Episode Details

Throughout our careers, we observe others around us getting ahead by various means. Some people do so by putting other people down in order to make themselves look better whereas others do so by lifting those around them up. You may have even used these techniques yourself. The secret? Both approaches can work, but only one is sustainable for the long term. Let's take a look at the longer term impact of each.

Whether intentionally or not, some people will try to advance their careers by pushing those around them down. These people will steal credit from other. They will undermine the success of those around them. And they will secretly work to cause a rift in the team in order to distract others from their actions.

If the organization is driven by visibility, someone trying to look superior will take credit for the work that their team does or reframe what was done in such a way that they steal credit for things that they had minimal impact on.

If they are not confident in the quality of their work, they may spread gossip in order to cause stronger team members to be viewed as incompetent or even to be excluded from key efforts. Beyond rumors, they may "forget" to include them in important decisions or purposefully withhold or delay support in order for their targets to struggle or fail.

People who operate in this mode are operating from a position of fear -- fear for their job, fear for being found to be "less than", or just fear that there are limited opportunities for success and that they will be left behind.

Sadly, this can be an effective strategy……at least in the short term. If someone can implement their plan before others catch on, they can achieve the promotion they desire. But, eventually that catches up to them. Their team will stop supporting them and their leaders will eventually see the pattern. That early success eventually stalls out.

If you find yourself to be a target of someone who is trying to get ahead by pushing you down, how should you react?

Start by proactively reporting your status to your leaders. If the person putting you down IS your leader, then report your status to project sponsors and your skip level leader. Review Episode 044 (https://www.managingacareer.com/44) for more information on reporting status.

Next, build relationships with those that will ultimately be deciding who advances. If you build a relationship with your skip level leader as well as cross-functional teams, it will be harder for someone to misrepresent your work because they will have first-hand knowledge of what you bring to the team. Additionally, grow your network as covered in Episode 029 (