Latest / You're Overqualified Podcast - Career and Leadership Strategies for Women / 113. Promotion or Pivot? How to Make the Right Career Move Without Starting Over

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113. Promotion or Pivot? How to Make the Right Career Move Without Starting Over · You're Overqualified Podcast - Career and Leadership Strategies for Women

• 0:08
  Hi, I'm Danny Tan and if you are here, you are in the right
• 0:11
  place. Welcome to the Pivot and
• 0:13
  Promotion podcast where we say forget the rules because they
• 0:16
  weren't written for us. I'm Danny Tan, I'm your host as
• 0:19
  well as career and leadership coach and a proud advocate for
• 0:21
  redefining what success and leadership looks like.
• 0:24
  And here's what I know. You can lead at any level, you
• 0:27
  can pivot at any age, and you can make moves that feel right
• 0:30
  for you. Whether you're climbing the
• 0:32
  perfect ladder, starting something completely new, or
• 0:34
  just figuring out your next step.
• 0:35
  I've got you covered with strategies, stories, and
• 0:38
  straight up inspiration. So let's make some moves.
• 0:45
  All right. So today we're talking about
• 0:47
  promotion pivot, how to make the right career move without having
• 0:51
  to start completely over. And so when we start to achieve,
• 0:56
  achieve, achieve, get to a certain point within our
• 0:58
  careers, we start to figure out, OK, like, am I kind of feel
• 1:01
  installed? Am I kind of feel like I've done
• 1:03
  what I used to do? I feel like there's like this
• 1:06
  moment, this edge where I'm ready for something else.
• 1:09
  But I'm not sure what that is. And especially, especially when
• 1:12
  you are somebody who you know, has worked so hard to get where
• 1:16
  they are, the next step kind of feels like it has an extra
• 1:20
  weight to it. Before it was like, roll up your
• 1:22
  sleeves, anything goes to make this happen.
• 1:24
  And now there's like, oh, wait, there's more at stake here.
• 1:26
  There's people who count on me. I have a sense of
• 1:28
  responsibility. I want to make sure my next step
• 1:30
  is the right move for myself. And especially when you've kind
• 1:33
  of like really reached that trajectory within your current
• 1:36
  path, you're like, oh, do I stay on this path or do I move
• 1:38
  somewhere else? And so a lot of the times
• 1:40
  there's like these fears or thoughts that come up, not if I
• 1:43
  make a move, I'm starting completely over.
• 1:46
  And I want us to kind of like break it down with a plan with
• 1:48
  structure to make that happen. And so The thing is, is that
• 1:52
  you're not currently stuck on where you are right now.
• 1:55
  You just know that there is something more for you that's
• 1:57
  coming up. And so you just need support and
• 1:59
  structure in a plan to kind of make that happen.
• 2:02
  And so with that will come, the stuckness will come.
• 2:05
  Oh, there's too many decisions to make at once.
• 2:08
  That's one of the factors here. And so when it feels like you're
• 2:10
  making too many decisions at once, we kind of just like stop
• 2:13
  stuck, overwhelm, avoid, and then say the status quo until we
• 2:17
  feel like a better answer or solution rises.
• 2:20
  But that's not how it works. And that's just because we have
• 2:23
  to do the work in order to actually figure out what that
• 2:24
  answer is and take action and move forward and have a plan.
• 2:27
  But promotions and pivot decisions become really heavy
• 2:31
  because now your income's tied to it, your identity is tied to
• 2:34
  it, your safety, your stability is tied to it.
• 2:36
  And you also have the weight of probably those you're
• 2:38
  responsible for. Maybe it's yourself, maybe it's
• 2:40
  your family, maybe it's your friends.
• 2:41
  And so trying to figure out the next career move, whether it is
• 2:44
  to promote within externally or make a career change, it feels
• 2:49
  like there's extra weight to it. So in this episode, I want to
• 2:52
  help you understand like some steps, strategies and just some
• 2:56
  reflections on what it takes to make a committed career decision
• 3:00
  and to walk away with some steps you can actually execute on.
