The career move no one talks about—but every leader notices
Lorraine K. Lee
Pre-order Unforgettable Presence (#1 Amazon bestseller) | Helping high-potential leaders go from overlooked to unforgettable | Corporate Keynote Speaker | Instructor at LinkedIn Learning, Stanford | Prev. LinkedIn, Prezi
Sponsored by Robert Half
?? Calling all leaders:?
I’m excited to moderate a panel with Robert Half on March 20th, where we’ll discuss timely topics including how to identify and support high-potential employees, best practices to keep priorities on track, and how companies can prepare for a rapidly evolving hiring landscape. Join us live—register here!
Early in my career, I thought being a great employee meant saying yes to everything and executing flawlessly. I assumed that if I worked hard enough, my efforts would naturally be recognized. But I quickly realized that doing great work was just the baseline expectation. If I wanted to truly stand out, I had to learn how to manage up.
Managing up isn’t about being a people pleaser or simply making your boss happy. It’s about understanding your manager’s priorities, challenges, and communication style—then aligning your work in a way that makes their job easier while positioning yourself as a trusted, strategic partner.?
?? Tip of the Day
Next time you have a 1:1 with your manager, try asking them a few of these questions:
-What are your top 3-5 priorities, and which is the most important?
-What do you view as success in your role?
-What is the #1 challenge that’s getting in the way of you reaching your goals?
What this does for you:
? Shows you are thinking beyond your day-to-day work
? Builds trust which can lead to higher productivity and better results
? Creates a better working relationship with your boss
Remember: Being a good employee means doing good work. Being a great employee means doing great work and thinking strategically about how you can build strong relationships and better understand the goals and challenges of your manager and the larger organization.
I share more about managing up in Chapter 9 of my book, Unforgettable Presence: Get Seen, Gain Influence, and Catapult Your Career (launching April 22nd!).
Pre-order your copy and get $500+ worth of bonuses, including exclusive VIP webinars where I teach my best career-accelerating strategies live. You don’t want to miss out!
?Lorraine’s Latest
I co-hosted the official LinkedIn Creators Meet-Up at SXSW this week! I teamed up with some great sponsors and had a little fun snapping pics of my book all over Austin.
??A Sneak-Peek at Unforgettable Presence
Charisma isn’t about being the loudest person in the room—it’s about mastering the balance between competence and warmth. I had the pleasure of interviewing Vanessa Van Edwards , bestselling author and founder of Science of People, for my book and she shared fascinating insights on how subtle shifts in body language, visibility, and presence can completely change the way others perceive you. The best part? You don’t have to be extroverted to be charismatic. ??Read her tips about how to apply this to your own career.
If you pre-ordered Unforgettable Presence, mark your calendars for our next VIP webinar: Build Your Executive Presence: A leader’s guide to building your career brand at work on March 26th at 11:30am PT!
If you haven’t pre-ordered yet, there’s still time! Get $500+ worth of pre-order bonuses including exclusive access to live webinars where I’ll teach you how to catapult your career in real-time!
Thanks for reading!
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Senior Program Manager @ Amazon Web Services (AWS) | Environmental Science to Enterprise Tech | I Build Scalable Cloud & Infrastructure Solutions that Drive Business Growth
2 天前Managing up (and across) is one of the most important things you can do for your career, Lorraine. It positions you as a leader in your space, allows you to (usually) dictate your day-to-day work, and helps build a reputation for being a top performer. I found the 'HBR Guide to Managing Up and Across' from Harvard Business Review early in my career. Needless to say it changed the way I show up to work ??
Career Coach - I help early & mid-career corporate professionals brand & position themselves to land their ideal job or promotion ASAP | ex. Coca-Cola?, H. J. Heinz? | Connect to book Free 45 min Career Planning session
3 天前Lorraine K. Lee great on point advice! It's also a great thing to do beyond your manager in trying to build advocates in your network.
The Solid Foundation of any Organization is its People!
4 天前Managing up is huge. There's an art to doing it where the superior doesn't even know that's what's being done, but too much managing up is typically a red flag that it's time to move on from that firm.
Health Equity| Environmental Justice | Healthcare Executive I Attorney I | Executive Advisor I Coach to Legal Talent I Board Member I Speaker
4 天前As always Lorraine K. Lee - great advice and content provided in an easily accessible format!
International Sales Marketing Director@ Royal International Group | DBA in Marketing / PMP Middle East Region KSA ,UAE ,Oman& North America *Linkedin TopVoice *+25K followers *+3M Positive impressions Reviews
4 天前Sounds really insightful, Lorraine K.