17.3: How to Steer Your Career Advancement

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. Learn strategies to practice good career management while still focusing on your day-to-day job.
2. Understand the outline and learn how to maximize a performance review meeting.
3. Understand when and how to ask for a promotion.
4. Understand when and how to ask for a raise.

Career Management Goes Beyond Your Day-to-Day Job

When you think about “your job,” you might picture the tasks you do every day—clocking in, completing assignments, following policies, and working in your physical environment. But your job is only one part of your overall work experience. You also navigate professional relationships, workplace culture, expectations, and—most importantly—your long-term career goals.

Your day-to-day job and your overall career are connected, but they are not the same thing.

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🧩 Your Day-to-Day Job

Your day-to-day job is what you were hired to do right now. It includes:

• Completing your regular tasks

• Meeting performance expectations

• Building a good relationship with your current supervisor

• Understanding company policies and procedures

This is the foundation of your professional life. Being reliable and effective today is what creates opportunities for tomorrow.

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🚀 Your Overall Career

Your career includes:

• Your current job

• Your future jobs

• The skills you build along the way

• The professional reputation you develop

• The goals you’re working toward

Career management means staying marketable, adaptable, and prepared for roles that may look very different from the one you have today.

Maximizing Your Performance Review Meeting

(How to confidently showcase your work + get the feedback you need to grow)

Feedback is one of the strongest indicators that you’re mastering your job. A performance review—whether formal or informal—helps you understand how well you're doing, where you shine, and what you can improve. Learning to navigate this process is a key part of managing your career, not just your job.

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📝 Understanding the Performance Review Process

Many organizations use formal evaluation systems, where your supervisor (and sometimes colleagues or clients) complete a review form. These forms assess:

• Technical skills

• Communication skills

• Professional relationships

• Work habits & reliability

👉 Pro tip: When you start a new job, ask:

• Does the company have a review process?

• How often are reviews given?

• Can I see the evaluation form?

Knowing the criteria early helps you understand exactly how you will be evaluated.

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🔔 When a Review Isn’t Happening… Ask for One

Not all managers follow formal timelines. Some workplaces have no written system at all. If you aren’t receiving structured feedback, you must advocate for yourself.

• Schedule a meeting with your supervisor

• Explain you would like to talk about your performance

• Share your goals for improvement and professional growth

Short check-ins are helpful, but they do not replace a full review. A dedicated meeting gives you space to reflect, clarify expectations, and plan ahead.

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📚 What to Cover in a Performance Review

A strong performance conversation should include these four key topics:

1. Your current work + accomplishments

Share updates, completed tasks, and wins since your last review.

2. Priorities for the next few months

Confirm what your supervisor sees as the most important work moving forward.

3. Your strengths

Discuss what you’re doing well so you know what to continue and build on.

4. Areas for improvement

Talk openly about skills or behaviors to develop—along with strategies to help you grow.

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Don’t Assume Your Boss Knows Everything You Do

Many jobs change quickly—projects shift, teams reorganize, or you may take on extra responsibilities. Supervisors often oversee many employees and tasks, so they may not realize how much you’ve contributed.

Example:
A junior accountant might officially be part of a project team, but if the manager stepped away temporarily, she may have stepped up and handled major tasks.
If she doesn’t mention it, her boss may not know she went above and beyond.

👉 Come prepared with:

• A list of your responsibilities

• A record of your accomplishments

• Examples of challenges you handled

• Any additional duties you took on

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🎧 Listen Carefully to Your Supervisor’s Feedback

Your view of your work may not match your supervisor’s. This is your chance to:

• Clarify misunderstandings

• Align expectations

• Ensure you’re prioritizing the right tasks

Maybe you’re spending lots of time on highly detailed reports, but your boss wants you to spend more time building relationships with clients—or vice versa.

The goal: leave with a clear, shared understanding of what success looks like.

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Ask About Your Strengths

Performance reviews aren’t only about correcting weaknesses. Knowing your strengths helps you:

• Build confidence

• Understand what to lean into

• Decide what work to pursue more often

• Develop your unique professional style

Example:
A new teacher might not realize he’s especially effective at mixing lecture, group work, and independent learning—until an instructional coach highlights it. Now he knows to keep using that strategy.

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Addressing Weaknesses the Right Way

When discussing areas of improvement:

• Stay open-minded

• Avoid getting defensive

• Ask for specific examples

• Request suggestions for improvement

Then ask:

• Is there a project I can join to build this skill?

• Is there training available?

• Can we schedule check-ins to track progress?

Example:
If an accountant struggled with a particular industry’s regulations, her boss might recommend a training course or assign another project in the same specialty for practice.

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🔄 When There Are Big Gaps in Understanding

If you and your supervisor have very different views about your performance, priorities, or strengths:

• Summarize what you heard

• Confirm expectations

• Ask for examples

• Schedule a follow-up meeting

• Increase your regular check-ins

Consistent alignment means you know exactly how success is measured.

