What does it take to "get ahead."

[Phoenix84]

What characteristics/qualities does a person need to have to really get ahead and become a senior official in business or government/military?

Like, for example, what qualities does someone need to have in order to be a senior executive at a large company, or the president of a University, or flag officer in the military, or a senior executive in a government agency.

From what I've seen from my interactions with such people, they aren't necessarily smarter than me or most of the other people I work or interact with.

I think having connections and being charismatic, or a people person, are what set the leaders apart from the peons.  I also paying close attention to appearance also helps a lot.  

What say you?

[Tennesseer]

Connections help-but not always.

Charisma is good as it attracts others to your group who are willing to listen and work with you.

While being a people person is okay, you also might let others walk all over you just so you can get along with everyone.

To get ahead, you must be willing to listen to what your peers and those you manage have to say and not sit in judgement of their opinions.  Instead of criticism, encourage them to continue offering ideas and to be able to explain how your idea will work on what ever project is being worked on.

Instead of putting down their work performances, a leader raises them up with encouragement on how they could do better.

To get ahead, you must show your enthusiasm and enjoy challenges offered you while not stepping on others to get ahead.  To get ahead, when thanked for a job well done, you don't take all the credit but share it with others who worked on the project too when appropriate.

Just a few ideas.

[quince]

Sociopathy helps. I advise going in Tennesseer's direction instead, though.

[milee]

Jul 31, 2016 11:09:47 GMT -5 Phoenix84 said:

What characteristics/qualities does a person need to have to really get ahead and become a senior official in business or government/military?

Like, for example, what qualities does someone need to have in order to be a senior executive at a large company, or the president of a University, or flag officer in the military, or a senior executive in a government agency.

From what I've seen from my interactions with such people, they aren't necessarily smarter than me or most of the other people I work or interact with.

I think having connections and being charismatic, or a people person, are what set the leaders apart from the peons.  I also paying close attention to appearance also helps a lot.  

What say you?

I think the skills to be successful in private industry are very different than the skills necessary to be successful to work for the government and both are very different than the skills necessary to be successful in the military.  And the skills necessary to be successful in politics are generally different than those to be successful in the first three areas discussed.

Yes, there are general skills such as charisma that will be helpful in almost any organization.  But charisma alone generally isn't enough.  The secondary skills are what propel a person over the top and again, the secondary skills to be successful to work for the government are very different than what makes a person succeed in private industry for example.

[Phoenix84]

Jul 31, 2016 13:00:24 GMT -5 quince said:

Sociopathy helps. I advise going in Tennesseer's direction instead, though.

Yes, I read an article that sociopathy does lend itself to professional itself.  It seems sociopaths think of themselves as suprior to others and usually have the drive to try and prove it.

[Phoenix84]

A couple of other thoughts...

I think at a very basic level, you have to WANT to get ahead.  I've met many people who simply don't want to be anything but a worker bee.  While there's nothing wrong with that, I think the desire to get a certain spot in your career is key.  Those who don't desire to push themselves up the chain won't go very far.

Tenesseer had an interesting point.  A person who gets ahead shouldn't necessarily be a "people person" in that they seek to please others, but yet don't step on or hurt others to get where they're going.  Obviously, if you want to advance, it's better not to piss people off and make enemies.  And a "people person" often feels the need to please others at the expense of themselves.  I guess it can be a tricky balance to promote yourself, but not harm others in the process, as that would also be detrimental to advancement.

[Phoenix84]

Jul 31, 2016 13:15:55 GMT -5 milee said:

Jul 31, 2016 11:09:47 GMT -5 Phoenix84 said:

What characteristics/qualities does a person need to have to really get ahead and become a senior official in business or government/military?

Like, for example, what qualities does someone need to have in order to be a senior executive at a large company, or the president of a University, or flag officer in the military, or a senior executive in a government agency.

From what I've seen from my interactions with such people, they aren't necessarily smarter than me or most of the other people I work or interact with.

