CareerSteps Insights – September Edition

Introduction

September has been a month full of conversations about visibility, trust, and influence, three themes that repeatedly show up when I work with professionals on the cusp of leadership. Hard work is important, but it only gets you so far. To thrive as a manager, you need to learn how to communicate your value, build allies, and create an environment where your team feels safe to perform at its best.

In this month’s edition, you will find strategies to handle pressure, insights into the hidden map of influence in every organization, a client success story that proves visibility can change everything, and resources to keep you performing at your peak.

Expert Advice

When pressure builds, make your priorities visible

I often hear from professionals who feel buried under requests. Their project managers keep piling on work, and instead of pushing back, they stay silent. Over time, the stress becomes unbearable.

The truth is, most managers do not have a clear picture of everything you are juggling. They assume you can keep taking on more until you break. A practical way to shift the dynamic is by making your priorities visible.

Here is a tool I recommend: draw a simple priority matrix with four quadrants, urgent/important, urgent/not important, not urgent/important, not urgent/not important. Write your current tasks on sticky notes and place them in the grid. When a new request arrives, show your manager the matrix and ask them to place the new task where it belongs. Then, invite them to remove something else if space is tight.

This is not about being difficult, it is about turning invisible stress into a visible conversation. Instead of silently absorbing pressure, you are helping your manager make conscious trade-offs.

👉Read the original post here

Client Success Story

From invisible to indispensable

One of the most rewarding parts of my work is seeing clients transform the way others perceive them. A senior project manager once told me she believed her results spoke for themselves. Unfortunately, they did not. She kept delivering but was consistently overlooked for high-visibility assignments.

We started small: she committed to speaking up once per meeting, but with a twist, every comment linked her work to broader business priorities. She also began sending concise monthly updates to sponsors and shifted from providing status reports to offering proactive solutions.

Within three months, her visibility skyrocketed. She was chosen to lead a flagship initiative, not because her technical skills had changed, but because people finally saw the impact she was making.

And this story is not unique. Recently, on my way to the airport, I received a surprising unsolicited call. One of my former coachees had just landed an expat assignment at headquarters, a role she had fought for tirelessly. Everyone around her said the environment was not conducive to such opportunities these days. Still, she worked on her presence, networked strategically, and kept adjusting her approach month after month as we worked together. It took longer than she expected, 18 months instead of one year, but her persistence paid off. The joy in her voice reminded me why I do what I do.

Visibility, persistence, and strategic presence can open doors you never thought possible.

👉 Read the original post here

Practical Tips

One question to boost your team’s trust

We all want to believe our teams trust us. We send surveys, we ask for feedback, and we hope for honest answers. But when the stakes are high, many people still hold back.

If you want to know whether your team truly trusts you, ask this at your next meeting: “When was the last time you felt safe to challenge me?”

It is a brave question. If you hear thoughtful stories, it means you have built an environment of psychological safety. If you get silence, that silence is the real data.

Trust is the foundation of high performance. Leaders who invite candor do more than avoid blind spots, they build teams that innovate faster, solve problems earlier, and stay resilient under pressure.

👉 Read the original post here

Industry Insights

Influence: the 3 shifts that change everything

Every organization has two structures. There is the official org chart, with lines and boxes. And then there is the real map of influence, where decisions are shaped, projects are accelerated, or stalled.

From my recent workshop on influence, three shifts stood out to participants:

1. Map your stakeholders. Formal authority is rarely the same as real decision-making power. A senior VP may sign off on a project, but the real gatekeeper could be a quietly influential regional lead. Unless you identify that person, your strategy will miss the mark.

   
   

2. Flex your style. We all have a default influence style, pushing information, pulling with questions, collaborating, or inspiring with vision. But the higher the stakes, the more you need to switch between them. Entire deals have been unlocked simply by shifting from data-driven persuasion to shared inspiration.

   
   

3. Handle resistance with empathy. Objections come in three forms: rational (data), emotional (fear or pride), and political (self-interest or alliances). A one-size-fits-all approach does not work. Tailoring your response to the root cause makes all the difference.

   
   

Influence is not luck. It is intentional, repeatable, and the foundation of leadership without authority.

👉 Read the original post here

Personal Reflections

Leadership starts with knowing yourself

I have taken more psychometric tests than I can count. Some felt like entertainment, others changed my trajectory. DISC was a revelation for me: in minutes, I could understand how to flex communication styles depending on whether someone was task- or people-oriented, introverted or extroverted.

Friends of mine swear by the Enneagram for uncovering deeper motivations. My personal favorite, the Leadership Circle Profile, is less of a snapshot and more of a treasure map. It highlights both strengths and blind spots, guiding growth over years, not just months.

The point is this: self-awareness is not a milestone you tick off. It is a habit. Socrates said, “Know thyself.” I would add, keep knowing yourself. Every tool is a new mirror that shows you how you show up, and how you can lead better.

👉 Read the original post here

Book and Resource Recommendations

Death by Meeting by Patrick Lencioni is one of my favorite resources for rethinking how we use one of the most expensive tools in any organization: meetings.

Lencioni argues that most meetings fail not because they are unnecessary, but because they are poorly designed. We mix tactical check-ins with strategic debates, avoid healthy conflict, and end up with sessions that drain energy instead of fueling progress.

His solution is counterintuitive but powerful: make meetings more engaging by treating them as opportunities for real dialogue. Separate tactical updates from strategic conversations, and do not shy away from constructive conflict. When meetings are run with clarity and purpose, they stop being a time sink and start being a driver of alignment and performance.

If you have ever left a meeting thinking “that could have been an email,” this book is worth your time.

Q&A

Q: My manager never gives me feedback. Should I take it as a good sign?

It is tempting to believe that no news is good news. But silence is not always golden. No feedback could mean your manager has not taken the time to reflect on your growth. It could mean you are not visible enough for them to see your blind spots. Or it could mean they are avoiding the discomfort of being honest.

Instead of waiting, take the initiative. Ask colleagues or your manager, “What is one thing I could do even better?” That simple question can spark powerful insights. Feedback is not something to fear, it is the raw material of growth.

👉 Read the original post here

Conclusion

This month, the threads of visibility, influence, and trust kept weaving through every story and lesson. They are not optional extras, they are the levers that accelerate careers. Hard work creates the foundation, but what moves you forward is whether others see your work, trust your leadership, and are willing to follow your lead.

If you only take one thing away from September, let it be this: visibility turns effort into opportunity, influence turns ideas into action, and trust turns teams into high performers.

Call to Action

If you are ready to put these ideas into practice, here are three ways to take your next step:

• Training: Join my next Lead without Authority workshop on October 10. Learn to map influence, build alliances, and handle resistance in real time.

• Webinar: Register for Manage your boss, discover how to turn your manager into a career ally rather than a barrier.

• Conversation: Book a no-strings-attached call with me to explore your leadership challenges and clarify your next steps 👉 careersteps.ch/contact

  
  

Your next leadership step could start today.