For the smart, driven, and feisty

You’re working hard, doing all the right things, and still not getting ahead. Meanwhile, less-qualified people seem to climb the corporate ladder with ease. Why? Because the system isn’t designed to reward hard work alone—it rewards strategy.

If you want bigger paychecks, senior leadership roles, and real career power, playing by outdated rules won’t work. This guide will show you exactly how to outmaneuver workplace politics, position yourself for promotions, and secure the bag—even if you don’t think you can.

When I first started on my career path, I never imagined I’d reach senior leadership—let alone feel confident in my ability to thrive there. I’ve taken job opportunities in male-dominated industries, faced layoffs, dealt with bad bosses, and made mistakes that felt like the end of the world.

But here’s what I learned: your job and career are in your hands. No matter where you are today, you can take the steps to advance, earn more, and create a work life you’re proud of.

This post will guide you through the top strategies that helped me grow my career, get promoted, and navigate tough situations.

These aren’t just tips – they’re lessons I’ve lived, and they will work for you too.

Look Out for Your Job and Career (Because Your Company Won’t)

People get this wrong. Workplaces have come a long way, but there is one truth that will never change: Your company does not care about you, your family, or your bills.

True Story:

“Luke”, a long time employee, was sitting at his desk. He had worked for his company for 30 years.

All of a sudden, Luke collapsed in front of his computer.

His co-workers panicked and called an ambulance.

Several hours later, Luke’s manager informed the office that Luke had a stroke and that he was going to be okay.

While Luke was in the hospital, his boss gave his projects to a co-worker.

The office did not send him a card, flowers, or visit him. They went on like business as usual and waited for him to come back after several weeks.

Luke was disappointed because he thought his colleagues cared about him. It forever changed the relationship that he had with them.

The moral of this story is to look out for yourself because the company and its management team will always put their interests first.

Job Security Is Gone Forever

On your career path, there will always be bumps in the road. The biggest one for most workers is workforce reduction.

• Do you know someone who’s been terminated?
  
• Have you ever been laid off?
  
• Did you receive an email stating that the company was downsizing?

It is demoralizing for workers to experience a sudden round of terminations. Plus, as a result of layoffs, workers usually get more work to do because their colleagues were let go, and their positions will not be back-filled.

This is why I would only use 1 or 2 sick days at a time.

Also, I didn’t take several vacation days at one time out of fear of being terminated.

Little did I know, there was good reason to feel that way. 

Corporate Confidential, by Cynthia Shapiro, gives you insider secrets on how your employer thinks. (Please read this book.)

Cynthia was a human resources executive. She shares from her experience on how to reduce your chances of being let go or getting on the bad side of management.

Based on my experience (and my financial peace of mind), do the following to prepare yourself by:

• Putting money in savings so that you can pay your bills if you get laid off.
  
• Avoiding living from paycheck to paycheck.
  
• Keeping your resume and cover letter up-to-date, even if you love your job. Companies and their organizations change due to leadership, the economy, expenses, regulation, etc. so be prepared to find another job.

Your company cares about making money, not your job and career, so move carefully and plan ahead.

5 Proven Tips to Advance Your Career Now

1. Find A Good Boss

“Good morning. Good to see you.” my new manager said to me.

I sat down in his big office on my first day with the company, smiling from ear to ear.

“How’s it going so far?” he asked.

“Great!” I said, as if all my dreams had come true.

“We just finished the new employee training, and I’m ready to get started.”

He nodded his head and said “Awesome. Well, I hope it’s not too soon, but I have a project for you”.

“Oh wow,” I said. “Sure, I’d be happy to help out”.

He reached over to a pile of papers on his desk.

At that moment, I got the feeling that he saved this project for me.

It was something that he didn’t want to do and let the situation fester, like a wound, for months!

I thought to myself, “What kind of boss dumps something he doesn’t want to do on their new employee the first day?!?!?!”

At that point, I knew what kind of manager he was.

