Mastering the promotion without being overwhelmed – here’s how

The majority of managers are considering a job change

A promotion comes with a multitude of new challenges: How do you deal with your former colleagues, how can tasks be best distributed, how do you deal with the many responsibilities when faced with dilemmas… and what is your personal leadership style? New managers have to figure out all this and much more in their first weeks and months – maybe even years. In most cases this means stress and overtime. Accordingly, a Deloitte study of 2,100 managers from the USA, Great Britain, Canada and Australia found that the managers were more overwhelmed, lonelier and also suffered from depression more often than other employees. A full 73 percent of managers said they had been unable to switch off properly since being promoted. In keeping with this, another 70 percent said they were seriously considering quitting and wanted to move to a job that was better for their mental health.

Those who learn from stress and frustration have a good chance of success

These numbers speak for themselves – promotions are stressful. Patricia Naranjo, psychologist, career counselor and former senior human resources consultant, tells Business Insider: “Work stress and frustration are common problems, both on a personal and work-related level.” But: “It’s a learning phase. Frustration, like sadness, has a function: If we know how to use it, we can learn from it.” So it’s not impossible to thrive in a leadership role. When preparing for the new position, you should definitely think about possible scenarios and your own leadership style, so at least learn to swim before jumping into the deep end. In addition to coaching, strategies such as meeting-free days and tried and tested time management can help.

Have a say in the working conditions in negotiations

But good negotiations with employers should not be underestimated – especially since the pandemic has changed the demands on employees and the workplace: Deloitte data shows that companies are placing more and more importance on the mental health and general well-being of their employees. “Companies are spending more effort and resources to attract talent, and fewer and fewer people are willing to accept any conditions. So the employee is also in a position to demand a lot” and negotiate stress-reducing conditions, emphasizes Naranjo. But you shouldn’t rely on that alone. Instead, before promoting, it is important to think about whether the step is really the right thing: Do I have leadership qualities or can I learn them? If yes, how? Am I suitable for the position, what benefits would a promotion have? It is important not to just look at the salary increase and recognition – these aspects are not reason enough to take on so much additional stress.

Not all promotions are the same

“We often want to be promoted without really asking ourselves whether this is the path that is good for us. Such promotions can prove counterproductive if, for example, you do not have the necessary skills and competencies or are not really ready to take on the additional responsibility,” says Naranjo.

When considering promotion, you should also keep in mind that, like all other positions, management positions differ from one another. So if this promotion doesn’t suit you, there is always the opportunity to climb up the career ladder elsewhere.

Editorial team finanzen.net