I think having connections and being charismatic, or a people person, are what set the leaders apart from the peons.  I also paying close attention to appearance also helps a lot.  

What say you?

I think the skills to be successful in private industry are very different than the skills necessary to be successful to work for the government and both are very different than the skills necessary to be successful in the military.  And the skills necessary to be successful in politics are generally different than those to be successful in the first three areas discussed.

Yes, there are general skills such as charisma that will be helpful in almost any organization.  But charisma alone generally isn't enough.  The secondary skills are what propel a person over the top and again, the secondary skills to be successful to work for the government are very different than what makes a person succeed in private industry for example.

You're a successful business owner.  What propels one to success in business?

[milee]

Jul 31, 2016 18:41:47 GMT -5 Phoenix84 said:

Jul 31, 2016 13:15:55 GMT -5 milee said:

I think the skills to be successful in private industry are very different than the skills necessary to be successful to work for the government and both are very different than the skills necessary to be successful in the military.  And the skills necessary to be successful in politics are generally different than those to be successful in the first three areas discussed.

Yes, there are general skills such as charisma that will be helpful in almost any organization.  But charisma alone generally isn't enough.  The secondary skills are what propel a person over the top and again, the secondary skills to be successful to work for the government are very different than what makes a person succeed in private industry for example.

You're a successful business owner.  What propels one to success in business?

Depends on the business and industry.  But for me it was grit, willingness to delay gratification, ability to identify unique opportunities, knowledge of how to solve complex problems and being realistic about what I didn't know or wasn't good at.  It was also being willing to work huge hours for many years, often at very unpleasant tasks.

Very few of those things would translate into success in politics or in government organizations.

[8 Bit WWBG]

...:::"From what I've seen from my interactions with such people, they aren't necessarily smarter than me or most of the other people I work or interact with.":::...

Up front caveat that success means different things to different people.  As a money board, we tend to skew towards financial success.  There are those who consider themselves successful from the impact they have on others lives.

If we are talking about those slick polished C suite types, I think the most successful people are those who are excellent networkers, and who manage upwards very well.  These people tend to focus on very flashy "short term" wins to build their brand and resume, then work that network to get out of dodge before the quicksand they built their name on sucks them down.  Also remember, some people are promoted to get them out of the way.

Of course a good work ethic, some smarts, and so forth gets you to a certain level.  But very few people seem to ascend to those upper echelons on those traits alone.

[Tiny]

Like, for example, what qualities does someone need to have in order to be a senior executive at a large company, or the president of a University, or flag officer in the military, or a senior executive in a government agency.

I don't think anyone has mentioned that it's important to surround yourself with qualified people (the people you are leading - need to be good fits for their jobs.)

Generally, a good leader isn't all about themselves... they aren't the 'solution' or the "one" - it's the people they lead who get them where they want to be. Well, ok, a leader IS all about themselves (they WANT to be in charge/succeed/be the ONE!) but they need to know how to either choose the 'best' people to be on their 'team' and then they need to know how to let their people be the 'best' they can be. Alternatively, if they aren't handpicking their team... they need to know how to get the 'best' out of their team even when they maybe don't like everyone they are working with.

It usually does come down to "who you know and what you know". You have to work at maneuvering yourself into situations/places to expose yourself to the opportunities to move up (or be successful).


In the olden days the work metaphor of choice was "sports team" - with the idea that one person dictated what everyone else did - you did exactly what you were told to do to make the boss look good - I'm sure that still works for some types of jobs. But, I think some 'work' is more 'variable' - you need your "team' to be able to think on their feet while keeping the Big Picture goal always in mind. In that later case, as a manager you rely on your people to help you succeed. You can't do their jobs, you don't have their knowledge. You need to be the person who keeps them all heading towards the Big Picture and you have to trust them to do their jobs.


ADDed:  of  course, in a Dilbert kind of world - having the right 'look' and being able to spout the right 'jargon' and being in the right 'circle of people' sometimes seems to be the only thing that gets you to senior levels.