Dani Tan: Hi, I'm Dni Tan, and if you are here, you are in the right place. Welcome to the Pivot and Promotion podcast where we say forget the rules because they weren't written for us. I'm Dani Tan. I'm your host as well as career and leadership coach and a proud advocate for redefining what success and leadership looks like. And here's what I know. You can lead at any level, you can pivot at any age, and you can make moves that feel right for you. Whether you're climbing the corporate ladder, starting something completely new, or just figuring out your next step. I've got you covered with strategies, stories, and straight up inspiration. So let's make some moves. Hello. Okay, so today we're talking about why promotions go to the person who communicates their value.

It's not for the person that unfortunately, which I know it stinks, but you can be the hardest working person, the most dedicated working person. You can be the first one in, the last one out, but that alone is not, not going to get you promoted. Yeah, it's, it's kind of tough. It's kind of tough because especially if you identify as first, second gen, eldest daughter, woman of color, person of color, you probably know that we have definitely been taught that work really hard, work really hard, and those results will come. And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. It's like a beautiful, beautiful concept in theory, but within corporate America, that's just not always the case. So a lot of my clients will come into coaching and they will say, I've been working so hard, I've been passed up for promotion year after year after year and I'm so tired of it.

What do I need to do? I'm the go to for everything. Everyone's always coming to me for problems, I'm always fixing them. I'm working the job above me, the job below me, my job, and I'm still not up for promotion yet. And so I want to say something is that like, thank you one for all of your hard work and the things that you're doing. So I'm sure you're trying to better your life, better your family's life, better your friends lives. But there are some tools, skills, resources to kind of understand when it comes to promotions in general to make it a little bit easier. So, yes. Why promotions go to people who are able to communicate their value is because of so many reasons of being able to have your manager understand your case of why you're trying to promote it so they can speak to it.

To their boss, to hr. So there's so many different layers to it. And we will break it all down, I promise. All right, so I'm gonna go ahead and I'm going to. If you are watching the video version of this, I'm going to share my screen because I used to do this series on LinkedIn live before I had the podcast. And it's going to be. And as of March, it'll be three years and as of March, it'll be three years of me doing this series. And I used to, from day one, I used to do with the PowerPoint presentation every single. And so I thought, you know, being in 2026, why don't I bring back the presentation here and there and see how that kind of lands for a visual. So if this is something that like, oh, I kind of like this visual with it, you know, drop me a message either on LinkedIn or reply to one of my emails on the email list and that'll let me know that you liked this, this series.

And so I'll go ahead and share. All right, here we go. You see me and you see the slides to the side of me. So let's get started. So the biggest thing, and like I was saying before is like, promotions don't go to the hardest worker. That solely cannot be what it is. It's not about volume when it comes to promotions. Like harder, you know, working the hardest, working the longest hours is not guarantee recognition for the work that you're doing. And it's often effort is often very invisible, very invisible to higher levels. Because really what matters is the people who are responsible, who are holding the keys to your success, to your next title, to your promotion, they need to see your visibility, be able to see what it is that you're doing.

The work cannot be invisible. So that way they have a good case for making this promotion happen. And it's not about being louder. I hear a lot of folks who are like, I have to be, I need to be the loudest person in the room or I have to be the most visible person. There are ways to effectively and creatively communicate, to draw the connection between the work that you're doing and what it is that you're doing without it feeling like, oh, I have to go around and self promoting myself or have to go around dominating all the conversations. Not that's necessarily true. So for those who feel like, oh, I'm more introverted or oh, I just keep my head down, like, there are tactical ways to do this without having to be walking around with a big banner.

So I just wanted to reiterate that. And then it's really about like the clarity around the value that you're providing. So being able to clearly communicate the value that it is you are providing to your job, the contributions that you're doing so that they're under how they link back to the business, how they link back to the outcomes, how they link back to the goals. And so you may say, but my, I'm always getting positive feedback from my manager, I'm always getting positive feedback from my coworkers. But positive feedback is not enough. There has to be a lot of conversation, a lot of clarity around it and a lot of speaking to how what you're doing doing is driving to the business goals. Being able to get everything done on your checklist and your and your manager's checklist will not solely be enough.

There will have to be a bit more there when it comes to it. And so we'll talk about that. So this session is going to explore why communicating your value is, is just as important, if not more than working super hard. And you're going to be like, what does communicating value mean? And I will break it down and the decision makers, so decision makers of your promotion, whether that's hr, your manager, your manager's manager, they need to understand how your work connects to these outcomes for the business and that it's not just happened by accident. You have to make it super obvious for them, for them to make this case. So let's go ahead. So why effort alone does not lead to it is because even if you are a high performer, right, and the work, you're like, the work speaks for itself.

