At the time of this episode, we're a little more than halfway through the current year. Most companies have an annual goal setting process and it's a good time to check in on your progress towards those goals. Waiting until the end of the year to review your progress doesn't give you enough time to react and adjust to ensure success.

In Episode 47 - Annual Goal Setting (https://www.managingacareer.com/47), I go through several frameworks you can use to help define your goals. If you followed the guidelines I provided in that episode, you should have a series of goals that align with the corporate strategies but still provide opportunities for growth and advancement of your career. Each goal should consist of some sort of long-term objective and a list of supporting activities that will help you achieve the objective.

As part of a mid-year evaluation, you should review each of the supporting activities and update the status of them. How many of those activities have you completed? How many have had significant progress? Of the ones that haven't been started, what is preventing your progress?

One aspect of the IDP that I encourage is the section that documents your Successes -- see Episode 39 for more details on this part of the IDP (https://www.managingacareer.com/39). With this review of your progress against your goals, you have an opportunity to boost your motivation by acknowledging the success you have had so far this year and also to spur action knowing that there is still time to achieve everything that you set out to achieve for the year.

Now that you know where you stand with respect to your goals, consider whether they are all still valid. Companies will adjust their goals based on any events going on in the wider market. The priorities of your team may have shifted. Even your personal roadmap may have changed based on things you have learned. If any of these factors apply, use this opportunity to update your goals to align with these new conditions. Even if the overall goal is still valid, it is also an opportunity to redefine the supporting activities to match your current work assignments.

For any goals that you are off track or are blocked by something beyond your control, have a conversation with your leader. How can the two of you work together to get things back on track? Is it a matter of missing resources or aligning your assignments with the activities that support the goal?

Your annual goals should align with both your company and personal objectives, so this midyear review should include progress on your Individual Development Plan (https://www.managingacareer.com/36) as well. Be sure to update your Action Plan (https://www.managingacareer.com/39) but review whether you need to adjust your Roadmap (https://www.managingacareer.com/37) based on how your year has progressed so far.

As I covered in Episode 51 - Success or Failure (https://www.managingacareer.com/51), a large component of success is taking action. There is still plenty of time left in the year to successfully complete your goals, but this review will show you where you need to focus your attention and take action in order to complete your goals.

My goal for this podcast is to continue to grow the audience in order to help as many people as I can advance their careers. To reach this goal, I would appreciate it if you would share this episode with your friends and coworkers. Send them to ManagingACareer.com/follow (https://www.managingacareer.com/follow) which will give them links to everywhere that this podcast can be found.

Let's talk about credit. I'm not talking about the financial mechanisms by which you borrow money from a bank using plastic card. I'm talking about the type of credit involved when someone receives recognition for work performed.

If we consider our relationship to credit: we can TAKE credit; we can GIVE credit; we can STEAL credit; and we can GIVE AWAY credit. In today's episode, I'm going to talk about each of these different modes and how they can impact your career advancement.

Taking credit. When we perform a task, especially if we do it well, we should be proud and take credit for our work by sharing that information with others; especially with our leaders. Keep a "success diary" of some sort so that you track the things that you do that deserve credit. Whether small or large, track everything. Successes with a more localized impact can still be shared within your project team, but successes with a more wide-spread impact should be shared to higher levels of the organization. Be clear in what was accomplished and your role with bringing it to fruition; just be careful that you don't come across as too braggadocious and share your successes with a level of humility. By making this a regular occurrence, it keeps your leaders aware of the contributions you make which will help them consider you when new opportunities become available.

Giving credit. If others were involved in the success, we move to the next mode, giving credit. If you are keeping a success diary, include documenting the roles other played in making your activities successful. When you share YOUR success whether in meetings or emails, mention the others, too. Most work is done as part of a team and including them in your successes will lead others to reciprocate providing YOU additional recognition with your leaders.

Another aspect of giving credit is when the work of others provides a positive impact to you. Call out the work of others by leveraging any appreciation tools provided by your company. By recognizing the work of others, you'll strengthen your relationships and bring others to WANT to work with you.

If you are a leader of a team, pay special attention to Episode 008 - The Five Recognition Languages. Everyone on your team has a different way that they feel appreciated, so be sure to align giving credit with the form that they prefer. This will ensure that they feel valued and increase the impact of the recognition.

Stealing credit. The opposite of giving credit is stealing credit. Whether intentionally or unintentionally, if you take credit without including others who contributed to the effort, you are stealing credit that they deserve. Another form of stealing credit is if credit is given to the wrong person. Where giving credit can build up a team, no matter how the credit is stolen, it can cause a rift within the team and undermines your credibility.

Giving away credit. The last form of relationship that we have with credit for work performed is when we give away credit. If you allow someone to steal your credit or you don't speak up when credit for your work is stolen or misappropriated, you are giving away credit. If you give away your credit by allowing it to be stolen, you run the risk that person gets opportunities ahead of you.

There may be instances where you might wish to give away credit. An example would be when you have built up significant goodwill but someone else involved in the work has been underappreciated, you may wish to give away your credit to the underappreciated person. In instances like this, you can strengthen your relationship with them. And as I covered in Episode 029 - Building a Network, a strong network is one of the most valuable tools for career advancement.

Earlier in the episode, I mentioned keeping a success diary. If you would like a free template you can use to track YOUR successes, reach out to me via the contact form at the ManagingACareer.com website. I would be happy to send you one.

I firmly believe that you have to own your career. If you rely on someone else to drive it, it will likely not go in the direction that you want -- if it actually goes anywhere at all. In each episode of this podcast, I cover a topic that makes you think about your career, but taking action is still up to you. Sometimes, we find ourselves procrastinating even when we know we should be acting.

