Gimme Some Sugar!

"Love sought is good, but given unsought is better."

---Shakespeare in Twelfth Night

When was the last time you were promoted, or even given a raise and it was a complete surprise? How about never!? The truth is, most Americans don't know what it's like to be given a raise or a promotion without having to scratch, kick, bite, scream and bleed for one. Why is it so uncommon for us to get 'a little love' without forcing the issue?

IF (and that's a BIG if) we are lucky enough to get a raise and/or a promotion, it usually is predetermined by one of these Top 6 caveats:

1. We worked like a dog to earn it (and even this is NO guarantee)
2. After we worked like a dog to earn it, we still had to fight like a junk-yard dog to obtain it
3. We threatened to quit
4. We had another legitimate job offer and used it as leverage
5. Someone with a higher rank quit and, in an emergency, we were plugged in to fill the gap
6. We got a raise by leaving the company and taking a new job somewhere else

Why, oh why, does it have to be this way 95% of the time? Is it a budgetary issue or a lack of money? Most often, this is NOT an issue. Is it due to the fact that you might have an ungrateful, unappreciative boss? Perhaps, but his is usually NOT the main issue either. That leaves only one factor.....POLITICS!

Yes, politics is the dirty culprit that 95% of the time, is the reason why you aren't gettin' any love! Maybe your boss doesn't like you. Maybe your boss's boss doesn't like you. Maybe someone is jealous of you and wants to make sure your boss and your boss's boss don't promote you. Here are some real-life examples of dirty politics getting in the way of promotions:

Darla was next in line to be the VP at a large corporation. She had worked diligently for nearly 15 years as the assistant VP and was one of the top performers in her field. She was very well respected by her colleagues, but her Achilles heel was that she had a cold personality. This is what ultimately came back to haunt her, because the president of the company didn't like her much.....he thought Darla was rather mean and unpleasant. So, when it came time to interview for the new VP spot, Darla didn't even make it to the final round! What a kick in the teeth for poor old Darla! The president, in the name of politics, put a stop to Darla's run. Credentials and credibility are no match for cruel politics. Darla didn't bounce back. She quit so she could stay home with her kids and never returned to the workforce.

Brian was another VP candidate who was a superstar with a large Midwestern international conglomerate. Like Darla from the prior example, Brian was a hard worker, well respected and was deemed by many as a 'sure thing' to become the next VP. Even though Brian gave 20 years to this company, and was one of the most knowledgeable people in the corporation, he was turned down for the VP position. The job was given to an 'outsider' with less experience. Why? During Brian's 20 years of service, he made a few enemies along the way. Two of them were ex-colleagues from HR, when they used to work together in that department. Recently, these 2 'enemies' had risen to the top and they had the president's ear. That was enough to keep Brian down and out. Brian eventually became VP, but it was with another company.

Nate had an interesting promotional record---he had been promoted 18 times in his life, and all 18 times, he had to fight politics in order to get those raises! He used all 6 of the points mentioned earlier, and in some cases, he used multiple combinations of the Top 6 caveats for a promotion. There was a time when it took him 18 months of persistent 'fighting' just to get a $10K raise. Another time, he had 3 external job offers, because one offer was not compelling enough---his boss actually made him go out and get 3 offers before he would believe that he was deserving of staying with his company and of obtaining a raise!!

The solution to all of this? Try not to make too many enemies on your way up the ladder. Also, try to work for a company and a department that has a career- pathing model in place. If you're working for a company that has a flat hierarchy and has no clear paths for promotion, no succession plans and does not usually promote from within, then run away as fast as you can because that culture isn't set up to give you what you need. Getting some love from your boss is hard enough as it is, so make sure the culture is established to give 'love unsought'!