11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At

Work
With 30 Years of Blue-Chip Leadership Experience, I Share 28 Proven Ways To Get
Promoted At Work & Move Up In Your Career. Includes PDF Checklist

By Barry D. Moore - January 17, 2021

This article will provide you a proven 28 step system for propelling your career up the
corporate ladder to help you fulfill your career aspirations. It is compiled from my 26
years and 10 promotions in large corporations. This article is split into four sections
and has a printable cheat sheet guide available for free download at the end of the
article.

If You Have To Ask For A Promotion, It’s Already Too Late. Get Promoted At Work Without Asking.
Be The Natural Choice.

There are four critical factors in getting promoted:

Deliver on your goals consistently.

Deliver your goals on time.

Deliver your goals in the right way with professionalism & integrity.

You are already a natural choice.

Section 1: Deliver On Goals With Integrity

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 1/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

How to Get Promoted At Work 30 Step Checklist

1. Deliver On Your Goals Consistently

If you are going to be a trusted employee and be considered for promotions and
career development, you have to be clear on your goals and deliver those outcomes.

In my experience of Silicon Valley corporations, you are only considered for

a promotion if you deliver on your targets. If you are the one that delivers results, you
are usually going places.

Also, it is not just about achieving some of your goals; it is about building a reputation
that you always deliver. The best compliment I ever received was my manager telling
me, “Barry, you always deliver.”

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 2/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Delivering Your Goals Tip: We all get distracted at work with side jobs and issues
that arise day-to-day. Ensure you deliver the big things, and the rest will fall into
place – print out your major goals and refer to them weekly to check if you made any
progress against them.

Related Article: Being Productive Helps You Deliver Your Goals

2. Be Crystal Clear On Goals

Whether you are seeking promotion or not, you need to be crystal clear on your
goals. Many low-grade managers typically want to micro-manage their staff and dish
out small tasks one by one. If you want to claim you can consistently deliver on your
goals, you need to quantify them with your manager and get a sign-off.

Know the outcome: Increased sales, better customer satisfaction rating, new
products developed, projects completed.

Measure the outcome: 10% increase in sales, 2-point shift on customer

satisfaction; three new products developed, projects completed on budget.

Know the timeline: 10% increase in sales in 6 months, 2 points on customer

satisfaction in 12 months, one new product every three months, projects completed
on time.

Now that you are clear on your goals, you need to keep your boss and team updated
on the goals. If you feel you need support to achieve the goals, ask for support from
your manager or even your team.

[Related Post: Be Goal-Oriented – SMART Goals]

3. Deliver On Your Goals With Integrity

It is not enough to simply deliver on your goals. If you hit your targets and are
disrespectful, inconsiderate, or in any way intolerant of others, this will damage your
career.

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 3/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

You need to be patient and consider other people’s viewpoints and situations.

Never cross the line by being too intimate or personal.

Never discriminate against religion, gender, color, lifestyle, education, or anything in

any way.

Never be rude or dismissive.

Never, ever RAISE YOUR VOICE.

Integrity Tip: Treat others as you wish to be treated with respect, tolerance, and
honesty.

"When You Stop Learning, You Stop Living"

SkillShare Makes Learning Easy.

Skillshare Is Our #1 Rated Learning Platform With Great Lessons On:

★★★★★ Creating: Photography, Film-Making, Music, Graphic Design & Coding
★★★★★ Building: Leadership, Communication, Entrepreneurship & Marketing
★★★★★ Thriving: Personal & Professional Development, Productivity, Time
Management

"Skillshare is like Netflix for learning. I take a course every time I need a
new skill. With over 30,000 courses to choose from, I always have
something to learn." Barry D. Moore - Founder: GreatWorkLife.com

Get 30 Days of Skillshare Premium for Free

4. Build Trust With Your Manager

If you are the type of person that starts fires rather than helps put them out, you will
have problems. Ultimately, all but the most egotistical people want to have a good
working environment where everyone gets along.

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 4/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Build a good relationship with your manager by being the “safe pair of hands.” That
means you are the one that does not drop the ball on an important task or
deliverable. If you communicate enough with your manager, you will understand the
state of the business and also understand their goals.