• 3:03
  So let's go ahead and dive in. If you're somebody who has been
• 3:06
  really high performing at what it is that you do, you're like,
• 3:09
  my success is my survival, which is the thing that I talk about a
• 3:11
  lot and I'm going up, up, up, or I'm pursuing this path and
• 3:16
  you're high achieving, ambitious, driven, motivated,
• 3:18
  all these things. You may start to feel stuck
• 3:21
  because now you've achieved this point where you realize there's
• 3:24
  a fork in the road. And this may be because you are
• 3:27
  so trusted, relied on and capable that then it kind of
• 3:30
  feels like everything has this heavyweight on you.
• 3:33
  And so since you're good at what you do and it's unclear what to
• 3:37
  do next, you start to delay decisions instead of actually
• 3:40
  taking action. And then you start to say, well,
• 3:42
  I'm just not confident on what I want to do next, or I'm just
• 3:45
  unsure of what I want to do next, or I'm not sure what I'm
• 3:49
  good at or I don't have clarity. But the reality actually is, is
• 3:53
  that confidence clarity that comes from taking action.
• 3:57
  And so in reality, what the issue is, is having structure
• 4:00
  around decision making. So like decision structure
• 4:04
  really is the issue. So how can, instead of trying to
• 4:07
  make so many decisions at once, do I stay, do I go, do I change?
• 4:12
  How can we work together to actually outline what decisions
• 4:17
  need to be made and what sequence and what thoughts,
• 4:20
  beliefs or ideas need to be actually tested with structure
• 4:24
  to create safety around this? And that is the thing that I see
• 4:27
  that comes up. And so you may mistake this with
• 4:30
  the thoughts of should I stay, should I leave?
• 4:32
  But in reality, the right question for you is, you know,
• 4:36
  what problem am I trying to solve by getting a promotion?
• 4:39
  Or why do I want a promotion? What problem am I trying to
• 4:42
  solve by leaving my job or making a pivot or why do I want
• 4:46
  to make a pivot or leave those thoughts behind That will help
• 4:50
  us understand what actually is needed to make these things
• 4:54
  happen. Because if you do not name what
• 4:56
  the need, the want, or the problem is, it will not get
• 4:59
  fixed. Just by moving forward.
• 5:01
  You'll end up putting yourself in a new situation where
• 5:04
  potentially you have, you know, thoughts about it, potential
• 5:08
  regrets about it. But the reality is that there
• 5:10
  was not enough done work up in advance and then you made a
• 5:13
  move. Have you ever had a problem at a
• 5:14
  job and you're like, Oh my gosh, I have to go?
• 5:17
  And then you jump and you leave and you go to another job and
• 5:19
  then you come to the same problem again because
• 5:21
  potentially maybe you didn't identify the things that you
• 5:24
  were trying to leave or escape or avoid before and now you've
• 5:28
  run to the next thing. So this is what I want you to
• 5:30
  think about, and this is a promotion versus pivot decision
• 5:35
  audit. And So what I want you to think
• 5:37
  about when it comes to a promotion is I have my clients
• 5:39
  do promotion planning. And so we don't leave it to your
• 5:43
  organization, your manager, your boss to do the promotion for
• 5:45
  you. Yes, if they have an outline in
• 5:47
  a system, that's great. But we do together a promotion
• 5:49
  plan. It's essentially doing career
• 5:51
  development together. So you can bring it to your
• 5:54
  team, your organization and your manager.
• 5:56
  And so the first question is what evidence already exists
• 6:00
  with a promotion and what evidence means that it's
• 6:03
  actually possible? So I, I want you to think about
• 6:07
  not like encouragement, not positive feedback solely, not
• 6:10
  just potential, not like a once wish or aligned dream, but
• 6:13
  actual proof. So what actual evidence do you
• 6:17
  have the promotion is possible where you currently are and what
• 6:20
  would need to change in the next 90 days, three months to make it
• 6:23
  make sense? Whether that is the scope of the
• 6:25
  work you're doing, the authority, the visibility,
• 6:27
  having relationships and influence with decision making
• 6:30
  powers that be when it comes to that, what is it that you need?
• 6:33
  My clients are making promotion plans in the first to second
• 6:36
  call of us working together and taking action on it to have an
• 6:39
  idea of what their next step is. So they know right away whether
• 6:42
  it's going to happen or not happen, because even a no or no
• 6:47
  answer is still a data point, OK?
