Passed Over for Promotion & Pay Raise:
What To Do (and Not Do)
Right After
to Get Another Shot

I Want a Promotion But I Don’t Want to Be a Manager…

Are you self-sabotaging?

Are you ambivalent and conflicted about that promotion?

A part of you really wants it:
– because of the acknowledgement of your contribution
– because of having more power to do things your way
– because of the prestige that comes with a higher ranking position, on the organizational ladder
– and, of course, the pay raise – who wouldn’t want that?

But then, on the other hand:
– who wants that extra hassle?
– who wants to deal with difficult team members?
– who wants to be between a rock and hard place, which is the lot of any manager, especially mid-management level, which is probably where you are, or desire to be
– plus, the longer hours… Not that you are slacking now, but still, you’d have to set an example for everybody else… That sounds very nice in theory, but in practice, it is extremely destructive to one’s personal life…

So many pros and cons…

Are you sure you’re settled on the pros? We’ll find out… ok let’s go …

The no. 6 DO (out of 8), right after being passed over for a promotion, or a pay raise, or both, is:
Check your attitude: Do you really want it (the promotion)?

So… Are you self-sabotaging? Are you ambivalent, about getting that promotion?

Nobody can ever be ambivalent regarding a pay raise, but a promotion – that’s different.

Yeah the title is nice – the higher it is on the organizational hierarchy, the more prestigious it is. It boost your ego; It creates a bit of a power dynamics, that tilts your way, with everybody around you (even if implicit); Plus, it easily seeps into you’re out-of-work life: Getting a date as a manager, is easier then as an entry level, junior, run-of-the-mill, rank-and-file, employee –  at least for men (whom are most of our followers). Thus, that’s another pro to this mix of pros and cons.

You have to make sure you really want it! And if not, that’s absolutely fine!

[I’ll do a post/video about that sometime, because there are many employees whom are pressured, implicitly or explicitly, by their peers, their family, their friends, or just the omnipresent culture of vertical achievement, that is the supposed epitome of corporate success (and therefore success as a whole). And note I say SUPPOSED, because it really doesn’t have to be.]

Indeed, if you don’t really want a promotion, and you’re doing it just because you think you should be doing it, two things will happen:

(a) Your ambivalence will be apparent to everybody around you! Your boss, especially, will know you’re just going through the motions, i.e., faking it!

Because people who really want a promotion, who have that fire in them, that very specific kind of drive… it really shows. And in contrast, it is very clear when somebody does not have it.

(b) if you happen to get that promotion you didn’t really want – and this can happen sometimes, when the position needs to be filled urgently, and there are no other compatible candidates other than you – so, if you happen to get a promotion you didn’t really want, you are going to be both miserable and an under-performer.

You’re just not going to be successful, and you might even get fired, the moment they realize you suck! Or the moment they can find someone to replace you (which they will be looking for, frantically)

So… not a good idea…

Which is why you really must be honest with yourself (and with your boss), as to whether a promotion is something you truly desire, and whether you can, indeed, produce results for both you AND  the company.

There are other ways to get a pay raise. It doesn’t necessarily has to be vertical promotion.