Additionally, with any good working relationship, you will understand how they tick,
meaning how they operate and like to do business. The more in-tune you are with
your boss, the more you will be empowered to make important decisions without
consulting them. You build trust by ensuring that when an important decision needs
to be made, and you are not 100% sure of the right decision, you speak with your
boss and discuss it to clarify the point.

Building Manager Trust Tip: Don’t just ask what to do; state the problem and what
decision you think is the right one. If your manager agrees to your solution or even
tweaks it a little, you build a bond of trust.

Section 2 – Team Dynamics & Relationships

5. Build Trust With Your Team

Being a colleague that people feel they can trust is critical to getting a promotion. We
discussed earlier achieving your goals the right way while treating people with respect
and dignity. This extends to all of your activities, whether in a team meeting, at the
water cooler, or on a lunch break.

Make each interaction with others positive, and they will not have a word to say
against you. It only takes one bad interaction to start a cycle of mistrust within a
team.

If you are the type of person people enjoy working with, you have the first base
covered.

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 5/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Building Team Trust Tip: Make each interaction with others positive, and they will
not have a word to say against you. It only takes one bad interaction to start a cycle
of mistrust within a team.

6. Help Others Succeed & Build A Following

Meeting your goals is one thing, but to build a strong following in the team, you need
to help others achieve their goals. Never think of it in terms of “if I achieve my goals
and others do not, I will be the one promoted.”

Never achieve your goals at the expense of other team members. Building a
reputation and a following means helping others achieve their goals also. A great
manager’s main function is to help the whole team to be successful. If you can help
your manager achieve that by assisting others, you will boost your credentials and lay
the foundation for success.

Helping Others Tip: Take some time to look around the team to see who is
struggling with their tasks. Approach them and respectfully offer your assistance.

7. Mentor New Team Members

If your team is growing, then there will be new people joining the team regularly.
Speak to your manager and let them know that you are willing to help onboard new
team members to help settle them in and introduce them to the team. This is time
well invested as you will be onboarding a follower and building a strong relationship
with that person.

Coaching Tip: Speak to your manager and let them know you want to help new team
members.

8. Do Not Play Politics Or Favorites

Workplace politics can raise its ugly head for many reasons. One particular reason is
if there are multiple people who are aggressively seeking career advancement. An
average ambitious employee believes they need to promote themselves at the cost of
others. They may exact that cost in terms of talking about others behind their backs,
belittling the work of others, and making a show of anything they do in order to self-
promote.

Do not engage in any of these activities; they waste time and lead to mistrust and a
poisonous work atmosphere. You need to rise above it all.

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 6/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Avoid Politics Tip: Train yourself to not engage in gossip or discussing others
behinds their back. If you get dragged into a conversation like that, politely excuse
yourself from the discussion, people will quickly get the message about your level of
professionalism.

9. Develop Job Mastery: Be The Go-To Person

Another vital element in your getting promoted checklist is to actually be good at your
job.

Most well-paid jobs require certain technical skills. Whether you work as I.T. technical
support, a trainee accountant, or in sales, mastering your job is a must for promotion.

Most teams are organized into a function. If, for example, that function is sales and
the next promotion is to the sales team leader for a region or channel, you need to
demonstrate that you have sales mastery. You need to demonstrate a track record of
hitting sales targets and keeping customers happy.

Why, because often a promotion means more seniority and the ability to take your
skills and leverage them across more people. If you are the person who knows how
to make sales, then you will be given the responsibility of 10 other salespeople, and
your job is to enable them to be successful. You cannot do this without mastery of
your job.

Job Mastery Tip: Make continual learning a way of life. To be great at your job,
take the time to learn from the best at work, and also develop your own skills outside
the team. Research professional training courses and take advantage of Podcasts,
Audiobooks, and books to expand your horizons and knowledge.

Related Article: The Best Audiobook Services Review

10. Take The Tough Jobs

Inevitably, tough jobs come along. You know they are tough because no-one wants to
take on the task. You can use this opportunity to extend your reputation and build
credibility within the team by stepping up and taking ownership. This will build your
profile, and your team will respect you for it, but it can be a double-edged sword. You
need to make sure that you have the skills or can build the skills to complete the job.

Taking the Tough Jobs Tip: If you think the job is highly likely to fail, specify this
clearly to your manager. e.g., “This has a 20% chance of success, but I will take it

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 7/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

anyway.” If you succeed, then you are a hero against all the odds. If you fail, well,
they were warned.

