Do you feel that your career is deadlocked? Then it probably is. You have not been promoted for a long time and there is no interesting project in front of you that you can learn something new and grow from. Maybe you don't try hard enough, but you may also try too hard, both of which are not appreciated by your superiors. What should you do to avoid sabotaging your own career? Fastcompany.com warns against the following mistakes we are often unaware of.
1. You can't stop complaining
There is nothing wrong with constructive criticism in the company or when working in a team. However, you should not only complain, but come up with possible solutions and put them into practice. If someone just complains and does not change anything, he can't expect positive attitudes from his superiors or colleagues.
2. You are afraid of change
Once a change or a new challenge arise, you start panicking and repeating that you have a lot of work and are overstressed. When you calm down, the problem seems less terrible and you do a good job. Your initial reaction, however, sends a clear signal to your superiors that you are not a suitable candidate for promotion.
3. You pretend that you know and can do everything
You never turn down an assignment and never ask for details even though you don't exactly understand the task. You want to show show that you can do everything, which often results in overpromising and underdelivering. If you want to further develop your career, you must first learn how to assess your strengths and weaknesses, and stop being afraid to admit that you don't know something.
4. You perform others' work at the expense of your own
You want to demonstrate that you are able do more than is required by your current role. Therefore you voluntarily participate in others' work and want to help them. You don't even hesitate to take over a part of your superior's work, which could backfire on you. First, you are often end up unable to manage your own work and, second, your boss may start to feel threatened by you. The result in both the cases is the same, you will not be promoted.
5. You underestimate the impact of your poor communication skills
Not only the way you talk, but also all the presentations, reports and e-mails you create reflect the level of your communication skills. Your superiors need to see that you know how to communicate clearly, concisely and without errors.
6. You expect promotion to come naturally
You are doing a good job and you think that your superiors will notice and appreciate it by giving you a promotion or by assigning you a new and interesting project. However, you should not be surprised when you are overtaken by more assertive colleagues. A more efficient way to try to get promoted is to regularly communicate with your boss about your goals and how to achieve them. Be careful, however, not fawn over your boss too much. That will not help either your chances of promotion or your relationship with colleagues.
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