You've just finished presenting your quarterly results to the leadership team—numbers are strong, your team is crushing it, and you've delivered every single project this year. As you're packing up, you overhear your manager discussing that Senior Director opening with the VP: "We need someone with more executive presence, someone who can really drive strategic initiatives at the organizational level." Your stomach drops.
You've been managing strategic initiatives for two years. You've built executive presence. But clearly, they don't see it. If you're nodding along right now, this episode reveals exactly why there's such a painful disconnect between your readiness and their perception—and how to close that gap.
What This Episode Is About:
Host Kele Belton dives deep into the frustrating disconnect between being promotion-ready and being seen as promotion-ready. Drawing on real client experiences and insider knowledge of how promotion decisions are actually made, this episode exposes the hidden evaluation criteria that determine who advances—and who remains stuck in middle management.
What You'll Learn:
- The 4 invisible criteria managers use to evaluate promotion readiness (beyond performance metrics)
- Why being excellent at your current job can actually trap you from advancing
- The Excellence Trap: How high-performing women get categorized as executors, not strategic leaders
- 3 crucial perception shifts that transform how you're viewed in your organization
- Real examples of how to reframe your accomplishments to demonstrate strategic leadership
- Why organizational thinking matters more than departmental success for senior roles
Perfect For:
- Women in middle management who are ready for senior leadership roles
- High performers feeling stuck despite strong results
- Leaders preparing for year-end performance reviews
- Anyone who's been passed over for a promotion and wants to understand why
About Your Host:
Kele Belton is a communication and leadership facilitator, coach, and consultant who specializes in helping women leaders develop confidence and impact through strategic communication and practical leadership frameworks.
Connect with Kele for more leadership insights:
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