Ten Principles For Someone Moving Up The Career Ladder.
By Karen and Erica
We know most of our readers have retired or are thinking about it. Those who are in that group don’t need advice about how to become successful—you already are. But you may know people who are mid-career, and who might relish advice from women like you and Ruth Bader Ginsberg, who’ve done it all and have the experience to show for it.
Here are ten principles that guided us.
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Be prepared. Start your day in control of everything you can control. There will surely be surprises. Don’t let them be caused by lack of preparation.
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Dress for work. We’ve said this before. Your clothes might be formal, as ours were when we went to court or to a board meeting, or might be less formal, as on casual days, or might be invisible, under a lab coat. (Let’s not even talk about Zoom.) Don’t listen to all that blather about now you can wear what you want. Not if you want to succeed. And dressing for work will put your mind in a productive professional place.
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When you are working you are not acting for yourself, you are representing your company or a client. Be yourself, but be your professional self, not your friends and family self.
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Communicate clearly and succinctly. If it takes a lot of words you have not thought it through. Save the adjectives until you write that novel.
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Look at email regularly. Respond quickly. Do neither in important meetings. Or while performing surgery. But always respond.
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Do not think outside the box before you know what the box is. That’s just lazy. And arrogant..
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If someone comes to you with an impossible problem, your job is not to sympathize. It is to solve the problem. Once you get your head turned in the right direction you are on the way to a solution—though you might have to bang your head against the wall for a while. Do it.
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Make like a duck. Ducks glide calmly along on the surface, but underneath they are pumping like crazy. Same for you. Appear tranquil, even when panic sets your heart racing. You want people to be confident because you are in charge.
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When you connect with someone who has been around longer than you, cultivate her or him. Yes, men too. Don’t be obsequious, but do ask for advice.
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Be strategic, and think about the big picture and what you are doing to make it happen, but don’t let ambition blind you to the needs of the moment.
What would you tell younger people looking to you for insight?
When I was moving up the R&D ladder, I was once passed over for a promotion I thought I needed. My mentor then gave me the best career advice I have ever received. He said, "When you’re driving on a road toward a destination you really want to reach, and another car passes you, just keep driving." I did, and shortly afterward I got a much better promotion that took me up my ladder in a new way. Eventually I ended up as the CTO of my company by remembering to always keep driving.
This is exactly the advice I read your newsletter for. I’m in my mid-40s, feel at times like I’m struggling, and really need mentorship. The articles on travel or whatnot are lovely but the advice of those that came before me is priceless. Thank you!!
We are so happy to hear that this post was useful. We might make it a regular column, because we really do want to share what we learned over four decades. Thanks so much for letting us know!