After working for him for 2 years, he proved my first impression of him.

A self-serving, executive brown-nosing weenie who would throw you under the bus in a New York minute, if it would help his career.

So what did I do?

I refused to accept it and promoted myself into new and higher-paid positions – with better managers.

You may feel that:

• you’re not appreciated
• your boss doesn’t look out for you, or
• you’re stuck in a job with no chance to advance.

But you don’t have to settle.

The quality of your boss and your relationship can make or break your work life.

John D. Rockefeller said, “Good management consists in showing average people how to do the work of superior people“.

A supportive boss doesn’t just manage—they mentor, advocate, and open doors for you. If your manager isn’t helping you grow, it might be time to explore opportunities where your value is recognized.

Right now, you may be thinking that it’s too hard to look for another job with everything going on in your life.

The problem is, a bad manager is costing you more than you think.

Harvard Business School reports, “Other studies in American workplaces show that people with toxic bosses are more susceptible to chronic stress, depression, and anxiety, all of which increase the risk of a lowered immune system, colds, strokes, and even heart attacks.” What To Do When You Have a Bad Boss.

If you work for a toxic boss, start now and develop an exit plan.

Network with colleagues in your company to discover good managers in your company whom you could apply to work for.

If you want to leave your organization, connect with people outside of your company. Research highly-rated companies on Fortune, US News & World Report, Glassdoor, etc. to learn about good companies to work for.

Read employee reviews online to get a feel for the organization. Then target and apply to positions suitable for your background and expertise.

Don’t be afraid to apply for the job, even if you’re only partly qualified.

Take one step at a time, no matter how small, but get out of that situation as soon as you can.

2. Get A Career Champion

A champion is more than a mentor—they’re someone who actively advocates for your success, opens doors and connects you to opportunities.

Ideally, your champion will be someone in addition to your boss. That way you have a better chance to get visibility within the company with different leaders.

This person should be in a senior position (or a well-connected, respected leader) so that they have access to decision makers.

When executive leadership has discussions about succession planning, promotions, and special projects, you want to be top of mind for an influential leader.

Start networking outside of your group, whether it’s in person or virtually. Get involved in mentoring and employee resource groups to make connections.

As noted in a Forbes article, “…you’re likely to connect with a potential champion by demonstrating special interest in, and “value” on, a topic that engages the potential champion”.

Remember that these relationships are not only to grow your career.

Have a sincere interest in what your champion does, what their position is, projects they’re working on, and also, if you can help them in any way.

These relationships should be two-way streets, not just to one person’s benefit. Be curious, learn about them, and reach out periodically to say hello.

Stay in touch with them. Have a brief coffee chat with them quarterly.

Send them an interesting professional article, a write-up about a new technology in your industry, or paper that you’ve read that they may find useful.

Nurture these relationships because they are rare.

3. Be A Hero to Your Boss

For the right boss, offering to help them does wonders for your relationship.

It lets them know that you are there to support them. It also shows that you manage your time well because you have the bandwidth to take on additional work, in addition to your current projects. 

Plus it gives you an idea of what your boss thinks of your workload and whether or not you can take on more work.

There were many times that my manager said, “You’ve got enough on your plate” or “No, I’m all set, just relax”.

Finally, after asking, she gave me an entire program that she felt another team was not managing well.

I wasn’t perfect, but I took it over and knocked it out of the park: increased communication, process efficiency, and attention to detail.

I performed so well that my boss touted my accomplishment with the executive leadership team, and I received a promotion shortly thereafter.

During your one-on-one meetings with your manager (hopefully you’re having them regularly), inquire about projects that they are working on and ask if it’s anything that you can do to lighten their load.

Of course, you want to take into consideration if you truly have the capacity to take on another project.

99.9% of workers don’t do this, and you will separate yourself from your colleagues.

Your career path will benefit from this one simple tip.