I'm doing amazing. But that's the thing. You have to also be able to ensure that you're getting the recognition for the work that you're doing and you're showcasing the value. Especially when you're trying to move up in an organization to higher levels, you have to make sure that effort does not go unnoticed. So there's an invisible work problem here because leaders they promote based off of understanding the impact, understanding you know, who's doing the work, understanding what is happening, not just the hours that are logged. And senior leaders are not really in the day to day with you. Do you see your boss's boss in the day to day to you with the work that you're doing? Even your boss may not be in the thick of it with the day to day of the things that you're doing.

It's mostly like your other colleagues or your coworkers. And so without clear communication, contributions become just, like, in the background. They don't see it. They just know that things get done. And then you start to get vague feedback of like, oh, you're doing really great. And you think, okay, awesome, I'm doing great. This is what me for. But we have to have, like, very quantitative information of what that is. And so decision makers can't clearly articulate your value. If they can't articulate your value, then they can't advocate for you. So if your manager can't talk about, you know, how much you've helped the business when it comes to growing an audience, how much you help the business when it comes to increasing revenue, how much you help the business and reducing a timeline of something or the length it takes to get a project done, it's going to be really hard for them to vouch for you, to advocate for you when it comes to moving you forward.

And so understanding that piece is really important. And so, oh, my gosh, I have had countless clients who have talked about, they've had the best performance reviews ever, and they're just not moving forward. And it's because they're getting vague feedback which is indicated that, you know, they know that they're doing well, they're being told that they're doing well, but they're not driving home the conversation with their managers when it comes to what is needed and understood in order to get a promotion with those who are the decision makers. And so this is what communicating your value actually means. So it's not about, like, anything inauthentic. I feel like a lot of, you know, a lot of people will come to me and they'll say, well, I feel like it means that I am.

I'm showboating or I'm gloating. But that's not what it is. It's stating the facts. What communicating your value is not. It's not about bragging. It's not about being like, oh, my gosh, look at me being the loudest person in the room. It's not about listing, listing every single task that you've ever done. And it's not about overselling your contributions. No one here is telling you to, like, inflate anything. But what it is is it's naming the specific impact that you've done. Like, how did you help reduce expenses? How did you increase revenue? How did you help increase retention? How did you, you know, help grow an audience? How did you. How did you better the project? So it got done on time.

These are all things of business outcomes and how they help an overall goal and making decisions and priorities visible. So talking about the things that you have done strategically, the things that you've decided, the things you're moving forward and sharing that with your, your manager and your manager's manager. So not just saying I executed and got the thing done of saying like, hey, you asked me to do this and when I was looking at it, I actually thought of a new way that we could approach it. And this is the reason why and this is what I think will help drive it. That are, these are the things that talk about when it comes to communicating your values are. I'm very passionate about this.

Just because I work with such, I'm like literally like hammering the counter. I am just. I have such amazing clients, like so many amazing clients, so many amazing women who are either immigrants to the United States or first or second gen in their family to graduate college or be born in this, in this country. And they have such beautiful and amazing expertise, intelligence, value and all the things that they bring. And it's just sometimes the systems are not set up to be very clear of what it takes to get a promotion. So it's not about skill or ability and it's not honestly on, on us as a community or society. It is really the system. And so when I speak on these things, it is really about trying to pull the curtain back of what is, what is the reality of what it takes to make these things happen, to help you, to help push you forward.

Because by you understanding how to communicate your value, by you being understand, understanding your ownership of all the amazing things you do, it creates an opportunity and a space and a gap for you to move up which will then in turn will uplift the community because you always are going to bring up somebody else with you. And so that's why I'm like really harping on this today is just, I think in, in times like these, we need leadership to change and leadership changes through this. So you know, I have a client which I can share endless versions of clients but of constantly. There's a difference between, you know, saying I finished a report to I finished a report that showed we're have 200,000 in savings.

Like such dramatic way of sharing that right of like versus I finished the report, everything's all set to. I finished it. When I looked at it, I was to find some savings. And so just understanding that part of I just want you to really own, I want you to own what it is that you do own what it is that you are doing because you are working so hard. And so we'll help break this down a little bit more. So there is a big, you know, gap between being valuable and being seen as valuable, which I know is like very painful sentence to say. But many high performers find that value and visibility are really important. So. And spend it's very distinct. So you can be valuable to your organization yet overlooked for a promotion.

I'm going to say that one more time. You can be valuable to your organization and still be overlooked for a promotion. Because promotions require that you have perceived impact and have demonstrated that you're ready also for the promotion. So it talks about being strategic with your communication, not just having amazing performance. So there's this overperforming trap that happens, right? We believe that advancement is going to happen by working really hard, over indexing, over performing. Then we find that for some reason our advancement is stalling. And that's because just by taking more on projects, longer hours, endless volunteering, that does not do it enough. The solution is not more work, but recalibrating how you're communicating your existing contributions.

