30-Day Job Promotion, by Susan Britton Whitcomb

How much time did you invest strategizing for your last job promotion?  If you're like most people, you probably figure (a) your work speaks for itself and (b) you're the best candidate for the job.  That's not much of a strategy, and while it still might lead to a promotion, a better approach would be to use Susan Britton Whitcomb's 30-Day Job Promotion as a planning tool.

Be forewarned that you'll need to do a good deal of work to get the most out of this book.  Then again, if you want to get that promotion, isn't it worth the effort to use a tool like this to lay out your plans?  If nothing else it shows the promoting manager just how enthusiastic and committed you are to the new role.

One of my favorite elements in this book is a section called "The 10 Characteristics of Promotable People."  Are you convinced you're truly promotable?  If so, check yourself against this list and see how well you score.  More importantly, learn your weaknesses and invest the time and energy required to become stronger across all 10 areas.

Here are some of the other headings and sections in this book that make it worth every penny: Mistakes to Avoid, How to Respond to a Posted Opening, 15 Common Roadblocks (to a promotion) and an entire chapter on Salary Negotiations.  The last 30 pages of the book consist of real life success stories.  Even though your situation is probably quite different from all the ones discussed, you'll find plenty of great lessons to be learned in this section.

Can you really get promoted in 30 days?  Your mileage will vary, of course, but no matter what time frame you're working with, 30-Day Job Promotion is like having a career counselor right there by your side.

Comments

[Susan Britton Whitcomb]

Thanks, Joe, for the insightful review. You pose an excellent question on whether one can get promoted in 30 days. Yes, mileage will vary, but one can definitely turn the tide in just 30 days and take action to be perceived as the obvious choice when opportunity presents itself. Here's to all who are committed to creating their future!
Susan Britton Whitcomb

[Day Jobs]

Very good post, and this sounds like a good book for any job seeker. I'm going to check it out as someone who is interested in job promoting myself. One thing I do notice is that good information presented in books like these can cross over to other areas of our lives, not just for jobs. What other elements of our lives does promotion come into play that you can think of?

Thanks,
Larry
Day Job Killer

[Tristan]

I wish I would've come across your review of this book 30 days ago, Joe: my annual performance review happens in, oh, about 1 hour! Ah well; I guess the review information I receive today and the info from this book can help me prepare for next year's review :)

Great site, by the way! Nice and clean, with tons of useful content. That balance is often difficult to manage.