How can you gain autonomy and decision-making power to advance your career?

One can gain autonomy and decision-making power to advance in a career by knowing what the target population or people under you want and allowing them to make their decisions by constantly supporting them and training them. Sometimes, the target population doesn’t know what they want, and it's your duty to make them realize their actual needs. It can be only achieved through constant training and respecting each other’s needs and requirements.

It may be helpful to consider the rules and expectations that are placed on your work. Are the rules designed to give you a fence, or border to work in? Where you have clear lines that you cannot cross and criteria you have to meet. (Such as, do not spend more the X, meet the deadlines of Y, or only use Z resources.) If so, does this give you the autonomy, independence, and decision-making power to use your professional judgment? Clarifying the box that you have to work in, and the autonomy you have within it can be an empowering process, for both you and your manager. Plus, those actions of defining that box are a great exercise to ensure that you are both on the same page and prove you are ready for less oversight.

To gain autonomy and decision-making power in your career, it's essential to focus on continuous professional development, demonstrating expertise in your field, and taking the initiative to contribute innovative solutions. Building strong relationships, seeking mentorship, and staying proactive in your responsibilities can also demonstrate your capabilities, leading to increased trust and autonomy within the organization. Additionally, effective communication and a proactive approach in problem-solving can showcase your leadership skills, paving the way for career advancement and increased decision-making responsibilities.

?? Unlocking Career Advancement: The Power of Autonomy In today's work landscape, career advancement hinges on seizing opportunities and impactful decisions. To gain autonomy: Mastery: Elevate your expertise. Initiative: Lead and volunteer. Networking: Connect with mentors. Learning: Stay updated. Communication: Sharpen your skills. Problem-Solving: Be a solution provider. Trust: Build consistency and reliability. Empower yourself to make decisions and own your career path. Autonomy and career growth go hand in hand. ?? #CareerAdvancement #Autonomy #DecisionMaking #ProfessionalGrowth #CareerDevelopment

For me ,I would say there are steps to help one advance one's career that will also help increase one's autonomy and decision-making authority. Self-Development. Invest in continuous learning and skill development. The more knowledgeable and competent you are in your field, the more confident one will be in making decisions. Be proactive and take the initiative to solve problems and implement solutions. Show your willingness to go the extra mile. Have a clear vision of where you want to go. Build a strong professional network. Connect with colleagues, mentors, and influencers who can provide guidance and support. These are few and I know there are lots out there that I am not able to mention due to number of words contraint.

A certain level of autonomy is essential in new startups or where you have been deputed to optimise the existing working of a setup. This will give you ownership of your decisions and at the same time gives you more responsibility.

It's important to have the full picture in mind when asking for more autonomy, being clear and having a planned workflow for what you are proposing.

Listen well. Synthesize and share what you heard. Ask thoughtful questions that expand the conversation. Follow up and be reliable. We can be is such a hurry to prove our worth, but when someone is looking to build credibility, the first step is LISTENING. Whether it’s building credibility with a client, community, or a potential employer, you need to understand what matters most of THEM first. And then use their language so that they can hear you and the value you offer. The more we struggle to prove, the more we can get lost. By listening first, you develop a north arrow to follow for success.

Another way to build credibility is through continuous learning and skill enhancement in areas where improvement is possible. It helps to cultivate confidence and strengthens our voice. Equally important is seizing opportunities as they arise, showcasing proactive commitment to contributing and assuming responsibility for projects and organizational objectives.

A great strategy for expanding your network is to look at it as Relationship Management. Creating a network of people who know your name is helpful, but creating a meaningful relationship and rapport with them is how you can actually leverage the network's benefits. Two important steps to keep in mind are what I call the "2 Follows". Following Through and Following Up. If you want to build more autonomy and influence to make your decisions, then showing effort and reliability by Following Through on what you say you will do is vital. Autonomy comes from trust, trust comes from reliability. Following Up is important to show your network that you are not only looking for a shallow engagement. That the are worth staying connected to.

When I am seeking new challenges that can help stretch me beyond my comfort zone at work, I go back to - Ikigai - the Japanese model for our "reason for being": 1. What you love? 2. What the world needs? 3. What you can be paid for? 4. What are you good at? As much as these can be applied to finding your reason for being, they are a great way to search for new opportunities for impact at your organization - what aspects of your job do you like or want to grow into, what does your organization or client need, what do you see a business case for, and why are you the person to deliver it? If you can answer these, you will be well on your way to seeking new challenges, successes, and worth at work!

Taking ownership: Be proactive and take the lead on projects or tasks. Volunteer for assignments that align with your goals and demonstrate your capabilities.

Measure what matters! Reviewing your progress is an essential step autonomy and decision-making power, and using the Objectives and Key Results (OKR+W) framework is a simple way to align with the objectives of your company organization, your clients, or stakeholders. - Objective: What do we want to achieve? - Key Results: How do we measure success? - Who: Who is doing the work? To the traditional OKR, I like to add W for *who* is doing the work. If it is you, your colleagues, or partner org - nothing impresses me like when people share the credit and lift other up.

Start with whats important to your business stakeholders,set your goals which can be measured.Most important thing is keep customer in center to see what has worked well for customers,if anything has worked for customers business will align. It is important to appreciate team and individuals who have been through journey.

Learn and show up for niche knoweledge...we need more people who can bring new approach from different areas. Bite always more and learn during the process

A few tips I would like to share 1. Displaying accountability at work. 2. Seeking information and new challenges and doing tasks which are out of the comfort zone. This helps boost the confidence levels to gain autonomy . 3. Developing resilient mindset. While seeking new challenges or handling complex tasks there is a probability of failures . This affects the mindset and could stop the individual from taking new challenges . Resilience helps a person to Thrive through the difficult situations and learn from them. 4. The #leaders have a bigger responsibility to create a culture of the organisation which encourages autonomy and decision making at every level depending on the KRA's. This gives a psychological Safety to the employees .

?Done.“ There is a direct correlation between how many times you say word ?done“ and how much autonomy (and career advancement) you receive. Very simple. Yet , very powerful.

For me, assertive communication and active listening are essential when asking to take on more responsibility. Leadership skills would also need to be worked on as strategic leardership is key to decision-making as it is being goal oriented. Being able to see the bigger picture, thinking outside the box and a problem solving attitude are also to be demonstrated.