Section 3 – Personal Attributes For Success

11. Be Prepared For Meeting With Your Boss

If you really want to impress, be ready for meetings with your manager. The best
situation is to have a notebook on your desk or an excel spreadsheet always open so
that you can note down topics as they arise during your working week that you need
to discuss with your boss.

Topics will include new business ideas, updates on critical meetings, difficult
customers, new business wins, and inputs on important decisions.

If you do not develop the habit of capturing them when they occur, then you will
forget them by the time your one-to-one meeting happens.

One On One Meeting Tips: When the one-to-one meeting happens, it is 5 minutes
of “Hi, how are you, how are the family” and then 25 minutes of powering through 10
different topics. No time wasted and maximum results. Your boss will love you for
that.

12. Punctuality: Be On-Time

There is no doubt about it. In most companies and especially in big corporations,
there is nearly always time pressure to achieve goals and targets. When you are
invited to a meeting, whether it is with a client or an internal team meeting, be on
time.

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 8/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Being consistently late for any appointment shows you have the following
characteristics:

You are badly organized.

You do not perceive time correctly.

You cannot plan ahead.

You cannot meet deadlines.

You do not respect the valuable time of others.

Demonstrating any or all of the characteristics above means you are not eligible for
the promotion.

Counting The Cost Of Being Late. Think of it like this; if there are ten people in
the meeting and they were all waiting for you to arrive, and you were 10 minutes late,
you just wasted 100 minutes of their lives. They will not thank you for it.

In my experience, the most often used excuse for being late is that the previous
meeting overran. If you were leading that meeting or did not inform the meeting
leader that you need to leave at a certain time, it is your own fault you are late.

Punctuality Tip: Make it a point of pride and personal integrity to always be on

time. If you arrive a little early, it means you also get to chat and build a relationship
with others before the meeting, making you feel more comfortable and giving you
time to think about the meeting and what you want from it.

Audiobooks Are Food for the Mind

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 9/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Inspiration, Education & Relaxation

Have you discovered the joy of listening?

★★★★★ Audible: Review Winner - Best for Price, Library Size & Original Content.
★★★★★ Blinkist: Review Winner - Best Audiobook Summary Service.
★★★★ Audiobooks.com: Best For Unlimited Audiobook Listening.

"As a 10-year member of Audible, I have a library of 300+ audiobooks.

The best thing is, with a few clicks, I can return any book within 12-
months. I also subscribe to Blinkist; with 5,000 15-minute audio-
summaries, I can consume knowledge and learn new concepts fast."

Barry D. Moore - Founder: GreatWorkLife.com

Read Our Audiobook Services Test & Comparison

13. Be A Good Oral Communicator

Having the ability to speak clearly and with structure is a huge plus when in the race
for promotion. I am not even talking about presenting to an audience of 1,000; I am
just talking about small groups and one-to-one discussions. Of course, being
comfortable in larger groups is also a huge plus.

Being able to clearly and intelligibly get your point across is vital in today’s business
world. Your words should also mean something. Avoid giving strong opinions when
you are not well informed; if you do not know something, say so.

Oral Communication Tip: All of us, from the CEO to the individual contributor, can
improve our speaking skills. If you seriously want to grow your confidence and
engagement, the single best way to do it is by joining the not-for-profit organization,
Toastmasters. I was a member myself for two years.

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 10/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

14. Be A Good Visual Communicator

When I want to get an important point across, I always use a visual. A visual is a
graphical representation of the key points you are trying to make.

Important points warrant pulling up a PowerPoint presentation or a whiteboard. But in

team meetings, it is simply worth sharing the meeting agenda and minutes so that the
audience can see what the topic is and who the actions belong to.

The visual side of the brain is a lot more receptive than the audio receptors. As they
say, “a picture paints a thousand words,” and this is as true in remote team meetings
as it is in an art exhibition.

Visual Communication Tip: Keep your visuals to mostly images and diagrams, not
pages of text.

15. Be Positive & Speak With A Smile

Speak with a smile on your face

When I was 17 years old at college, I landed a tough summer job. I was being paid to
go door to door trying to sell double glazing windows. In the late 1980s, double-
glazed windows were like the electric car in terms of innovation; yes, it is sad.

