My apologies for stealing a bit of phrasing from Dr. Suess. Here is the point: Building your reputation as a SME (Subject Matter Expert) is one of the most effective strategies you could use to foster long-term career growth.

If you are a thought leader on a subject, you need to be creating instances where you can showcase your depth of strategy to others in your industry. Maybe it is a speech or board role at an association, a blog, whitepaper, newsletter article, or PowerPoint/Keynote presentation stored in your LinkedIn profile. Concentrate on 1-2 methods where you will be most comfortable and effective demonstrating a depth of understanding not possible in a resume or networking encounter over a beer and burger.

This is not just about job hunting. This is about entrenching knowledge of your credentials in the community over your long-term career. One of my Director-level coaching clients makes a point of writing a new article for a trade magazine every 6 months. She has received scores of phone calls from CEOs asking to meet her as a result of those articles. She has, with about 20 hours of writing, established herself as a high potential and in the top 10-15% of folks in sustainable energy nationwide.

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I have noticed that among the women execs I know there are “feminine” traits that sometimes get in the way of success in the corporate world. I value that women and men frequently process information and decision-making differently. The business world (and society) will benefit when 50% (or more) of the executives in the C-Suite and on the Board are female. The best answer for a company will always result from looking at a situation from many diverse perspectives.

However, if I look at the collection of women I know in executive roles, many of them have put up their own roadblocks to rising up the ranks even more quickly by expecting a higher standard of emotional synchronization in the office than most men require or know how to interact with. Several of these women have passed on $200+K jobs because the cultural fit wasn’t perfect, when a man would have taken on the same business challenge not caring if he was a very different style from the other people around. No culture is perfect. Focus on the question: “Can I make a this business better?”

It is true that a strong corporate woman is frequently called a “bitch” when a man using the same style might have been praised. Nevertheless, top management will promote the person who can “separate the wheat from the chaff“ and make the right business decision for the situation. Consideration of culture and feelings may be a luxury not affordable here.

Will you be called a bitch more often? Maybe. Probably! Once you have arrived in the C-Suite you won’t care so much.

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Consider that if you explain the value proposition of your ideas and strategies well enough, demonstrating the “obvious desirability” of strategies you understand well, you may be able to skip a title or two and move to a much more strategic role regardless of how much money you made last year or what your title was. I would stop thinking of yourself as having to progress through time and grade stages others are subject to and talk your ideas without stating last year’s pay level. Assess the value of your strategies on the open market. You may be able to increase responsibility dramatically with a hiring manager who has great need for your wisdom. Target the hiring managers and companies who have the greatest need for your expertise.

Think more like a consultant and less like an inside resource who is humble to more senior people who may know less about the particular startegy.

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Most importantly, top executives can not only perform more effectively than many of their peers, but they can communicate their ideas and impact to the rest of the organization and industry. The CEO needs to be able to influence the world outside of the company such as VCs (Venture Capitalists), Wall Street stock analysts, and the industry at large. Most competencies of a successful CEO are about soft skills. The CEO must be able to advocate a vision and future success. Promote the potential of a company not yet delivering that service/product. Demonstrate presence, gravitas, and panache.

Regardless of how far down the path to CEO you are now, getting ahead in the work world is increasingly about soft skills and demonstrating your ability to lead ideas, influence others, and be a rainmaker. Are you building those skills? Are you having the conversation with your communities to demonstrate your prowess in these areas? Is your story as convincing as it could be?

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Someone usually gets promoted to Sales Manager based on his/her track record as a solo Account Executive rather than on his/her potential as a leader and sales coach. Most often the AE received limited training, but not enough to explain the good sales numbers. Ranking is more the result of personality (relationship building) and persistence. When that AE is promoted to the supervise others, the team’s numbers are most heavily dependent on the innate skills that came with the team.

An exceptional Sales Manager can identify and nurture the competencies that are needed for every team member’s success. The Manager can articulate the processes and benchmarks required to win most sales opportunities regardless of customer issues. Like an effective Product Manager, a top Sales Manager will probe more deeply into root causes and unarticulated problems with team members and customers than other Managers. Delivering a better ROI (return on investment) for the entire team is not an accident, it is part of that Manager’s toolkit. He can predict and deliver the team’s revenue within a very small percentage.

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