• 6:50
  It's still a data point. And so that helps us understand,
• 6:53
  is this a promotion that's going to happen internally or
• 6:55
  externally? What move do we have to make?
• 6:57
  And then the next thing is you really want to understand what
• 7:01
  is going to be the next step for you.
• 7:02
  Then what do you believe a pivot will solve?
• 7:04
  What will changing careers do for you?
• 7:06
  Is it going to give you additional experience and more
• 7:09
  you want? Will it give you more happiness,
• 7:10
  alignment, money? What is that going to really do
• 7:13
  for you? Doing a pivot?
• 7:14
  Is any of you growth, alignment, stability, you decide what that
• 7:18
  is and then that way we can figure out for you what will be
• 7:21
  the best step. Is it a promotion internally,
• 7:23
  externally, or a career change by collecting this information
• 7:27
  and doing an audit? That's how we create your
• 7:29
  promotion plan and your pivot plan to figure out what is the
• 7:32
  next path forward. And so I hope you break this
• 7:34
  down step by step so that way you're not going after
• 7:37
  everything at once because that's what makes it really
• 7:39
  overwhelming and makes people stop.
• 7:41
  And so here's the thing, when you feel like you have to be
• 7:45
  decisions to make at once and you don't have a plan for these
• 7:48
  paths, the overthinking is what keeps you stuck.
• 7:50
  And so overthinking feels so responsible.
• 7:54
  Oh my gosh, I'm so responsible. I'm thinking about all the
• 7:56
  outcomes, all the possible possibilities.
• 7:59
  I always tell my clients like they are very similar to me and
• 8:02
  we identify in this sense of we are decision ABCDE thinkers.
• 8:08
  We're always thinking about all the possible scenarios.
• 8:10
  And that's The thing is that there is a point where
• 8:13
  overthinking is no longer responsible.
• 8:16
  And now it's actually just delaying potential discomfort,
• 8:19
  fears, avoidance. And clarity actually does not
• 8:23
  come from thinking harder and harder.
• 8:24
  Clarity comes from intentional action, collecting data, having
• 8:28
  feedback. And so I want you to think that
• 8:30
  you do not not think. Just remember, in all honesty,
• 8:33
  you do not need certainty to move forward.
• 8:36
  You need structure to make decisions, to collect data, to
• 8:40
  get feedback. And that is how you're able to
• 8:43
  move forward. And So what actually will help
• 8:46
  you create this clarity is having intentional
• 8:48
  conversations, No more like hypothetical conversations, just
• 8:52
  with yourself in your mind of how these scenarios will go, but
• 8:55
  having structured, clear conversations that help you
• 8:57
  collect the data so you're no longer just sitting with your
• 9:00
  thoughts, but actually collecting evidence so you can
• 9:03
  build confidence. Evidence based confidence is the
• 9:06
  way you build your confidence to help make your decisions.
• 9:09
  And then separating what needs to be a decision now versus what
• 9:12
  doesn't. When we have 10 decisions on the
• 9:15
  table, yeah, you're not going to take action because you're
• 9:16
  overwhelmed. And So what we do is we audit it
• 9:19
  down to what are the most important decisions to make
• 9:21
  right now based on what is that you want to do and then testing
• 9:24
  the assumptions versus carrying them on.
• 9:25
  So when you have your promotion plan, your pivot plan, let's say
• 9:28
  it's your pivot plan. I have clients who are looking
• 9:30
  at 1:00 to 2:00, two different career paths, maybe 3.
• 9:33
  And what I do is I have them go through a sequence of tests to
• 9:35
  test out the assumptions of their pivot of do they feel like
• 9:40
  they have to start completely over?
• 9:41
  Is it actually something that you can learn on the job?
• 9:43
  Is it something that you just need additional training for and
• 9:46
  testing these assumptions versus just going with beliefs and
• 9:48
  thoughts and narratives internally of, oh, I can't do
• 9:51
  it, let's actually test it. So that's something that is
• 9:54
  really important because it helps create clarity of what
• 9:56
  that path will be. And then letting go of this idea
• 9:58
  that confidence comes before action It doesn't.
• 10:01
  What clients do to arrive to a committed decision is one that
• 10:04
  they trust and they trusted by building evidence, by testing it
• 10:08
  behind it, which is why we create these plans.