Suffice to say, the people who answered their door to a snot-faced, pimply teenager
trying to sell them windows were not the most polite.

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 11/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

It was a miserable job, but what I did learn was to put a big smile on my face at the
beginning of any interaction. A big smile and a firm, energetic and friendly voice do
this with every one of your co-workers, and you will do just fine. It could be worse;
you could be trying to sell them double glazing.

Positivity Tip: A big smile and a firm, energetic and friendly voice do this with every
one of your co-workers

16. Share A Little Humor

The best compliment you will ever get from a British person is they will say you are a
“good laugh.” The British love humor; that does not mean they are all funny; it just
means that even trying gets you bonus points.

Inject a little humor into your interactions with people, and they will warm to you. I
do not mean telling jokes, just trying to see the lighter side of life.

Humor Tip: Keep it clean and light-hearted

17. Attend Team Meetings & Speak Up

It is easy to sit and say nothing in a team meeting, but you will be slowly forgotten
over time. To be successful, you need to do the exact opposite. If your manager is
good, they will usually make time for a team round-table to enable everyone to share
their progress and updates to the team.

Team Meeting Tip: Be ready for the team meeting, have at least one topic to raise
on the round-table, and be a speaker regularly on the fixed agenda. This does not
mean speaking just for the hell of it, make it meaningful and value-adding, and you
are on the right path.

18. Be Focused On The Job At Hand

Distraction and interruption are the enemies of getting any job done. This is very
prevalent in meetings, especially in group meetings. Some people really love the
sound of their own voice and can hijack simple discussions to introduce another topic.
Be aware of that; after a while of being mindful, you will learn to detect it quickly. Be
polite and request that the distracting topic is tabled for another meeting.

Focused In Meetings Tip: If you need to get to a solution or outcome in a certain

timeframe, be structured in the planning for the meeting. Plan the right time and

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 12/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

include time for questions. Do not try to solve world peace in a one-hour meeting.

19. If You Raise A Problem, Suggest A Solution

To be a candidate for a promotion, you need to demonstrate you are a problem
solver. Imagine you are a Marketing Specialist, and one of your campaigns is running
behind schedule, and there is a risk of missing the deadline.

You do not approach your supervisor and say, “we are behind schedule; what can we
do?”

The best approach is to take ten minutes out to think about possible solutions. If you
cannot think of solutions, have a chat with more experienced team members and see
what they think.

Then you can approach your supervisor and say, “we have a risk of running behind
schedule, so should we add some people from other projects until we are back on
track, or move this deliverable until after the deadline because it is not critical to the
project success. Or do you have another suggestion?”

Solution Tip: Take time to organize your approach and suggest solutions

20. Build Your Work Network

Having a good network of people in the company will certainly help your career
prospects. If you foster good relationships, people will speak highly of you, and
opportunities will start to flow your way, and you will be considered. When problems
come along, if you cannot fix them, you should know someone who can.

Build Your Network Tip: Attend work functions, team lunches, and the occasional
evening out. Rotate who you go to coffee with during working hours and be friendly
and chatty at the water cooler.

Related Article: The Best Tips For Creating Career Opportunities & Getting
a Payrise

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 13/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

21. Be Committed
Most people mistake being committed with staying late in the office and doing lots of
unpaid overtime. Sure we all burn the midnight oil occasionally to meet a deadline
but do not make it a habit.

A good manager will not expect you to give up your personal life and family to get a
promotion. If they do, find another role in the company or outside the company.

When I was at university, I promised myself that I would never turn into one of those
corporate guys who worked every hour that God sent and end up losing my wife and
having no relationship with my family and friends.

This is easier said than done. The more you are promoted and the higher up the
career ladder you climb, the more money you earn, and that means greater
expectations on your shoulders. This is what leads to burn-out.

However, you can show your commitment in other ways.

Commit to the quality of your work, not the number of hours.

Show your commitment through supporting your team to be successful.

Commit to helping your manager be successful and achieve business goals.

Demonstrate your commitment to the business by suggesting ways to improve the

product, service, or even productivity.

22. Continually Develop Your Skills

We are surrounded by information and knowledge everywhere we look. Unfortunately,

most of us choose to ignore most of it.

Every six months, you need to take some time out of your schedule to think about
your career:

Where do you want to be in one or two years?

What knowledge, training, or experience will you need to get there.

