Rebels at Work by Lois Kelly & Debra Cameron

Author:Lois Kelly & Debra Cameron
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Leadership
ISBN: 9781491903902
Publisher: O'Reilly Media
Published: 2014-11-04T16:00:00+00:00

Hurting Your Chances of Being Promoted

The fear of not being promoted can be very real for rebels. Whether rebels get promoted can depend on a number of things, some out of our control and some we can influence.

It’s easier with a supportive boss

If at all possible, find a good boss or an influential mentor. It’s best to have a boss who values your creativity and isn’t threatened by your curiosity, honesty, and passion for developing new approaches. When interviewing for a job, focus as much on the person you’ll be working for as the position itself. If you work for a risk-averse boss focused on managing business as usual, your life as a rebel at work will be more challenging. It won’t be impossible but it will certainly be more complicated.

Joan was recently promoted because her boss values her creative thinking, frankness, and experimentation with new approaches.

“I’m being promoted to eLearning Director of the college,” said Joan. “In a coaching conversation with my boss, she passed on advice from our oh-so-traditional provost, who when hearing I was moving into the position, said, ‘She seems to think of herself as a rebel. She will need to let that go as a manager.’ I don’t plan on drinking that Kool-Aid anytime soon, that’s for sure.”

Because Joan’s boss has her back, she has some breathing room to create new programs and show the value of those programs to the students, provided they stay within the limits of what her boss can approve. If she needs higher-level approvals, her boss may be limited in how much she can help. In this kind of situation, we urge rebels to work as quickly as possible to show results. When you can prove that your ideas provide what the organization values, you build credibility and positively influence the naysayers. Positive results increase your chances of being promoted.

Bosses who support us and coach us on how to navigate work politics are invaluable.

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