The following are my suggestions as someone who has had A LOT of jobs, and from someone who has closely observed the practices of successful people, and earned a MBA.
Set a time limit for yourself. If you work hard at your current position and have received positive employee evaluation reviews, set a time limit for promotion. Give yourself X# of years to dedicate to the company. If you get promoted or achieve higher salary/responsibilities, then you have met your goal. If you do not get promoted, get a substantial raise, or an increase in responsibilities, then move on. Don’t spend your whole life in a position or with a company that doesn’t have any room to grow. Growth is important for you as a person, but for your career as well. Don’t stay stagnant.
Make your desires known. I own Auntie Liz, LLC but I also work full-time remotely for a start-up company based out of California. I told my manager in my interview that I had over ten years of experience, a Masters degree, and will prove to be a hardworking employee, but I expect growth opportunities within the company or else I will eventually find a position that offers me these options. I set expectations early. I have taken on additional responsibilities on initiative, as well as asked for them. I have made my desires clear to my manager (not just in an employee evaluation), so that there can be no room for misinterpretation.
Continue your education. You don’t have to be over-educated with a graduate degree, like me. When you continue your education, this can be a variety of job-specific things. My husband, who is one of the smartest people I know, is in IT. He got tired of being passed up for promotion after promotion and doing the same menial labor after he had obtained specific certifications in his field, earned his Bachelor degree, and took on leadership roles within his company. He actively asked for chances to shadow some of the senior IT professionals, but oftentimes those requests got denied. When it became apparent to him that he would not have opportunities to grow and learn, he recently found a position at a company where he earns literally twice the salary as he did previously. They appreciated his knowledge and desire for growth, as it should be.
Try to be patient. This is hard for me. I am waaaaaay overqualified for my full-time job, but I enjoy the work greatly. I have only been with the company for 6 months, and admittedly unreasonably, I feel like I should be further along than I am. Give your managers time to recognize your talent, establish your commitment to the company, and prove your worth. This isn’t instantaneous, like I wish it were sometimes.
Know your worth. This is another area that I actively work on. Research salaries in your field or for the positions that take on the tasks that you do. Ask for more. Realize how often your manager depends on you. Take note of additional tasks you complete that are outside of your job description. Take your education into account. Find discrepancies in other employees’ pay with your own, if you have access or have been informed of that information. Glassdoor is an excellent site for this kind of research–also BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics). Request to make more money and you will. Be confident, you deserve this.
I have spent many of the most energetic years of my life with companies that didn’t allow me to grow. I loved the work I did, so I settled. Don’t settle. You can be valued and successful if you set yourself up for it correctly. Follow these tips. I give them out freely, but this is experience, education, and observation that I have accumulated over several years of my life. Work isn’t family, but work takes up so much of our lives that it worth investing in to avoid being miserable.
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