8 Ways to Fast Track Your Promotion at Work (7 Mins Read)

Career promotion happens when an employee moves up the ranks in a company and takes on a harder, more advanced task which is quite related to his or her previous position. Promotion doesn’t happen instantly and we do not have much control over it when we decide that it’s the right time for a promotion. Still, there are things we can do and actions which we can take in order to get promoted quickly.

You’ve consistently done the hard work that really impressed your boss especially in the early years of your career. But, you need to keep on delivering if you want to grab your first promotion, which is not an easy task. Still it was found on a survey that 40% of the millennials expect a promotion within every one to two years

You’ll need to make a great impression when you step into the company and continue doing a great job all the time, if you’re serious about getting a promotion faster. But, for that to happen there are few things which need to be done first.

1. Set clear expectations: To be a top performer at any stage in your career: you have to make your boss happy. So, you have to sit down with your manager and set the specific goals for yourself. You have to say that I want to do a great job and exceed your expectations. What can I do for that? Express your desire that you’d like to connect quarterly in order to review your performance, and tell her “I’m committed to do  great work. What do I need to do to get promoted faster?”  
2. Do a great job consistently: Be an employee who makes positive contributions to the team and delivers quality work consistently. Be an expert in your field of work. Try to maintain a positive attitude in the face of the most stressful situations, always trying to keep things light. A positive and an upbeat attitude makes you more likely to be promoted faster. The moment superiors come to notice your positivity and they would love to work with you.
3. Showcase your achievements: Your boss doesn’t always keep a track of your each and every accomplishment, so need to maintain a log of your measurable accomplishments—that way you have all results with you to cite when you go for a promotion. Also, you have to keep a record of the skills which you acquire and make sure to consistently update your CVto reflect them.
4. Going the extra mile: Push yourself to take extra initiatives which are beyond your job description. Once you’ve proved that you are capable of doing great work, ask your manager to give you more responsibility. But you need to be specific to ask for work on the particular tasks or projects which are relevant for your career. You need to take up stretch assignments or jobs which would give you a trial run at the promotion you’re looking for. You can say that you heard there’s a new product line coming up and how can you be involved with that. This will show that you are not always waiting for the boss to give you more responsibilities,  rather you are proactively looking for the opportunities to take up more responsibilities.
5. Become the go to person: Strive to earn a reputation of a “can do” worker, who is consistently striving for excellence instead of mediocrity. Volunteer for any new project which comes up. If you can develop the reputation of being dependable and deliver quality work, your superiors will see you as ready to move to the next level.

6. Prove to be a good leader: While your boss always wants to see you as a team player, you still have to distinguish yourself from your peers, like take ownership of a group project. Even if there’s not an assigned leader, you can assume that role. You can be the one who makes the final presentation.

7. You need to ask for it: Most of the employees expect that their boss would hand them the promotion. But the fact is, if you don’t ask, you will not receive it. There’s the possibility that you won’t get promoted even after you do all the work. There might be circumstances which are beyond your control, as the company could freeze raises, your boss may quit or one of your peers might get the job.If that happens, find out why you were overlooked. Ask “What could you have done differently so that would have been you?” Use that feedback to improve your performance and position yourself for the promotion in the next year.    

8. Utilise your network: Seek advice from a mentor and use your network for getting the promotions faster. Mentors are usually more experienced, so they’d have a lot to share about how they managed the promotion– whether they were successful or not.If they work in your own company or in a different company, like minded people who have been promoted can provide valuable insights into your career path. Regular conversations with this individual can provide you with valuable advice which will put you ahead of your colleagues who may be vying for the same role.

 Takeaway: Most of the employees seem to always find the tough road in their quest for the promotion. While a better pay can be a good enough motivation, but you should always take a step back and see the bigger picture to know which road to take. Relying on your skills can only take you so far since there are a lot more factors which have been discussed here which has to be considered when you wish to fast track your promotion. Possessing the right combination of the above factors will help you move up quicker, so that you have a better pay, bigger responsibilities and more meaningful work in order to be successful in the long run.