Promotion Dialog Examples

In this lesson, we examine how not to ask for a promotion, then show how to reframe the conversation in a way that aligns incentives, builds trust, and opens up productive dialogue with our EM.

• We highlight that asking “Can I get promoted?” is a poor approach because it’s self-focused, lacks evidence, feels transactional, and corners the manager into a yes/no response.
• We break down why this framing fails: it signals entitlement, doesn’t show impact, ignores team goals, and provides no data or context for advocacy.
• We offer a better alternative: expressing commitment to the team, desire to increase impact, and asking what steps are needed to reach the next level—an open-ended, collaborative question.
• We explain that managers value signals of long-term commitment and team-oriented motivation, not demands based on tenure or frustration.
• We reinforce that smart framing aligns our goals with the manager’s incentives: helping us grow increases team impact, which helps them succeed too.