One more time. It is about recalibrating. How are you communicating the work that you are doing right now, all that work that you're doing now, the existing work that is happening. How are you communicating that to your manager versus taking on something else? Are you really, if you were to sit and make a list of all the things you've been working on, the achievements, are you really showcasing how you are moving the business? Because overperforming can actually delay your promotion because you are being seen as a doer, executor versus someone who is strategic and ready for that next level. I'm not saying that's the truth. I'm not saying that's the truth whatsoever. I'm just saying that right now, sometimes we are either conditioned or set up to believe that that is solely what it is.

Or maybe you do know there's something more, but you're not sure on how to take this next step. And so, you know, I completely understand that. I have a client who was the go to for everything. She was go to go to for everything. And she kept wondering why she wasn't ready for the next step. And it was just because she was an execution mode. So all they could see was execution mode versus being able to see her as somebody who is ready to be a leader, who's ready to lead teams, who's ready to start to be more strategic, who's ready to start to talk about what the business needs are and so to have to really understand what that looked like. I sat down with her and we created a promotion plan of what the value and the work that she was doing, how to communicate that to her manager, getting some real timelines, how to, and then being able to figure out what that promotion plan, that cadence looks like and to start to speak to things more strategically versus just getting things done.

And so promotion decisions, where are they really made? A lot of the times we believe that promotions are done at the review cycle, but they're honestly, they're constant, they're ongoing. Yes. Like hear me out. So you may say, nope, I've asked and promotions happen during our review cycle, or I've asked and promotions happen during these two times a year. But here's the thing is that a lot of the times we have talked about, we asked for a promotion once, say they were interested in it once, and then we kind of let it sit and then we kind of walk away and we assume that if we keep doing work that they know that it's towards this promotion. And let me tell you, having a one and done conversation with your manager is not going to guarantee that they're going to remember that you want a promotion.

I know that sounds crazy. Even if you were the only direct report for that person, they may not remember that and it may not be top of mind about getting you a promotion. They may be focused on the things for the business they have to focus on. And so just knowing that for yourself, that you have to prioritize that for yourself, I know it doesn't feel fun, but no one is going to drive your career trajectory except for you. For the rare few who do have managers and leaders who do care about that. Oh my gosh, amazing. They're awesome. But for the majority of the time, everyone is like so focused on themselves and what is that they're doing that they're not necessarily thinking about you and your promotion, even though you asked for it previously.

So just knowing that the most important part is that it is an ongoing conversation. So for example, when I'm working with someone, we create a promotion plan and one of the first things we talk about is outlining how you're going to have these repeated touch points with your manager and anybody else who is a key stakeholder for you getting promoted, whether that's your manager's manager or hr, you have to have constant conversation. Because if you have a one and done conversation and wait 12 months, six months, nine months, it does not mean it's going to happen. It has to be constant of like, how am I doing? This is what I've been working on. That way there is no surprises when that time comes for that review cycle.

You also have to start to build an advocacy. Like your manager has to be able to be your biggest cheerleader and advocate for you to get that promotion to happen. If they can't, if they don't feel confident and they have not built the ability and the resources and the value and the messaging to speak to why you deserve to get a promotion, you have to figure out then who is going to do it. And if the person that's supposed to be responsible for signing off on your promotion, if that ends up being your manager, your manager's manager or hr, you have to start to then instill in these ongoing conversations talking about the work that you're doing, showcasing the things that you're doing. So that way they're able to help push it forward.

And the last piece is they need to feel like people who are the keepers of the keys for getting the sign off. They have to feel confident that you can do it because they may be getting budget approved, they may be giving you a team. So they have to feel good about it. So you have to give them the numbers that will help that happen to make it happen. So when you are talking to a leader, what leaders are really trying to understand is can I explain the value of this promotion of this person to my peers or my coworkers? Do I have concrete examples of how they have created impact on the company? Do I feel confident they can handle the next level of responsibilities? You know, have they demonstrated this leadership, these leadership thinking skills qualities?

And they're not just an execution mode. These are the things that they're thinking about that you have to be able to help create the case and fill the gap for, to make it easy for them to get this to happen. And so you know, my clients time and time again, it's like they are getting the support to make this happen because they're jumping into these leadership positions and they are probably the first in their family to do this. Like a lot of the times, a lot of times, the first in their families within this kind of structure, whether it's in marketing, whether it's an E commerce, digital merchandising, customer success, tech, you name it, they're probably the first in their family to be in these positions.