Make a list, and take action.

There are so many choices available, and you can make them fit your needs:

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 14/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Professional Qualifications – ask your employer to pay or contribute.

Industry Journals – your employer might pay for them.

Books – the time-tested cheap, and effective way to improve knowledge.

Audiobooks – my preferred way of absorbing knowledge and expanding my

horizons without having to sit down in front of a computer or in bed with a book.
Listen to books whilst exercising, gardening, commuting, or cleaning the kitchen.

Try the DIY MBA – Do A Personal MBA in One Day

Self-Development Tip: Plan where you want to go in your career and choose the
best method for attaining the knowledge you need.

23. Get A Mentor

It is so rarely done in business, but when done properly can be very effective. A
mentor is a person that is preferably senior and with more experience than you.
Normally they will not be in your direct organization so that they can provide you with
impartial advice.

If you feel having a mentor will help you, speak to your manager about it, or approach
someone in your network that you respect ask them directly.

Get A Mentor Tip: Do not be afraid to approach someone and ask; simply by asking
someone to be your mentor, you will have paid them a huge compliment, and you will
go up in their estimations. Seeking a mentor is a sign of ambition, not of weakness.

Section 4: Promotion to Team Leader or Manager Tips

24. If You Want To Lead, Do It Before The Promotion

You do not need an official invitation to be a leader; you can take the lead on many
activities without encroaching on your manager’s authority or creating resentment
with your teammates.

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 15/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Offer to stand-in for your boss during vacations.

Organize work events and get-togethers

Volunteer to represent your team to other teams and organizations

Offer to lead team meetings.

Be a thought leader by planning ahead and researching specific topics of interest to

the team or group objectives.

Leading Before The Promotion Tip: Lead from the front but bring your team with
you. Challenging tasks can be simplified by bringing others on the journey, involve
them, and give them kudos for helping, and you will gather a following.

25. Demonstrate You Can Make Good Business Decisions

Being promoted to your first leadership position means you absolutely need to
demonstrate good business decision-making. Good business decision-making means
you need to be able to synthesize everything down to return on investment (ROI).

That does not always mean how many dollars you will make per dollar invested; it
means a lot more than that.

Some examples of good decision making using ROI analysis:

Investing in a training course for an employee. Returns a more skilled and

committed team member

Investing your time to help a struggling team member deliver a project. Returns a
more loyal follower and a deeper professional relationship

Investing in one more member of staff. Returns more output and more sales, or
less over-time for the overworked team members

Investing in productivity improvements or work elimination. Returns lower costs

and more capacity for value-added work

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 16/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Business Decision-Making Tips: When you need to justify anything to

management, you will need to have the Return on Investment (ROI) argument well
thought out. If you have planned ahead, you will get what you need.

26. Ask Your Boss What You Need To Improve

If you plan this well in advance, you can gather input from your manager about what
they think it takes to get promoted to the job you want. A good opportunity is in your
yearly performance review or any talent planning activities that occur.

Ultimately this is precious information as it will probably be your boss that awards you
that promotion.

27. Tell Your Boss You Want A Promotion

Now, this is not the same as asking your boss for a promotion. Informing your boss
that you are interested in future career progression is the key here. You are not
asking for a specific promotion. You are letting them know that you want to progress
and grow within this team or company.

Do this before any job openings occur and give yourself time to get in shape for the
step up and for your boss to see you in action before a new job opens up.

Tell Your Boss Tip: No one knows better than the person awarding the promotion
what the new job entails.

28. Lack Of Opportunities; Make Your Own

It can certainly happen that no matter how much you want a promotion, there is
simply a severe lack of opportunities. Working for a small company or if the company
is stagnant or declining are good reasons for the lack of job openings, and this does
not reflect on you.

It may simply be that your direct management or senior staff have minimal turnover;
therefore, your opportunities are limited.

It may even be the case that you have a personality clash with your direct boss, and
they are holding you back. This happened to me when I first joined the Compaq
Computer Corporation head office in Munich, Germany, in 2000. My boss was so
incompetent, and I was so competent that he deliberately tried to make my life hell
through his own fear of being replaced. I actually did not want his job, but he

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 17/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

irrationally feared me. After six months of this, I applied for a job in another team,
and within 12 months, I was promoted to team leader, then to manager. This was the
start of my serious career progression.