4. Act Like An Entrepreneur in Your Job & Career

A past colleague of mine was once a part of a process improvement team.

The project was about a systemic problem that would be key to solving and improving a critical process. 

However, because someone on the team was not being as proactive as my colleague felt they should be, he stopped working on the project.

He commented, “If people aren’t putting in the effort, I won’t either”.

This is the difference, in my opinion, between people who take full responsibility for their job and the people who clock in and clock out.

I’m not saying to do everyone’s job, but people get busy, miscommunications happen, and things get dropped.

If you know of something that will improve sales, enhance operations, streamline processes, or create savings, discuss it with your manager.

You could meet with a few knowledgeable people about the project to understand the resources required to execute.

At that point, you can explain the project and required resources to your boss to let them know how you took initiative and willingness to take ownership.

Good leaders appreciate and want to promote people who see a gap and want to lead/support efforts to close it.

The moral of the story is, within your position and work life, think about what you’re doing, how it affects people who interact with you, and work to improve what you do and people’s experience of what you do.

Indeed.com published a guide on how to take ownership in your position. It lists the key benefits as follows:

• Provides a constant source of motivation for your work
  
• Ensures you align your projects or job duties with company goals
  
• Helps you foster positive workplace relationships
  
• Encourages career growth

5. Treat Everyone Respectfully On Your Career Path, Even If You Don’t Like Them

This doesn’t mean to tolerate disrespect or bad behavior from colleagues.

It means that there are many different personalities, some who may annoy you, and you have to work with to get things done.

This ability alone can open up job opportunities that you never thought of.

A true professional who will elevate has the emotional intelligence to work with people that get on their nerves.

You never know who knows who at work. People who you would have never known were close may just go out to lunch or happy hour together.

Most likely you’ve worked with people whom may be racist, misogynistic, creepy, or difficult.

For example, while I’m in the office, if these types of people contact me for help, I’m responsive and attentive. I do this because this is what I get paid to do. It also builds a good reputation within the company.

You want people to have a good opinion of you.

When you’re talking to someone, ask yourself, “I wonder what this person would say about me in a meeting if I wasn’t there?”.

For example, in one position at a new company, my manager would often tell me about the good news that she heard about me from people I’ve interacted with on other projects.

There were two times, that I’m aware of, that managers were vocal about their dissatisfaction with me.

One leader expected me to do a portion of their job, even though they didn’t ask me to do it. Nor did I know how to do it since it was their expertise.

Luckily, I had the backup messages to explain the miscommunication.

The other leader complained to my manager because they felt I went above and beyond my position to help them! I was shocked.

After they set up a meeting to admonish me, the person went to my boss acting like they were remorseful – but really just complaining about me.

Needless to say, my boss took my side and shared with the leader, “That’s how she works. She gets it done.”

In both cases, I treated them both with respect, responded professionally, but I also held my ground.

The point is: treat everyone like they’re going to talk about you with the CEO of your company, without you being in the room.

Bonus Tip: No Surprises for Your Boss

Don was one of the most controlling, condescending, and rudest bosses that Susan had ever worked with.

In fact, many of the female workers had the same negative comments about Don.

During Covid-19, the company was having significant supply chain issues.

To get ahead of the problem, Susan sent out an email listing key delivery issues.

Don happened to find out about another delivery problem from a second source. It turns out that Susan had forgotten to include that problem in her email.

He became annoyed with her and expressed his dissatisfaction about her performance.

If you can help it, never let your boss get caught off guard. Clearly communicate all issues, even potential ones, so they can get an early warning and prepare. 

Conclusion: Your Career Path Is In Your Hands

Here’s the truth: No one is coming to save us. Companies will replace us in a heartbeat, but our career? That’s in our hands.

There are two options: staying stuck or taking control—find the right boss, build the right connections, and play the game to win.

—–> Which move will you make first? Which of these tips resonates most with you? I’d love to hear your experiences and insights—drop a comment below and let’s discuss!