So when it comes to this next step, it's not that they're not ambitious or driven or Motivated, but it's about being able to have these strategic conversations, be able to learn how to influence, be able to learn how to advocate, be able to learn how to communicate value. And that's really what we're doing. We're doing this. And so this is what you're, you're going to start to learn when it comes to how to shift communicating your value is what I focus on with the women that I work with is it comes down to you're, you're done approving. We're not going with the proving energy anymore. Right. We have build the belief. And so you're going to create the receipts of your success and essentially list out what you have achieved.

And then we start to talk about how you speak to it. And you start to get really intentional with your strategy when it comes to talking about your achievements, who to talk to them about creating timelines and then getting better feedback. Feedback is not you're doing great. Feedback has to be very tactical. What has to be improved upon and what period of time to make this happen between now and then. So that way you're actually preparing your skills towards what it is is required for you to get promoted. And so we have to go from like the generic to the actionable. In case you have not met me before, just so you know, I have had 11 promotions in 11 years. I went from being a sample coordinator to a VP of a multibillion dollar company.

I pivoted my careers five times. You know, let's see, what was it? Pr, sales, merchandising, e commerce, entrepreneurship. So I was able to change my careers multiple times and still get promotions and 11 promotions in 11 years while still making a crazy amount of money. Multiple six figures. That's just me, okay? My clients are also complete like baddies. Okay? I have two clients that I can think of, the top of my head of just this year alone who got two promotions in the course of the last 12 months. Two promotions, okay, so one within her internal company and then left and then got a new job in a promotion. Another one who was able to get a job that was two levels up. So she basically got two promotions in one.

And so besides that, I have other clients who have always been able to either get a salary increase of 20 to 50k to doubling their salaries while getting promotions. So I say this in the sense of it's not about like, hey, look at me and my clients. It's about saying there's so much importance when it comes to how to translate how you speak about yourself. So about your skills, about your values, whether you're asking for promotion, whether you're preparing for an interview, whether you're trying to pivot careers, whether you're trying to start a business. It all comes down to the ability of being able to speak to what it is that you've done. Your achievements, your skills, your. And what it is, how you can showcase that and the value to it.

So you will connect to it and see the importance and the weight of it. Do not let your work go and just be another thing on the list of things that you've done right. Really emphasize it. That's why we are here. We're here to make a change. You make a change and you make an impact by you. You being a leader, you being a leadership position, you being able to make a change and make an effect on our society and our community. You know, like we. I can't, I can't have you. I can't have you not being in the spotlight, not being recognized, not having enough impact and decision making power within your organization. So this is what I want you to focus on while you've listened to this episode and I've gone all ham on it is this.

I want you to start to review your language. How do you talk about your work? Are you describing tasks? Are you describing the impact of what you did? And if you feel like you are like gloating or you're showboating, I don't care. You're not. Okay. Period. You're not. If you listen to this, you're definitely not. And then the next piece is notice the pattern. So identify where. Maybe it's difficult to, you know, write a description for something or maybe you're having a hard time to create impact. So notice the pattern. If you identify that you have a hard time talking about the work that you're doing, then I want you to think about versus saying like, oh, I finished this thing. What is the impact?

So instead of saying, I finished the analysis, I want you to say the analysis revealed three things. Three cost saving opportunities, bum, bum, bum. Or the survey that we did for the workshop showed these three parts of impact. Increased engagement, you know, was. And then two more bullet points, you got this. And then the last part is find an opportunity. I want you to find one upcoming conversation and I want you to connect your work to meaningful business outcomes. So practice articulating that to a connection. So whether that's your manager, whether it's a coworker, whether it's a networking chat, I want you to find an opportunity where you can practice communicating your value and how it impacted the business.

And I want you to remember that you don't have to do more. You're already doing so much. I want you to take exactly what you're doing, I want you to translate it to how it is giving the impact. And it's not always about adding more work. It's about reframing your existing efforts. And in that way you can advance yourself. And I really, really, really want you to take this to heart and to think about it, whether you are communicating your value for a pivot, a promotion, an interview, whatever it is, it's something, a skill set that you'll have for life. And so your value, in case I have not emphasized it bold, it underlined it enough, your value deserves to be understood. Promotions go to those who are able to share their value and it's clear and it's trusted and it's easy to advocate for.

And so I know you're high achieving and I want you to be able to do it and get to that next level and be able to be known for the work that you've been done and honestly to be recognized for the work that you've done and to be compensated for the work that you've done. And so if you're somebody who feels like maybe you want to understand what that looks like working together with me, as I've shared some of the stories of my clients and you want support on communicating your value effectively, this is the work that I do within private coaching. Private coaching is one on one. We work together for three to six months and we develop your strategy when it comes to communication, value and a path to a promotion.

com to learn more about coaching. What you do is go to contacts, book a call with me, we'll talk about what your goals are, where you've been stuck, your challenges. I'll give you a plan and then we'll see if it's a good fit to work together. And so thank you so much for tuning in and I appreciate you and I will talk to you soon. Have a good one.