Promotions are a positive sign that you are doing well in your role, but change can bring complicated feelings and you may need some guidance as you enter this next phase.
In the workplace, promotions are a clear-cut signal that you are excelling in your job and that the organisation sees your potential. They are also a crucial aspect of maintaining the upwards trajectory, not just of the individual being promoted, but of those waiting to move into newly vacant positions.
Essentially, they create a circular system of success and progress within a company and need to be handled with care, as the wrong promotion can have heavy costs. Another element that employers may not initially consider is the problem of promotion anxiety, which is a feeling of uneasiness, tension or fear associated with a change in status and responsibilities.
So, how can an employee fight through promotion anxiety to start their new role with the best possible mindset?
Don’t go in blind
Promotions often come with a title that means other people come to you with questions, issues and concerns. As a result you may worry about not having all of the answers or being put in a position where you are asked to comment on topics that, as of yet, you are not confident in.
But a promotion to an elevated position doesn’t mean that you are expected to know it all on day one. Similar to when you first started at the company, you should have someone with experience showing you the ropes, answering your queries and leaving behind detailed handover notes, so you have written documentation to refer back to.
The organisation won’t benefit from seeing you fail, so make sure that you have the training and skills to thrive in your new position and if you need additional coaching, ask for it.
Slay the imposter
Imposter syndrome can strike at any time, whether you are fresh out of college or running the whole show. Often, anxiety about a promotion is less about your skills and more about a failure to tackle your inner saboteur.
If you have a habit of knocking your achievements, internalising your fears or telling yourself you aren’t adaptable to change then you have to address your confidence levels before you tackle something new.
Talking to friends, co-workers or even a licensed professional can help. Additionally, there are a range of free and inexpensive online tutorials, guides and courses to help you address the core root of your issues. By establishing a support network and engaging in positive thought association, you will likely find that your confidence improves and your anxieties around the workplace become more manageable.
One step at a time
In the same way that you don’t want to go into a new role lacking in confidence, you also don’t want to bite off more than you can chew. It can be tempting in a new position to tackle multiple tasks at once and try to complete them as quickly as possible, but – cliched as it sounds – slow and steady wins the race.
By taking a measured approach and breaking tasks down into simpler, more manageable objectives, you can limit your own stress while also proving that you have a handle on the responsibilities that come with the job. Furthermore, you establish a schedule that works for you and still hits company targets.
If you find that the work is still unmanageable despite your efforts, don’t be afraid to have a conversation with your supervisor or employer about setting more realistic expectations.
Build from the ground up
Moving upwards in a company where you are already established can come with a multitude of benefits. For example, you already have the lay of the land and you likely have developed strong relationships. However, it can also bring some challenges. Namely, you may be worried about rocking the boat for other employees by criticising current systems or implementing new policies that might alter how things are done.
If you are anxious about how the changes you want to bring in might impact the organisation, you could be tempted to just continue with the status quo. But that only leads to the continuation of poor practices that might make sense in the short term but ultimately can negatively affect working culture in the long run.
When you move into a new role with a little more power, you don’t need to take apart everything to prove a point, however, if there are areas that could use improvements and you have plans for how that can be done without overly disrupting the workforce, then you owe it to yourself, your fellow employees and the employers who put their faith in you, to give it a try.
Navigating a promotion can bring complex feelings that may be hard to articulate, one of them being anxiety, but your work ethic and personality already got you the job. All you need to focus on is settling in and making it your own.
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