• 10:10
  I always am told I'm a coach that is called a mix of facts
• 10:13
  and feelings. And there's a reason why I think
• 10:15
  your feelings and your emotions are definitely signals that are
• 10:18
  telling you something. And then in order to help you
• 10:20
  believe and trust in them and build that self trust and
• 10:22
  confidence, we collect the evidence and data to back it up.
• 10:25
  And so, and this is the thing that I'll see with clients is
• 10:29
  that clients do not regret taking a step back, doing an
• 10:34
  audit, creating an action plan and taking steps forward.
• 10:37
  They don't. What they do is they regret
• 10:39
  staying unclear for so long. It always breaks my heart when I
• 10:42
  see someone who's like, I have been passed up for promotion for
• 10:46
  years, multiple times years. And then they come in, we create
• 10:51
  an action plan, they go and take action, they get promoted not
• 10:53
  once but twice in a year. They make that move they've
• 10:56
  always been wanting to make. And that's what brings me the
• 10:58
  most happiness and joy. Because it's not obvious, the
• 11:00
  structure, the support in corporate America is not clear
• 11:04
  on how to ask for a promotion. And as somebody who personally
• 11:06
  has gotten 11 promotions in 11 years, went from being a sample
• 11:10
  coordinator to AVP to multi dollar company to making
• 11:13
  multiple 6 figures in my early 30s.
• 11:15
  I can tell you that this has been tested and proven with
• 11:18
  myself, but also with my clients.
• 11:19
  I've had multiple clients who have gotten one to two
• 11:22
  promotions in a year who have increased their salaries
• 11:24
  anywhere from 25 to 50K to doubling their salaries.
• 11:27
  And so The thing is, is that it's that you are completely
• 11:30
  smart, you're completely capable, the skills are there,
• 11:33
  but you just need a path and a plan to see what is possible.
• 11:37
  It's the same thing with the pivot.
• 11:39
  I have clients who come to me and they're like, I know I've
• 11:41
  always wanted to do something else, but I'm not sure what it
• 11:44
  is. I have no idea where to start.
• 11:45
  Or maybe they have an idea, but they have these thoughts or
• 11:48
  beliefs that they can't do it. I need more training.
• 11:51
  I'll have to start over. I'm going to have to be entry
• 11:53
  level. I have to go back to school.
• 11:55
  But they have never tested, audited, you know, went ahead
• 12:00
  and had more data to go off of to decide if that was actually
• 12:04
  true or not versus just internal narratives that are being
• 12:07
  created. And so I just want you to take
• 12:10
  this away. You can pivot.
• 12:11
  I had a client who pivoted her industry and got a salary
• 12:15
  increase without having to start over.
• 12:18
  And then she had a promotion within a year, again within her
• 12:20
  organization. So what I'm trying to say is
• 12:22
  that the way to win on having a decision and to take execution
• 12:27
  is to have something that is a plan that has measurable results
• 12:32
  and that can have something within your control of being
• 12:34
  able to take action with a plan. So what I want to do this week
• 12:36
  is I want you to write down what actually needs a decision in the
• 12:38
  next 90 days. So what are you trying to decide
• 12:41
  in the next 90 days? Is it, do I want to outline my
• 12:44
  promotion and is it possible for me to know in the next 90 days
• 12:46
  of one that's going to be, doesn't have to happen in 90
• 12:48
  days, but you want to have a timeline within the 90 days you
• 12:51
  have taken action on scoping out what it is we need to talk to
• 12:54
  making that happen and knowing what that timeline is to work
• 12:57
  towards. If it's for a pivot in the next
• 12:59
  90 days, what do you want to know?
• 13:00
  Do you want to know what requirements are actually
• 13:02
  required for those paths? Do you want to explore some
• 13:04
  paths, narrowing it down to two paths potentially and then going
• 13:07
  ahead and doing that? This is the thing you want to
• 13:09
  do. Write down what actually needs
• 13:10
  to be done from a decision making standpoint in the next 90
• 13:13
  days and identify one conversation that will get you
• 13:15
  real information, whether that may be with a manager, a boss,
• 13:18
  somebody who's in that industry. Decide one conversation you need
• 13:21
  to have that will get you real data and information.
• 13:24
  And then stop trying to decide your entire career at once and
• 13:28
  focus on what is coming up for you within these next 90 days
• 13:31
  that will affect you. And that's it.