This week, I want to cover several reasons why you may be procrastinating and how to get past them. We know what we SHOULD do, but struggle to find the motivation to do it. So, why do we procrastinate?

The first reason may be the fear of the unknown and the comfort of the known. We know what it's like where we are. It may be "just fine" to continue in our current role. If you've reached a level where you have a fair number of responsibilities and your pay allows you a level of comfort, maintaining the status quo may be more important to you than the risk of what might come next.

The strategy here is to find ways to reduce the risk and get excited about the future. Find someone within the company that has a role similar to your next role that will serve as your mentor. Set up regular time with them to talk about what their day to day activities look like. Ask them what they find fulfilling about the additional responsibilities of that role. Use their insights to identify the areas you are least comfortable with and find opportunities to strengthen them through training or assignments.

The next reason that we procrastinate is not having a clear goal of what actually IS next. I'm a big fan of the Individual Development Plan. The primary reason that I like the IDP is that it provides a systematic approach to help you clarify what your next steps should be. For a refresher on the IDP and how you can use it as a tool for career planning, go back to Episodes 036 through 040 and then reach out via the contact form at ManagingACareer.com to request your free IDP template. Once you have completed your IDP using my template, you will have identified your next role and created an action plan to get you there. This clarity will allow you to break past this source of procrastination.

Another reason that we might procrastinate taking action on our career is being overwhelmed by everything that needs to be done. You may be excited about what is next and have formulated an action plan in your IDP, but if there is too much to do, you may not know how to get started. Pair that with a fear of failure or a desire for perfection and you may feel completely paralyzed when it comes to getting started.

If you find yourself overwhelmed with everything that you need to do, take a step back and find the smallest, easiest task. Success breeds success. A small win provides momentum to the next win. Once you've gained confidence with small, easy steps, you'll be ready to take on the bigger, more important steps. In Episode 051 - Success or Failure, I talk about how taking action can be inspiring and this snowball effect can jump start your career progression.

If you are unable to push past your source of procrastination, it can lead to career stagnation. This can lead to a negative perception about having a lack of ambition. You might also face increased stress as you miss out on promotions and opportunities. You may even lose confidence in yourself and your ability to grow. Just like success breeds success, lack of success can lead to further delays.

One strategy, no matter what is driving your procrastination is to have someone on your side -- your leaders, your mentors, or your coach. Someone that can help you clarify your path forward and provide the motivation you need to take action. If you are interested in career coaching, it is a service I offer. Reach out to me via the contact form on the ManagingACareer.com website and I will set up an introductory session where we can determine if we are a good fit. If we are, we can arrange regular coaching to help you break past your source of procrastination and put your career on the fast track to advancement.

The goal of most people in the corporate world is to get promoted. Along with that promotion is usually personal growth, more responsibility, and increased pay. But, what happens if you find yourself promoted too soon?

There could be many reasons that you receive a promotion. Someone more senior could have left -- either the team or the company. You could have also pushed for it with your leaders and everything aligned for them to promote you. You may have even received a promotion that you weren't expecting.

When you receive a promotion when you are ready for it, it can be a great experience. But, when you are promoted early, it can lead to possible complications. Check out Episode 26 - Should You Be Promoted for insights into whether you are ready for a promotion or not.

The first complication is not having the necessary skills to perform the new role. Often promotions build on the skills you've already been using but there are additional new skills that you will need to develop. If you are promoted early, you may not have had the time to build those new skills. The more advanced your position, the more you are expected to just "figure it out". As soon as you are notified of your promotion, you should begin working on those skills in whatever form of learning works for you best.

Finding training courses for the more technical skills should be fairly straightforward. When it comes to the soft skills, it may be time to reach out to your mentors or your network to find someone who can provide the insights you need to be successful.

Another complication could be strife within your team. If there is someone else on your team that was angling for the same promotion, they may be resentful if you receive a promotion over them. This may make working with them difficult, especially if you now have a position of authority over them. If you foresee this as being problematic, you will need to work to build -- or rebuild -- that relationship.

If this leadership position is a new type of role for you, you may not be well positioned to navigate these types of relationship problems. Lean on your leader and your human resources department for insights into how to best smooth this rocky situation.

If you feel undeserving of the promotion, you may have a sense of Imposter Syndrome. This complication can completely undermine your ability to be successful in your new role and possibly even future roles. Imposter Syndrome as a topic is very large and I should probably do a future episode on the subject, but the number one way to combat it is to build your confidence.

You probably just said, "That's easier said than done". Confidence comes from skill and experience and support. I've already covered how to build the skills required of your new role. And your mentors, network, leaders, and HR should offer the support you need. The only remaining component is experience and the only way to gain that is to put yourself out there. Go back and review Episode 051 - Success or Failure that talks about how taking action and building on small successes can lead to much greater success. This success will build your confidence and dispel the feeling of Imposter Syndrome.

The final complication is more of a factor of the environment that we currently face. There are many companies that are looking for ways to cut costs or increase profits and one avenue that they pursue to achieve that goal is to reduce their workforce through some sort of layoff. Being promoted early could put you at higher risk of being selected for any pending layoff. With an early promotion, you will be one of the lower performers at your new level until you have addressed the other potential complications. Lower performance combined with higher pay is usually the attributes that lead to selection.

There is no easy solution to this complication because it is more of a factor of the situation. The best you can do is to work quickly to bring your level of performance up to the standards of the role.

If you've listened to most of the other episodes of this podcast, I talk about different things you can focus on that will make you more promotable. You should be prepared with the tools you need so that any promotion does not include any of the above complications.

If you want to be sure to get new episodes when they are released, go to https://ManagingACareer.com/follow to find all of my social media links.