Contribute and Deliver to Progress

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In the Lead with Giants community on Google+, Dan Forbes posted an interview he gave recently:

I had the privilege of being interviewed by Dr. Antoine D. Moss of Black Enterprise. The interview focused on how young aspiring leaders can move into Leadership positions and make a difference. 

Here's the result: Wake Up The Boss in You.

Moss asked Forbes about how young people can get promoted into leadership roles.

Start leading now. Start by leading yourself. Determine where the gaps are in your leadership skill-set and work on closing those gaps. Become the best person you can be and you will begin to attract the attention of others. When ANY leadership role is offered to you, take it; and give it your best in an effort to prove to others that you can lead. Lastly, don’t focus on getting a promotion, focus on making a contribution and delivering results [emphasis added].

I commented:

Congratulations, Dan! 

I like your point about promotions in particular. I've consulted throughout the Middle East, for example, and many young people in major companies seek salary and grade increases and don't always have a firm grip on what it takes to advance. 

One young woman I worked with aimed to become CEO in five years. She was very talented, and I had data to support it. Problem was, her performance wasn't up to snuff and word about her in the department wasn't entirely positive. In our discussions, she was focused on career development, which was good, but clearly making a contribution and delivering results weren't quite on her radar.