Even if you’re not required to put together a formal self-review of your performance, it’s still a good idea to do it anyway. You’ll be able to use this to build a compelling case for why you think you deserve a promotion, and it will give you some good talking points when discussing the promotion with your manager.
Back in the You’re not an Impostor section, we talked about keeping a log of all your previous accomplishments in a notebook or notes app. This is the perfect time to pull up that document and review everything you’ve accomplished in the last 12 months, because that will give you plenty of ideas.
What should you write down?
Examples of successful projects. Think of the highest-impact projects you’ve worked on and stress the importance of the role you played in making the projects successful.
Concrete examples about how you improved some metric or key result, and the impact that it had. Give actual numbers for the metrics if possible.
Examples of how you demonstrated leadership and showed the maturity that is expected from a senior role. Try to find examples of where you put the team first and took action to lift up the entire team.
Your goal with this document is to prove that you are already working at the level that you’re asking to be promoted to. The more examples, the better, but make sure you choose them selectively and purposefully. Think about it as a resume for your last 6–12 months at your current role.
Building relationships in the workplace is always important, but especially when it comes to asking for a promotion. First and foremost, you’ll want to get your manager on your side, because it’ll be nearly impossible to get a promotion without the support of your manager.
How do you do that?
Do your job well. If you’re not meeting expectations for your current level, it’ll be hard to convince your boss that you deserve a higher salary and more responsibility.