2 Rules To Keep In Mind When Seeking To Rank Up In Your Office

Dealing with insecure leaders/bosses

Getting promoted is in the hands of your boss, and it’s a matter you have to earn, not get.

Throughout history, we can see kings bailing on their successors or punishing their workers, who were all trying so hard to court their attention and impress them.

The harder you work, the better you are, and the more you prove yourself worthy of a raise or a better position. But, as opposed to common beliefs, it’s not the only thing bosses check off their list.

We claim that our emotions and dignity have nothing to do with our decisions, but in many situations, we are wrong. We are human, and humans want to make decisions that feel good; not necessarily rational ones.

And your biggest mistake would be to assume your boss is not human.

The Anxious Leader

I’ll start by saying this: You never know what kind of person your boss is.

At first, people portray themselves as rational and flawless decision-makers, but as time goes by, they get more comfortable and their true self appears.

Investigate the small details and see the red flags that slip through your boss’s fake exterior.

Do they like attention? Are they threatened by others’ accomplishments? Do they constantly put good ideas down without a reasonable explanation? Do they think they’re the best at everything?

If chances are you answer yes to all of these, then you have to pay extra attention to how you deal with them. They’re dangerous, and without precautions, you’ll find yourself working harder and harder trying to prove yourself worthy, only to find yourself stagnant in the same place; neglected.

To reach the heights of power, you have to let the master shine, even when he/she doesn’t deserve it. Outshining him unleashes his insecurities and can make him resentful rather than grateful.

There are 2 rules to understand

The first rule is to captivate your talents when you come close to appearing better than your boss.

Leaders want to feel that their position is earned for their experience and talents, but when you show more experience and talent than them, you threaten their position and their ego which makes them dislike you.

Second, you need to stick to your current limits of power. There is no one more limitless in power than your boss, so when you act without permission or outside of your given boundaries you’ll end up stirring negative emotions towards you.

No one dares to touch the freedom of which only the leaders possess.

1. Captivate Your Greatness

You’ve worked hard to reach your current level of experience, and you deserve to flaunt what you have. But it’s better to move slowly and with caution than to recklessly play with what you have no control over.

Your main role is to fill the duties given to you, so focus on doing that. Prove you can fill the voids you’re responsible for and don’t overdo it.

Talk with your boss before doing anything extra, and make his decision seem like the wisest one, even if you believe it’s not. Ask for his opinion about it and make sure to limit the word “but”.

If you truly are wiser and more talented, then a good idea will most likely get approved. And when it does, glorify your boss by giving him the credit for his wise approval, and he’ll love you for it.

Captivate your greatness and hand it to the leader, always.

And the good thing is credit doesn’t disappear or transition from one person to another. So don’t worry about being neglected or underappreciated.

The leader may feel good and proud, but in the end, he/she won’t forget who got the idea in the first place, the one who truly deserves recognition.

This makes them love you for giving your glory to them, and it will make them need you even more, for you are the one shining their bright light in front of others.

“It is a deadly but common misperception to believe that by displaying and vaunting your gifts and talents, you are winning the master’s affection. He may feign appreciation, but at his first opportunity he will replace you with someone less intelligent, less attractive, less threatening” — Robert Greene in “The 48 Rules of Power”

2. Stay Within The Boundaries

The premier artist of the tea ceremony in Japan (in the late 1500s), a man named Sen no Rikyu, was a favorite of Emperor Hideyoshi.

He was loved and respected in all of Japan, and the Emperor’s love gave him a huge boost in life given he was initially a peasant before he became a court favorite.

To everyone’s surprise, the Emperor sentenced Sen no Rikyu to death.

The reason was later discovered to be that Rikyu had placed a wooden statue of himself in the most important temple inside the palace gates, glorifying his image in the territory of the Emperor.

His acts led to threatening the Emperor’s authority and freedom around the palace and all of Japan as if he is of equal importance.

The lesson here is to stay within your limits and always remember who’s the boss. No matter how much he/she loves you, don’t drown in confidence as it’ll only lead you to foolishness and hatred.

Conclusion

As Robert Green claims, “those who attain high standing in life are like kings and queens: They want to feel secure in their positions, and superior to those around them in intelligence, wit, and charm.”

Focus on being the best employee you can be, and with keeping in mind who’s in charge and glorifying their image, you can reach great heights in your field.

Caution: Never overdo it, as it will become obvious and they might resent you for being suspicious. The key is to make small but powerful decisions in moments of need, not by doing so on every given opportunity.

This article is inspired by the 1st Law in “The 48 Laws of Power”, written by one of my favorite authors Robert Greene.