Are You as Valuable as You Think You Are?

Haaaappy Friday,

Some people are more valuable to their organization than they realize. If they would only ask, they’d almost certainly get promoted sooner and earn more. Not speculation, I’ve been their employer.

These super-valuable people have four strong characteristics that simultaneously earn immense respect and appreciation but also act as a hindrance to their career advancement and compensation: 1) humility, 2) loyalty, 3) faith in leaders, and 4) focus on work over career.

I'm going to share the employer’s perspective along with a respectful, non-confrontational, but highly effective approach to accelerating career advancement and compensation. But before I do, it's important for you to honestly assess your own work and self-perception, just in case you've got it wrong...

Are You As Valuable As You Think You Are?

The problem is an awful lot of people dramatically overestimate their value. And when they do, they expose how little they understand about their organization and what actually constitutes value. It's hard to recover from that.

Read through these five common contributors to overestimation and ask yourself if any might have added to the perception of your value.

Why people overestimate their value:

1.     Ego Protection

·       People hate admitting they're just okay at their job

·       It feels better to believe you're irreplaceable

·       Reality: Your self-worth isn't the same as your actual workplace contribution

2.     Broken Feedback Systems

·       Leaders avoid tough conversations

·       Performance reviews are usually watered-down niceness

·       Reality: Nobody ever tells you how little impact you're making

3.     Social Media and Career Hype Culture

·       Instagram and LinkedIn create fake achievement narratives

·       Everyone looks like they're crushing it online

·       Reality: Most people are doing basic, average work

4.     Participation Trophy Mentality (Everyone's a Winner Baby)

·       Modern workplace culture often celebrates effort over results

·       Everyone gets praised just for participating/existing

·       Reality: There’s little or no accountability for mediocre performance

5.     Misunderstanding of "Value"

·       Showing up ≠ organizational impact

·       Can you quantify EXACTLY how you make the company money?

·     Reality: Busy work is not the same as meaningful work

Punchline: You want to be on solid ground if you're going to ask for a raise, so be sure your perception of your value hasn't been artificially inflated. Know how to quantify your impact in the context of the organization and what propels it.

Next week, a plan to accelerate compensation and advancement for the most humble, faithful, loyal, dedicated, and deserving.

Have a great weekend!

Dave

Feedback and blowback are always welcome: dave@goodnewsfriday.com

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