• 13:33
  I want you to make sure that you are listening and you're taking
• 13:37
  action, collecting data and to reduce that overwhelm to just
• 13:40
  really prioritize what's most important for you.
• 13:42
  And so here's the thing. If you are trying to make a
• 13:45
  decision to pivot or get promoted and you do not want to
• 13:48
  have to feel like you are starting over and burning
• 13:50
  everything out and you want to collect the evidence, have
• 13:54
  structure and have a plan. This is exactly the work that I
• 13:57
  do with my clients in private coaching.
• 13:59
  So if you're at this decision point and you don't want to
• 14:01
  gamble on what your next step is, I highly recommend that you
• 14:04
  book a call with me so we can meet.
• 14:06
  So this is how it works within private coaching.
• 14:09
  You book a call, we get on the call for 45 to 60 minutes and I
• 14:12
  hear and listen to what it is you want to achieve in the next
• 14:15
  6 to 12 months, what kind of goals you have and where you're
• 14:19
  kind of feeling stuck and where you need support.
• 14:21
  And then what I do is I give you a coaching plan of what it would
• 14:24
  look like to work together for three to six months.
• 14:28
  In that work together, what it will look like is you get a
• 14:30
  customized coaching plan and then we work together tactically
• 14:33
  for three to six months. So during that time period in
• 14:36
  private coaching, you have an intake onboarding forum where I
• 14:39
  ask questions to understand what is your learning style?
• 14:42
  How do you like to be supported? How do you like feedback?
• 14:45
  And then with that information, that custom coaching plan comes
• 14:48
  within our first call and we create a tactical action plan
• 14:51
  for every month that we are working together with action
• 14:54
  items of what it takes and entails to make sure you're
• 14:56
  going back to your goals. You have me on retainer, so you
• 14:59
  have me on retainer the entire time working together.
• 15:01
  We get on calls bi weekly, one call to review what's been going
• 15:04
  on and taking action and giving feedback.
• 15:06
  Another week for integration, another week for a call.
• 15:09
  So after meeting bi weekly, in between those sessions, you have
• 15:12
  me on Slack. So if you've never heard of
• 15:14
  Slack, Slack is where you can text, voice, note, send
• 15:16
  documents for review. And you have me on that for the
• 15:18
  entire time together, whether that's three months or six
• 15:20
  months, you are sending me anything you need for me to
• 15:23
  review. So I have clients sending
• 15:24
  portfolios, performance reviews, resumes, Linkedin's, cover
• 15:29
  letters, all that good stuff through there.
• 15:31
  And I review it. So people always say they feel
• 15:33
  like they work with me way longer just because of how much
• 15:35
  time and touch points we have in between.
• 15:38
  And outside of that, you'll also have access to my client for all
• 15:40
  that has all the resources and all the tools that I teach my
• 15:42
  clients and so, so, so much more.
• 15:44
  So just knowing that within our time together, you will have a
• 15:48
  promotion plan, a pivot plan, a new resume, a new LinkedIn, a
• 15:53
  new cover letter, and so much, so much more.
• 15:55
  Your interview prep, your negotiation prep, you name it.
• 15:58
  So I have clients coming to me time and time again who are
• 16:01
  unsure, should I pivot, should I get promoted?
• 16:03
  And we actually create a multi plan to tackle all these things
• 16:06
  within coaching, but we make it strategic and make it in a
• 16:10
  timely manner that makes the most sense for you.
• 16:12
  So I highly, highly invite you if you've been thinking about
• 16:15
  private coaching, if you've been thinking about these decisions,
• 16:17
  just get on a call with me, meet me, and we can just talk about
• 16:20
  it. There's zero pressure to sign on
• 16:22
  on the call. It really is about meeting each
• 16:24
  other, understanding your needs, and putting a plan together and
• 16:27
  see if it makes sense to work together.
• 16:28
  But you won't know and you won't make a change unless you do
• 16:32
  something different. So book a call and make
• 16:34
  something and make something different happen for yourself.
• 16:36
  It'll be fun. So if you want to learn more
• 16:38
  about me and how to book a call, go to mywebsite@dannytan.com.
• 16:41
  That's DANITA n.com and I will talk to you soon.
• 16:45
  Have a good one.