Edit: A reader on Google+ pointed out a pretty serious omission: this post makes no mention of your manager. AKA the person who is tracking whether or not you will actually get that promotion. I'll save my comments on "managing up" for a later post, but in short they play a pretty important role in this process as well.
For many people, it is nearing annual performance review time. A time when some lucky engineers get promotions -- along with fame and fortune -- while the rest of us are left to languish for another year, slaving away with more responsibilities and fewer perks.
Obviously the tech industry isn’t that cold and gray, but it can seem pretty disappointing when you are feeling ready for a promotion and don’t get it. This post is about the sorts of activities you can do in-between promotion cycles. Rather than, say, sulking.
But first I need to explain what a promotion actually signifies. Promotions are a recognition of the level of work you are already doing. The operative word in that previous sentence is already. With the exception of Texas politics, it makes no sense to promote someone into a role they can’t perform. Instead, people should earn the title of “senior” or “principal” when they have already demonstrated that they can successfully perform in that capacity. (This promotion-after-demonstration concept mitigates the impact of ineptitude due to the Peter Principle.)
You might be wondering then, “How can I perform a job if I don’t have the associated title? People won’t listen to me if I’m not an architect!” Let me spill the beans on another secret regarding promotions: a promotion does not give you any more authority than you already have; it may however add credibility. If nobody likes your ideas now, they still won’t like them if you have “senior”, “principal”, or even “partner” in your job title.
This revelation leads me to the first thing you should do when seeking a promotion: observe.
If you want to join the people higher up the corporate ladder than you, take a step back and observe them. What do they do well? What are their strengths? Why do people listen to them?
Occasionally you will find a bozo with a fancy title, but more often than not those people have skills and experiences you can learn from.
Even better, consider putting yourself in their shoes. What strengths do you have that you could be utilizing more? Are there weaknesses you should address?
If you aren’t sure what the steps are for reaching that next career stage, you should first gather data. Once you have an idea of the work required, go ahead and ask for help. The fancy business-school word for this is networking.
Networking does not mean hanging out in a smoke-filled bar with people you don’t like. Having a good rapport with your coworkers is a form of networking. And taping into that network doesn’t mean asking them for money. It can be something as simple as asking to pair-program a tricky interface, or getting an early code review for something you are working on. Or even something as general as “What should I do when I’m not getting promoted?”
There is an immense value in knowing people outside your team, group, company, or even walk of life. You never know when having an extended network will come in handy. Perhaps your team needs to hire someone with a specific skill. Maybe you need to reach out for advice. Or perhaps you just have a crazy idea in need of a home.
Arguably a person’s personal network shouldn’t be linked to whether or not they get a promotion. But since a person’s effectiveness, influence, and impact is tied to their network the two are at the very least correlated.
But how do you go about building a network? As it turns out, people have already solved this problem for you, inviting others just like you to get together to share ideas and experiences. All you need to do is show up! A few quick Google searches can get you info about conferences, user groups, give camps, and startup weekends. All which serve as fantastic opportunities to network.
And not every conference requires spending several thousand dollars on travel and lodging. There are many local conferences and user groups. These are sometimes harder to find information about -- so it helps to network with developers in your local area.
Even better than going to a conference is presenting at one. Presenting is much easier than you think and is a great way to build expertise and credibility in a particular area.
This brings us to our third thing to do while you aren’t getting promoted: study.
Let me take a moment to give you the best tech career advice you will ever hear: don’t do the same thing for 20 years. No matter how good you are at your given technology and how much your employer loves you to just do the same thing every day: don’t. In other words, actually get 20-years experience; don’t get the first year’s worth of experience twenty times.
Beyond promotions, if you allow your raw skills to atrophy you are crippling your ability to find a new job and limiting your future opportunities. Constantly incorporating new ideas is a must.
So where do you go to learn new skills? First, you can start with the many other tech-related blogs out there. But in case you are looking for something meatier, let me first shamelessly plug my book.
If spending 30-minutes every night reading isn’t for you, consider starting a reading group with some coworkers. Pick a book (or a paper) and meet every week to discuss a chapter or two. It’s a great way to be accountable for the material as well as start the discussion about how to apply it to your office or work environment.
However, IMHO the best way to learn is to simply experiment. I’ve benefited immensely from Google’s 20% time. For example, I wrote a simple voxel editor in WebGL. I never got around to finishing my 3D game, but it was a great opportunity to learn the Google Closure and use JavaScript for more than DOM manipulation.
Remember, experimentation doesn’t have to be about what you are working on. Follow your passions!
Observing, network, and studying may sound a bit overwhelming. Fortunately my last piece of advice for you promotion seekers is to simply relax.
Sometimes the best way to grow is to step away from the keyboard and live your life. Perhaps the thing holding you back isn’t your work but rather just how people perceive you. Would you want to give that guy or girl who is chronically stressed out more responsibilities?
Your life isn’t actually what happens during the hours you are at a keyboard. And a promotion, no matter how big a raise it entails, won’t alter your life.