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🎯 Bottom Line

Maximizing your performance review is about preparation, honest reflection, and open communication. This process helps you:

• Strengthen your current job performance

• Build better relationships with supervisors

• Identify areas for skill development

• Position yourself for future opportunities

Your performance review isn’t just about the past—it’s a roadmap for your future career growth.

When and How to Ask for a Raise

Understanding timing, strategy, and how to advocate for your value

Asking for a raise can feel intimidating—but it’s a normal part of career growth. Raises and promotions sometimes happen together, but they aren’t the same. A raise increases your pay, while a promotion changes your role. Many workplaces offer scheduled raises, but there are times when it’s appropriate to request one yourself.

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📅 When Raises Typically Happen

Organizations generally follow one of these systems:

1. Annual Raises

• Given every year, often tied to your start date or at the same time for all employees

• Sometimes prorated in your first year

2. COLA (Cost of Living Adjustment)

• Raises based on inflation

• Designed to keep wages aligned with living costs

3. Performance-Based Raises

• Determined by your results, evaluations, or metrics

• Common in sales, project-based work, and roles with measurable targets

👉 Your first step: Learn your company’s raise process so you know how decisions are made.

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When It Makes Sense to Ask for a Raise

You don’t always have to wait for the annual cycle. It may be appropriate to request a raise if:

Your job has significantly expanded

• You’re handling more tasks than you were hired for

• You are taking on responsibilities typically done by higher-level roles

You have strong new results or impact

• Major projects completed

• Improved performance metrics

• Demonstrated leadership or unique contributions

💵 The market has shifted

If salary data shows your role is being paid much higher elsewhere, it may be time to discuss alignment.

Tip: Market data should support your case—not be used as a threat.

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Raise vs. Bonus

Raises increase your salary permanently.
Bonuses are one-time payments.

If the extra work you’re doing is temporary, your employer may avoid adjusting your salary long-term. In those cases, a spot bonus could be a better fit.

Remember:
⭐ Going “above and beyond” is great—but it doesn’t automatically justify more pay.
Raises and bonuses are usually reserved for extraordinary, sustained impact.

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How to Prepare for a Raise Conversation

Just like a performance review, preparation is everything. Show up ready with:

✔️ A list of accomplishments

Include concrete examples, results, and contributions since your last review.

✔️ Evidence of increased responsibilities

Describe how your role has grown or changed.

✔️ Market salary research

Use trusted sources (government data, salary surveys, professional associations).

✔️ A positive tone

Your approach should be confident—but not confrontational.

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🗣️ How to Talk About the Raise

When you meet with your supervisor, keep your tone positive and professional.

Use phrases like:

• “I really enjoy my role here and want to continue contributing.”

• “I’d like to discuss how my responsibilities have expanded.”

• “Based on my recent accomplishments, I’d like to talk about adjusting my salary.”

• “I’ve gathered some market data that I’d love to share with you.”

Avoid:

• Ultimatums

• Threatening to quit

• Comparing yourself to coworkers

You want your employer to see you as committed—not frustrated or demanding.

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Bottom Line

Asking for a raise isn’t about pressure—it’s about advocating for your worth. With the right timing, strong evidence, and professional communication, you can confidently start the conversation and increase your chances of success.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Doing well on your job is but one part of overall career management. You also want to look at your future goals and make sure that you develop the training, experience, and relationships necessary to reach these goals.
• Some organizations have formal processes for giving performance reviews, assigning promotions, and granting raises. You want to know what is customary for your organization.
• If your organization does not have official processes for performance reviews, promotions, or raises, you will want to schedule time to discuss these with your boss.
• Regular performance feedback is critical to ensure you are doing a good job and are on track for your career goals. Promotions and raises are not a regular occurrence, but are for extraordinary contributions, such as if your responsibilities increase or you have exceptional results in your work.

Exercises

1. Aside from doing well in your first job, what are your career goals? Write your autobiography from the point of view of twenty years from now. Yes, you will have to make assumptions and outright guess for some things, but let your imagination explore what you’d like to say you accomplished. Then work backward to explore how you might get that career. When did you get your first promotion? How is a promotion defined—a bigger role, managing people, better scores, higher sales, or some other measure? Do you go to graduate school—for what and when? Look at the profiles for people who have the career you want and see what their career trajectory looks like.
2. If you have a sense of your long-term career goals, plot out what you can do in your first year to move toward these goals. If you know graduate school may be in the future, set reminders for yourself to check on the status of recommendations—are you working closely enough with people who can provide recommendations down the line? What professional organization might you want to join?
3. For the jobs you are targeting, talk to professional associations and people who have those jobs about what is customary regarding performance reviews, promotions, and raises.