences of decisions.

  • Cue: Making a strategic decision.

  • Response: Evaluate the potential second and third-order effects of going ahead with a decision. What will the impact be in 10 days, 10 months, and 10 years from now?

  • Reward: Making more informed and forward-thinking choices.

• Inversion Thinking:

  • Description: Avoid stupidity by thinking backwards from the desired outcome.

  • Cue: Considering options for a critical decision.

  • Response: Consider potential obstacles by imagining the opposite scenario. E.g. “What if this choice was wrong, what would happen?”

  • Reward: Making decisions with reduced risks and increased foresight.

• Boundary Setting:

  • Description: Establish clear boundaries so you can have time and energy to work on high-value projects that get you noticed.

  • Cue: Feeling overwhelmed with work demands/manager loading too much work on you.

  • Response: Say this, “If I say yes to this (new task/project), what am I saying no to?”

  • Reward: Improved well-being, reduced stress, and increased capacity.

VISIBILITY:

The number one area for improvement that most people lack is this. If you aren’t top of your manager’s mind you’re going nowhere. You need to be recognised for the right reasons. You need a personal brand.

• Internal Networking:

  • Description: Building enjoyable relationships with the big decision-makers to open up opportunities.

  • Cue: Need help getting noticed at work.

  • Response: Introduce yourself to at least three new people and ask them interested questions about their work. Build from there.

  • Reward: Expanding the number of people who will sing your praises.

• Effective Communication:

  • Description: Honing both verbal and written communication skills for clarity.

  • Cue: Sending emails, prep for meetings, and presenting.

  • Response: Write and speak so a 10-year-old can understand. Always ask yourself, “Is my message as clear and simple as possible?”, “Am I talking about the most important point?” Use the Pyramid Principle.

  • Reward: Greater influence on the people around you. More buy-in from key decision-makers.

• Give Effective Updates - Show, Don’t Tell:

  • Description: Regularly sharing progress and accomplishments for increased visibility with your manager. Make your work strategically visible.

  • Cue: Weekly team meetings and when you have achieved something that you’ve recorded in your scorecard.

  • Response: Images speak 1000 words, use them. Use this “update outline”:

    • Here's what you asked me to do.

    • Here's what I did.

    • Here’s the result.

    • Here are the risks/blockers (if any).

    • If given more time, I'd do this…

  • Reward: Recognition and sustaining positive visibility in your decision-maker’s mind.

• Work on High Visibility Projects:

  • Description: Contributing to projects aligned with organizational goals that move the needle.

  • Cue: Identifying strategic initiatives within the company and your team.

  • Response: Volunteer or negotiate to join or lead a high-impact project. Show your face in high-level meetings.

  • Reward: Increased recognition, potentially leading to promotions or new opportunities.

• Speak in 3s:

  • Description: Structuring your message or idea in sets of 3 for enhanced retention and impact.

  • Cue: Preparing for a team presentation or meeting.

  • Response: Organize key points in groups of 3 for clarity

    • Read this.

  • Reward: Increased influence and buy-in from your manager and team.

• Persuasion:

  • Description: Learning the art of persuasion by understanding your audience.

  • Cue: Convincing stakeholders to adopt a new idea.

  • Response: Figure out what the person in front of you wants. Tailor your approach to show them how you can help them get it directly or indirectly.

  • Reward: Successfully gaining the support of key decision-makers.

• Radical Leadership:

  • Description: Taking initiative, leading yourself and supporting your team.

  • Cue: Identifying a gap in your team’s morale or productivity.

  • Response: Support people individually, listen deeply and understand their POV.

  • Reward: Enhanced team cohesion and a positive work environment - desired traits considered for promotion.

• Build Your Brand:

  • Description: Building your image at work and online as a thought leader. Being known as the person who can make things happen.

  • Cue: Any moment that calls for your opinion and integrity. Building your brand online e.g. LinkedIn.

  • Response: Showcase your expertise through thought leadership on topics, problems and creative solutions.

  • Reward: Enhanced professional reputation and increased visibility.

• Speak Up More:

  • Description: Speaking and presenting to people outside your immediate team. Sharing your thought leadership is an investment with large returns.

  • Cue: Opportunity to present or speak at a company event.

  • Response: Hell Yes.

  • Reward: Enhanced personal brand and increased visibility.

• Promotion Politics:

  • Description: Once you’ve found the role you want, identified your gaps, made a plan to close them, built your scorecard, and networked with the right people in your company. Now express your interest in the role but don’t apply.

  • Cue: Talk to the hiring manager to find out about the role. Get clear on the most important objective the role needs to deliver.

  • Response: Show them how you can help them and deliver the objective. Share your credibility by using your scorecard. Speak with HR to support your application.

  • Reward: Get the job before the interview.

2024 is your year to shine.

• solve problems

• speak so people listen

• manage yourself and work well with others.

You WILL become unstoppable.

It’s taken months of research, interviewing, and experimentation to compile this into something that delivers results. All I ask is you share it with your friends so they can benefit too. Thank you!

I want to hear from you. What’s missing? What do you need help with? Please drop your thoughts and questions below.

If a friend shared this with you, you can subscribe here for more.