The company’s senior leaders eventually saw through my ex-managers political games
and bullying and made him redundant within 12 months. The great thing was that I
had nothing to do with him leaving. I simply moved position and continued to do my
best in another team.

Lack Of Opportunity Tip: If there are limited opportunities, you may need to look
outside your team or even find a company that is experiencing strong growth.
Eventually, your time will come.

Related Article: Great Books on How To Start A New Business

Print Out Our Getting Promoted Checklist

The number one factor in getting a promotion is to deliver on your goals, deliver them
on time and in the right way. A good manager will set clear objectives that are aligned
with the goals of the business.

To be considered for a promotion, you need to demonstrate that you are a safe pair of
hands that always meets targets and deliverables.

Secondly, deliver goals on time. When accepting a goal or target, try to ensure you
have the skills and resources to deliver it by the due date. Nothing pleases a manager
more than a job well done and on time.

Finally, it is not just what you achieve but how you achieve it. If you deliver the
objective while treating other co-workers, customers, and your manager with respect
and integrity, this will demonstrate that you can be trusted.

Delivering on your goals consistently means you have mastery of your job; this is a
strong indication that you are ready to take on more responsibility and grow within
the organization.

What to avoid:

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 18/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Many people looking for promotion feel they must work all the hours of the day and
always look busy; this is not the case if you have a good employer.

Too much overtime impacts your productivity and increases your chance of missing
a target or deadline.

Playing Politics

Getting promoted to a team leader has special requirements that managers

look for:

A qualified candidate for a team leader position will already be leading people in
some aspect of their job. If you are collaborating well with team members, helping
them be successful, or providing informal coaching within the team, this shows you
are already a leader of people and care about the success of others.

As the employee, you should seek to demonstrate these attributes of your work and
back them up with proof in your performance review.

In terms of attitude, I look for people who remain positive, even in times of
adversity. Balancing that, I also respect people who are willing to challenge a
decision as long as it is done the right way.

One of my most successful employees used to challenge me when he was unclear

about a specific decision. Still, if I respectfully won him over to the direction I had set,
he would be my number one advocate and supporter.

The combination of proving your job mastery and consistent achievement of goals,
with your ability to collaborate with respect and integrity, is a winning combination for
a bid for promotion.

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 19/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

How To Get Promoted Cheat Sheet Download

Download “How To Get Promoted Without Asking – 30 Step

Printable Cheat Sheet PDF”

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 20/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Promotion Checklist Contents

Section 1: Deliver On Goals With Integrity

Ensure you deliver the big things, and the rest will fall
Deliver On Your Goals into place – print out your major goals and refer to
Consistently them weekly to check if you made any progress
against them.

Be Crystal Clear On Know the outcome

Goals
Measure the outcome

Know the timeline

You need to be patient and consider other people’s

viewpoints and situations.

Never cross the line by being too intimate or

Deliver On Your Goals personal.
The Right Way –
Never discriminate against religion, gender, color,
Integrity
lifestyle, education, or anything in any way.

Never be rude or dismissive.

Never, ever RAISE YOUR VOICE.

Build Trust With Your Building Manager Trust Tip: Don’t just ask what to
Manager do. Simply state the problem and what decision you
think is the right one; if they agree or tweak it a little,
you build a bond of trust.

Section 2 – Team Dynamics & Relationships

Building Team Trust Tip: Make each interaction

Build Trust With Your with others positive, and they will not have a word to
Team say against you. It only takes one bad interaction to
start a cycle of mistrust within a team.

Help Others Succeed & Helping Others Tip: Take some time to look around

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 21/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Build A Following the team to see who is struggling with their tasks.
Approach them and respectfully offer your assistance.

Take On Mentoring Roles Coaching Tip: Speak to your manager and let them

For New Team Members know that you are willing to help onboard new team
members to help settle them in and introduce them to
the team.

Avoid Politics Tip: Train yourself to not engage in

Do Not Do Politics Or gossip or discussing others behinds their back. If you

Play Favorites get dragged into a conversation like that, politely

excuse yourself from the discussion, people will
quickly get the message about your level of
professionalism.

Job Mastery Tip: Make continual learning a way of

life. To be great at your job, take the time to learn
Develop Job Mastery
from the best at work and develop your own skills
outside the team. Research professional training
courses and take advantage of Podcasts, Audiobooks,
and books to expand your horizons and knowledge.

