I Got Promoted Twice within 5 Years: Here Is What I Do
Hard work and consistency pay off!
Promotion is only for persistent people.
It also requires hard work, consistency, and patience. If you don’t find these signs on yourself, better to close this article. But, if you do, congratulation! You are on the right track to getting a promotion.
My story began in 2017.
I worked as Wedding Video Editor in a world-class post-production company specializing in the Wedding Industry. My job is to edit wedding videos based on my client’s standards and preferences.
I love this job. I love video editing.
Especially when I know my client (read: the couple) is smiling and tearing up because of my video editing work. It brings joy and happiness to me.
In 2020, my boss was looking for another Project Manager. I was excited to apply for the role. I came to my manager, and surprisingly, she has suggested me to my boss. Long story short, I got promoted to Project Manager.
In 2022, my boss invited me to have a coffee break at the restaurant in front of my office. He said he wanted to talk about something with me.
I was freaking nervous.
“What happened? Is there any issue that I don’t know or missed? What do I do wrong?”
It was hard for me to think positively because we always discussed work issues in my boss’s room, not in other places. Then why does he invite me to have a coffee break at that restaurant?
“I’m excited to inform you that I want to promote you as Chief Talent Officer start from next month,” he said and smiling.
My heart stops beating. I’m freezing — try to figure out what is happening.
Five seconds later, I realize this is real. I accepted my boss’s offer with a smiley face and bright eyes. “Thank you so much for the offer. I’m in. And let’s fly higher together!” I shake his hand.
Here is my LinkedIn screenshot for the proof — sorry, I censor the company’s name:
In this post, I want to share my journey on how to achieve it. Here is what I do to get promoted twice within five years:
I Have a Mentor
Her name is Diva.
She was my project manager at that time. Her role is to check the editors’ works before passing them to the clients. Quality control, we called it. She also manages editors' schedules. And other challenging tasks to do.
I adore Diva so much. Her strong work ethic, managing skills, excellent video editing skills, and more — inspired me. I respect and learn so many things from her.
Although we no longer work together as senior and junior, I always respect and consider her as my senior and mentor.
This point applies to you, too — Find your mentor! It could be your manager, CEO, lecturer, coach, etc.
Once you find your mentor, start serving their needs first.
What kind of help can you give to your mentor? What value can you bring to them? What positive effect can you bring to them? And more.
I walk my talk — I become Diva’s right hand. Whenever she needs something at the office, I always try to provide it as soon as possible. I try to reduce her workload at the office by producing high-quality work.
I serve Diva first. Then I can learn important things from her later on.
I Am Open to Any Feedback for What I Did Wrong
I always received internal revisions from Diva in my first year because my editing skill was garbage. Terrible!
But I don’t feel butthurt.
Because I know she wants me to achieve the client’s needs. She wants me to be a better video editor. She wants me to get paid more — because the more projects that video editors complete, the more $$ they bring home.
And also,
I received some internal reviews from my boss in my project manager role. He talked about what tasks I did wrong, which sides I can improve, how to manage “this and that” correctly, and more.
I receive it with an open heart.
Again, because I know those feedbacks are essential for me. Those feedbacks help me to be a better person in the company.
“We all need people who will give us feedback. That’s how we improve.” — Bill Gates
Don't get it wrong if you receive “not so good” feedback from your bosses. That feedback will help you to be a better person — remember that!
I Keep Learning and Improving Myself
I have a principle: Once I think I know everything, I will “die.”
Especially in the corporate world, If you stop learning and improving yourself, be ready because somebody can replace you one day. And it is not good for your career life.
I set my glass empty every day.
I’m ready to learn everything from anyone in my office. It could be from Diva, it could be from my workmates, it could be from our clients, and it could be from my bosses.
As wise people said: “Don’t work for money, work for knowledge.”
“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.” — Henry Ford.
Don’t underestimate someone. You can learn anything from anyone. Maybe you won’t use it in your career life now. But perhaps you will use it in your daily life. Or maybe in your relationship life.
Keep learning and improving ourselves!
Be Humble
As a Balinese person, my family always taught me to be humble to everyone.
“Be kind and stay low,” my parents said to me since I was a kid.
If you are humble to someone, they feel comfortable with you. They will be comfortable chatting with you, teaching you something, and providing you with some help — even though you are not asking for it.
In the corporate world, either your workmate or your bosses will love to work with a person who has a friendly personality. Everything will become easier.
We don’t need to make everyone love us — yeah, I know. But it doesn’t mean you need to make everyone unhappy with you because of your rudeness. Correct?
Don’t be rude!
I Care About Work Issues That My Workmates are Facing
A careless person is a zombie.
Even though Mark Manson wrote a book called “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck.” But he didn’t tell us not to care about everything in this world. If you haven’t read that book, I recommend you buy and read it asap. It’s a great one!
Anyway,
When I was a video editor, I always wanted to help my workmates when they faced any editing issue. It could be any technical video editing issue or creative block issue.
No one asked me. I do it because I love to help people.
By helping my workmates to solve their issues, I learn more about wedding video editing: on the creativity and technical side. In the end, it’s improved me to be a better wedding video editor.
I Understand Well the Company’s Vision and Try to Achieve It
The company’s vision: To help wedding videographers bring beautiful and long-lasting memories for their clients through videos.
I try to implement this vision for every work I produce.
In the editor role, I edited every single wedding film based on what my clients needed and expected. Again, I love seeing the couple smiling and tearing up when they see my work.
In the project manager role, I made sure that every wedding film I sent to my clients already achieved their needs and expectations. And of course, I need to send those films on time.
You can also implement this approach in the company you work for. Find out the company’s vision and achieve it with your outstanding performance.
Manage Times Efficiently to Produce High Quality of Work
The longer time you spend doesn’t equal the more productive you are.
I learn this rule from many experts out there, including on Medium. I’ve read many posts telling about this rule. Sorry, I forgot who wrote those posts — I can’t mention the names here.
Anyway,
My project manager role requires me to do many essential tasks daily. Such as:
- Checking editors’ works (Quality Control).
- Managing editors’ schedules.
- Report editor performances to my senior and bosses.
- Solving Technical and Creative Editing issues.
- More.
The ability to manage time efficiently is crucial for me because I need to juggle from one task to another task.
What I’m doing is:
I plan my schedule before work so I know how many hours I need to spend on each task. This method makes me more efficient at the office.
If you feel you have a lot of daily tasks, let’s use this method! Plan your day just before going to work, set how many hours you will spend on each task to tackle your daily tasks properly.
Bring Values to the Company Every Day
Some people only go to the office, work 8 hours a day, go home, then forget the whole day. And wait for the salary at the end of the month.
I never choose that option in my career life.
Every morning when I arrive at the office, I always think, “What values can I bring to this company? How can I help my boss to achieve the company’s vision? How can I help my senior to achieve her daily goals?”
And more.
Every second on your working hours is matters. So rather than doing a not-so-important task, you can ask yourself (or your manager) what urgent tasks you need to tackle asap today?
“When values, thoughts, feelings, and actions are in alignment, a person becomes focused and character is strengthened.” — John C. Maxwell
Final Thought
It is possible to get a promotion.
To achieve that, first, you need to love your job. Second, bring value to your company, bosses, managers, and colleague — then the reward will follow. Third, be a persistent person.
It’s a long journey and not easy. But it is achievable. All points I wrote above are actionable.
Now it’s time to you to take action!
Final word,
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