career advancement Tag


Acquiring Critical Leadership Criteria Senior management understands the value of investing in future leadership, but also realizes that to find extraordinary leaders it is important to look for outstanding qualities that are multidimensional, strategically developed, and tempered by experience.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself regarding your leadership development objectives:

Do I have a panoramic vision of the organization?
Leading from the top doesn’t always work in today’s diverse and complex companies, so develop a more panoramic and cross-departmental vision and understanding to ensure sustainable success. Knowing how to operate horizontally and diagonally, in other words, is the fastest way to earn a vertical promotion.

How do I handle workplace politics?
Volunteer up, praise down, and never repeat office gossip. Pitch in to reinforce the performance of your bosses when you see room for improvement. Promote and support those on your team or your employees. Never speak about someone in a way that you aren’t prepared to say to their face. Follow that code and you’ll


Speaking with greater clarity and purpose is vital for any leader, whether they are talking to an employee, client, board room, or the news media. Those who lack this ability will appear weak, befuddled, and ineffective – and will fail to convey their ideas and leadership vision. But those who have a mastery of communication have a powerful asset that can influence others and ensure extraordinary success.

Clear messages will only come from clear thoughts, so know what you want to say before you write or speak. Take notes, isolate talking points, and avoid flowery or complicated language. Keep it simple, and avoid using more words than necessary to convey your ideas. When communication is clear it improves the chances that hearing and comprehension on the other end will also be


The Secret to Career Success: Negate the Negative Perhaps the biggest secret to career success – whether you are an entrepreneur or high potential leader working for a major corporation – is to learn how to neutralize or negate negativity.

Negative energy comes in two forms, internal and external. To help insulate yourself from the external kind, surround yourself with positive people who are focused on performance and success, not failure. Avoid the naysayers and cynics in favor of those who interpret adversity as a challenging opportunity to prove their worth.

All of us have baggage that weighs us down in the form of insecurities, fears, and perceived shortcomings. But with the help of a trusted mentor or confidential coach you can overcome any


In this great article on TrainingMag.com, Jann E Freed, Ph.D. talks about how many people wait to think about their legacy until the end of their careers right before retirement. She claims that today the time to think about your leadership legacy is now. By putting forth a strategic plan now you are preparing to become a better leader.

Here are a few of my favorite quotes from


Faster Promotions Believe it or not, the biggest obstacle to success and faster promotions for most people is not fierce competitors or a tough economy. Granted, those are major factors. But the truth is that it’s oftentimes ourselves who are standing in the way of our own career progress.

I experienced it early in my career when I got passed over for my first gigantic promotion. Luckily I became aware of the issue, overcame it, and was able to go on to enjoy great success as a senior executive with a Fortune 100 company before launching my own successful entrepreneurial business.

For decades I’ve observed that the biggest roadblocks to success and the most commonly experienced pitfalls can be traced back to one’s on self-image or mindset.

  • That’s why I often share a 360-degree assessment tool with my clients when they are trying to figure out how to design and promote a brand or professional image. Most are pleasantly surprised to learn how differently they are perceived by trusted others like family members, friends, and colleagues when compared to how they critically assess themselves.
  • Usually they find out that others see them as a lot


3 Leadership Tips for Developing Top Talent The key to sustainable success in any business or as a high performance leader is to constantly fuel the talent pipeline. But the easiest, most cost effective way to gain more valuable human resources and maintain a roster of top talent is to develop your talent from within the organization.

Here are three tips to help you accomplish that:

1) Invest in the success of your people

Unless you spend some time and money to develop those on your team, they will either never reach their full potential or they will eventually leave for greener pastures. A much more economically viable strategy is to develop your talent with proactive initiatives. Keep in mind that many employees value an investment in career development as much as they do a financial raise.

2) Reward your high achievers

It is much cheaper to fuel the pipeline from within, and investing in your own people generates loyalty and high morale while it simultaneously attracts the most qualified and talented new hires. That combats the expense and disruption caused by high rates of attrition, so investing in your


Executive Coaches According to Fast Company Magazine, more than 40 percent of CEOs polled in a recent survey have worked with an executive coach. Among senior executives who report directly to CEOs the number was nearly twice that many. Ninety percent of all executives surveyed for the report who have used a coach also said they plan to continue doing so, and a large majority of companies surveyed are increasing their hiring of executive coaches.

Proactive Leadership Development

The higher numbers among aspiring CEOs taking advantage of coaching and mentoring may reflect the fact that those in line for the C-suite on succession planning lists recognize the need for accelerated leadership development. Expert one-on-one coaching can give them the skills and executive presence needed to successfully compete for coveted positions.

Coaching can also serve as a proactive preparation or training platform for top level positions. Why suffer the career stress and risk of attempting to learn what you need to know while already on the job? A competent executive mentor can have you fully equipped and confident to accept greater responsibility even before you apply for your promotion.

Getting the Most from an Executive Coach

But not all coaches are

  I hear many doomsday declarations about how promotion is impossible in today’s economy. But that’s not actually true because I see people, including many of my own clients, getting some great promotions. I use the algebra of attitude plus latitude equals magnitude as a simple success...