Taking the Tough Jobs Tip: If you think the job is

highly likely to fail, specify this clearly to your
Take The Tough Jobs
manager. e.g., “This has a 20% chance of success,
but I will take it anyway.” If you succeed, then you
are a hero against all the odds; if you fail, well, they
were warned.

Section 3 – Personal Attributes For Success

One On One Meeting Tips: When the one-to-one

Be Super Prepared For
meeting happens, it is 5 minutes of “Hi, how are you,
One On One Meetings
how are the family” and then 25 minutes of powering
through 10 different topics. No time wasted and
maximum results. Your boss will love you for that.

Punctuality: Be On-Time
Punctuality Tip: Make it a point of pride and
personal integrity to always be on time.

Be A Good Oral Oral Communication Tip: If you seriously want to

Communicator grow your confidence and engagement, the single

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 22/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

best way to do it is by joining the not for profit

organization Toastmasters

Be A Good Visual
Communicator Visual Communication Tip: Keep your visuals to
mostly images and diagrams, not pages of text.

Be Positive & Speak Positivity Tip: A big smile and a firm, energetic and
With A Smile On Your friendly voice do this with every one of your co-
Face workers

Share A Little Humor

Humor Tip: Keep it clean and light-hearted

Team Meeting Tip: Be ready for the team meeting,

Attend Team Meetings & have at least one topic to raise on the round-table,

Speak Up and be a speaker regularly on the fixed agenda. This

does not mean speaking just for the hell of it, make it
meaningful and value-adding, and you are on the
right path.

Focused In Meetings Tip: If you need to get to a

Be Focused On The Job
solution or outcome in a certain timeframe, be
At Hand
structured in the planning for the meeting. Plan the
right time and include time for questions. Do not try
to solve world peace in a one-hour meeting.

If You Raise A Problem –

Suggest A Solution Solution Tip: Take time to organize your approach
and suggest solutions

Build Your Work Build Your Network Tip: Attend work functions,
Network team lunches, and the occasional evening out. Rotate
who you go to coffee with during working hours and
be friendly and chatty at the water cooler.

Be Committed
Commit to the quality of your work, not the
number of hours

Show your commitment by supporting your team

to be successful.

Commit to helping your manager be successful and

achieve business goals

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 23/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

Demonstrate your commitment to the business by

suggesting ways to improve the product, service,
or even productivity

Continually Develop
Self-Development Tip: Plan where you want to go
Your Skills
in your career and choose the best method for
attaining the knowledge you need.

Get A Mentor Tip: Simply by asking someone to be

Get A Mentor your mentor, you will have paid them a huge
compliment, and you will go up in their estimations.
Seeking a mentor is a sign of ambition, not of
weakness.

Section 4: Promotion to Team Leader or Manager Tips

Leading Before The Promotion Tip: Lead from the

If You Want To Lead, Do
front but bring your team with you. Challenging tasks
It Before The Promotion
can be simplified by bringing others on the journey,
involve them, and give them kudos for helping, and
you will gather a following.

Demonstrate You Can

Business Decision-Making Tips: When you need
Make Good Business
to justify anything to management, you will need to
Decisions
have the ROI argument well thought out. If you have
planned ahead, you will get what you need.

Ask Your Boss What He

Thinks You Need To
Tip: Ultimately, this is precious information as it will
Improve To Get A
probably be your boss that awards you that
Promotion
promotion.

Tell Your Boss You Want

A Promotion Tell Your Boss Tip: No one knows better than the
person awarding the promotion what the entails.

Lack Of Opportunities – Lack Of Opportunity Tip: If there are limited

Make Your Own opportunities, you may need to look outside your
https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 24/25
11/4/23, 5:57 PM 28 Proven & Practical Ways to Get Promoted At Work

team or even find a company that is experiencing

strong growth. Eventually, your time will come.

Barry D. Moore
Barry's 25 years of experience with Silicon Valley Corporations such as IBM, Compaq, Hewlett Packard,
Hewlett Packard Enterprise & DXC Technology enables him to share his knowledge of succeeding in today's
professional corporate environments and develop a great work life for yourself.

https://www.greatworklife.com/how-to-get-promoted-at-work/ 25/25