Get promoted at work
What helps with how to get promoted, according to people who've watched it happen. Vanessa Van Edwards argues warmth doesn't cost you credibility, and another speaker links small talk to promotion. You'll also find how to sound more strategic and three career-damaging moves to skip. 8 picks from the Bez Tytułu newsletter, in reading order.
The picks
Warmth does not cost credibility
Short · tiktok.com · Issue #246
The creator argues warmth and competence are not a trade-off, and that likability makes people trust your credibility.
Vanessa Van Edwards argues that the myth that you must be less friendly to seem smart is wrong. Warmth does not cost credibility: the more likable you are, the more people trust your competence and believe in your credibility. Skills get you noticed, while connection determines how far they take you.
Key points- The myth says being smart means being less friendly, which is not true
- The more likable you are, the higher you rate on warmth
- Skills get you noticed, while connection decides how far they take you
Small talk helps you get promoted
Short · tiktok.com · Issue #67
Small talk builds the relationships that get you noticed and promoted, so ask colleagues and leaders about their lives.
The speaker argues that small talk affects promotion, because people who are comfortable with you, including leadership, are more likely to advance you. The advice is to make small talk at the start of calls, meetings and emails, ask colleagues about their day and weekends, and get to know leadership. The speaker says being good at building relationships matters as much as doing the job well.
Key points- Make small talk at the start of calls, meetings and even emails to know colleagues personally
- Leaders need to feel comfortable coming to you and trust that you get work done
- Ask about their day and weekend, and be genuinely interested
Justify work with outcomes, not plans or tools
Short · tiktok.com · Issue #171
To sound strategic, justify your work with outcomes and business impact, not with plans, schedules and tools.
The speaker advises leaders who are told they lack strategic thinking to stay at the outcome level. Justify work by its results, impact on the business, and effect on the bottom line, and avoid tactical detail such as tools, plans, and schedules unless pressed. Discussing details invites second-guessing and weakens credibility. Bosses usually want to know the project will be handled, not how.
Key points- Leaders who think strategically often slide into their team's plans and schedules
- Going into tactical detail invites second-guessing and hurts your credibility
- Give details only when pressed, because bosses mostly want the project handled
Three career-damaging moves at work
Short · tiktok.com · Issue #182
Three moves damage your career: showing anger at work, ignoring leadership biases, and copying in senior people.
The speaker lists three workplace mistakes. Showing anger or frustration in public is one, so step away and reset instead. Another is ignoring the unspoken biases senior leaders hold from past projects or people, and learning them before you join. The third is copying a senior person's boss on an email, which signals you cannot solve the problem yourself, so use it only as a last resort.
Key points- Step away to walk or take a break instead of showing anger at work
- Learn past projects that bias senior leaders and avoid them
- CCing someone's boss signals they cannot solve the problem themselves
Leaders earn loyalty by backing people
Short · tiktok.com · Issue #39
A boss who quietly paid for good suits and backed his people earned loyalty, because power comes from the people who love you.
A speaker recalls a VP who paid for two good suits so they would look more professional, then earned a promotion for working hard for him. The VP used his power to make his team feel they mattered, pushing training, promoting people, and treating them as his people. The speaker concludes that power comes from people, and that being loved by them is a superpower.
Key points- A VP secretly paid for two good suits, expensed a little at a time
- Later the boss gave the speaker a promotion and a raise, and called his wife to tell her
- The speaker says that when people love you, that is a superpower
Being yourself pays off over careers
Short · tiktok.com · Issue #44
Being yourself pays off over a career, because the speaker missed a big promotion yet his next boss reinvigorated his career.
The speaker describes giving the company president a self-deprecating thank-you card after missing a big promotion. They had kept a cartoon for years, captioned "we could use an idiot," and rewrote the caption to show humility and creativity. Two years later, a new boss with more executive experience reinvigorated their career, and the speaker says to be yourself because careers bring unexpected turns.
Key points- After the boss left, the speaker was told the top job was a stretch at best
- He gave the president a cartoon card with a self-deprecating caption instead of the original
- Two years later, a new boss with ten more years of experience reinvigorated his career
Asking without shame gets results
Short · tiktok.com · Issue #230
The post argues you get what you do not ask for, and people who asked without shame were the ones promoted and paid more.
The speaker argues that you do not get what you do not ask for. He says people who asked for promotions and raises without worrying about embarrassment were the ones who got them. Once you stop caring about shame, he says, you get what you want.
Key points- The people who asked without shame got promoted and extra pay
- This played out repeatedly around promotions and salary
- When you stop caring about shame, you get what you want
Credibility comes from public curiosity
Short · instagram.com · Issue #245
Anna Mackenzie argues you don't need expertise to build credibility, only public curiosity that compounds into results.
Anna Mackenzie describes a three-phase credibility curve for entering a new field without formal qualifications. It starts with curiosity, showing interest rather than expertise, as she did with portfolio careers and the future of work while saying 'I'm no economist'. Exploring that curiosity in public attracts paid work and opportunities, and talking about the results builds a flywheel of credibility.
Key points- Show curiosity about the field first, not expertise you lack
- Her 'I'm no economist' start led to columns and a Substack
- Public exploration attracts opportunities, paid work and more credibility