Anyways, hopefully you have some ideas to keep you busy for the next few months. If you do end up getting promoted next year because of this advice, feel free to donate part of your fame and/or fortune to me.
For many people, it is nearing annual performance review time. A time when some lucky engineers get promotions -- along with fame and fortune -- while the rest of us are left to languish for another year, slaving away with more responsibilities and fewer perks.
Obviously the tech industry isn’t that cold and gray, but it can seem pretty disappointing when you are feeling ready for a promotion and don’t get it. This post is about the sorts of activities you can do in-between promotion cycles. Rather than, say, sulking.
But first I need to explain what a promotion actually signifies. Promotions are a recognition of the level of work you are already doing. The operative word in that previous sentence is already. With the exception of Texas politics, it makes no sense to promote someone into a role they can’t perform. Instead, people should earn the title of “senior” or “principal” when they have already demonstrated that they can successfully perform in that capacity. (This promotion-after-demonstration concept mitigates the impact of ineptitude due to the Peter Principle.)
You might be wondering then, “How can I perform a job if I don’t have the associated title? People won’t listen to me if I’m not an architect!” Let me spill the beans on another secret regarding promotions: a promotion does not give you any more authority than you already have; it may however add credibility. If nobody likes your ideas now, they still won’t like them if you have “senior”, “principal”, or even “partner” in your job title.
This revelation leads me to the first thing you should do when seeking a promotion: observe.
If you want to join the people higher up the corporate ladder than you, take a step back and observe them. What do they do well? What are their strengths? Why do people listen to them?
Occasionally you will find a bozo with a fancy title, but more often than not those people have skills and experiences you can learn from.
Even better, consider putting yourself in their shoes. What strengths do you have that you could be utilizing more? Are there weaknesses you should address?
If you aren’t sure what the steps are for reaching that next career stage, you should first gather data. Once you have an idea of the work required, go ahead and ask for help. The fancy business-school word for this is networking.
Networking does not mean hanging out in a smoke-filled bar with people you don’t like. Having a good rapport with your coworkers is a form of networking. And taping into that network doesn’t mean asking them for money. It can be something as simple as asking to pair-program a tricky interface, or getting an early code review for something you are working on. Or even something as general as “What should I do when I’m not getting promoted?”
There is an immense value in knowing people outside your team, group, company, or even walk of life. You never know when having an extended network will come in handy. Perhaps your team needs to hire someone with a specific skill. Maybe you need to reach out for advice. Or perhaps you just have a crazy idea in need of a home.
Arguably a person’s personal network shouldn’t be linked to whether or not they get a promotion. But since a person’s effectiveness, influence, and impact is tied to their network the two are at the very least correlated.
But how do you go about building a network? As it turns out, people have already solved this problem for you, inviting others just like you to get together to share ideas and experiences. All you need to do is show up! A few quick Google searches can get you info about conferences, user groups, give camps, and startup weekends. All which serve as fantastic opportunities to network.
And not every conference requires spending several thousand dollars on travel and lodging. There are many local conferences and user groups. These are sometimes harder to find information about -- so it helps to network with developers in your local area.
Even better than going to a conference is presenting at one. Presenting is much easier than you think and is a great way to build expertise and credibility in a particular area.
This brings us to our third thing to do while you aren’t getting promoted: study.
Let me take a moment to give you the best tech career advice you will ever hear: don’t do the same thing for 20 years. No matter how good you are at your given technology and how much your employer loves you to just do the same thing every day: don’t. In other words, actually get 20-years experience; don’t get the first year’s worth of experience twenty times.
Beyond promotions, if you allow your raw skills to atrophy you are crippling your ability to find a new job and limiting your future opportunities. Constantly incorporating new ideas is a must.
So where do you go to learn new skills? First, you can start with the many other tech-related blogs out there. But in case you are looking for something meatier, let me first shamelessly plug my book.
If spending 30-minutes every night reading isn’t for you, consider starting a reading group with some coworkers. Pick a book (or a paper) and meet every week to discuss a chapter or two. It’s a great way to be accountable for the material as well as start the discussion about how to apply it to your office or work environment.
However, IMHO the best way to learn is to simply experiment. I’ve benefited immensely from Google’s 20% time. For example, I wrote a simple voxel editor in WebGL. I never got around to finishing my 3D game, but it was a great opportunity to learn the Google Closure and use JavaScript for more than DOM manipulation.
Remember, experimentation doesn’t have to be about what you are working on. Follow your passions!
Observing, network, and studying may sound a bit overwhelming. Fortunately my last piece of advice for you promotion seekers is to simply relax.
Sometimes the best way to grow is to step away from the keyboard and live your life. Perhaps the thing holding you back isn’t your work but rather just how people perceive you. Would you want to give that guy or girl who is chronically stressed out more responsibilities?
Your life isn’t actually what happens during the hours you are at a keyboard. And a promotion, no matter how big a raise it entails, won’t alter your life.
Anyways, hopefully you have some ideas to keep you busy for the next few months. If you do end up getting promoted next year because of this advice, feel free to donate part of your fame and/or fortune to me.
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