How to Tell Your Boss You Don’t Want a Promotion

There’s an unspoken assumption in our culture that if you’re a motivated and driven professional who is serious about your career, you’ll want to move up the corporate ladder. As a result, articles abound on how to ask for a promotion, how to prove yourself after being promoted, and how to cope if you are passed over for one.

Given this prevailing expectation, what do you do if you have no desire to broaden your responsibilities? Maybe you’re a primary caregiver who wants to focus more time and energy at home. Maybe you prefer the creativity of being an individual contributor, rather than a manager. Whatever your own personal reason, you’re completely content where you are. How do you communicate those wishes to your boss, without being perceived negatively?

As an executive coach, I’ve worked with many talented individuals who had the potential to be promoted, but were uninterested in taking on more. Sharing this desire with their bosses often felt threatening, particularly because they were seen as talented, and often, as possible successors. Striking the balance between advocating for their own wishes without seeming ungrateful or unambitious was a challenge. The key, therefore, was to convey that although they were fulfilled where they were, they were still interested in growing in their careers.

If you’re in a similar situation, here are some tips to navigate this discussion effectively:

Start with Some Self-Reflection

Before you conclude that you have no desire for a promotion, you’ll want to thoroughly explore the reasons why you aren’t interested in moving up. Although some reasons are constructive, others may warrant a bit of further self-reflection.

Are you afraid you might not succeed? Do you have a fixed mindset that’s causing you to shy away from a challenge? Could you be selling yourself short?

If your reasons for wanting to stay in your current role are primarily fear-based, you might want to start by soliciting feedback from others. Ask them how they perceive you in terms of your strengths and developmental opportunities. Do they see you as being ready to take on more? What do they think you would need to work on to be successful at the next level? In addition to helping you gain deeper insights about yourself, these conversations can also enable you to see how objective your own self-assessments are.

If you discover that others are confident in your ability to thrive in a bigger role, and that you’ve been underestimating yourself, then you might consider putting together an action plan to develop your skills. After all, contrary to what some people believe, most bosses expect that there will be a learning curve when you are promoted into a new role. Further, if you find yourself dismissing the positive feedback that others are giving you, then you may want to dig deeper into whether you’re dealing with imposter syndrome. By working with a coach or a trusted mentor, you can develop greater confidence in yourself, and prevent yourself from stifling your own growth due to misplaced fears.

On the other hand, you might determine that the reasons you’re happy to continue doing what you’re doing have nothing to do with fear. Perhaps the timing isn’t right, given your personal situation. Or, perhaps you have no desire to take on the increased level of responsibility and stress required if you were to move up to the next level. Perhaps you simply love what you’re doing, and know that another job wouldn’t be as fulfilling for you. In these instances, you’ll want to have a transparent discussion with your boss about your current mindset.

Having the Conversation

When the time is right (like during a discussion about your career path, or perhaps during an annual review), talk with your boss about your desire to continue doing what you’re doing.

Do:

• Thank your boss for believing in you. Acknowledge that you appreciate your boss showing an interest in you and that you’re grateful that they see potential in you.
• Explain why what you’re currently doing is perfect for you right now. Share what you love about your present job, and why it’s an excellent fit for your strengths, skills, and career objectives. Convey how it aligns with your values and highlight the different ways it continues to stimulate you.
• Communicate that you’re still interested in growing. Demonstrate that you’re still motivated by explaining that you want to continue develop in your role. Then, proactively give some suggestions about how that could occur. What are specific ways that you could work on your developmental areas to be even better at what you’re doing? Are there some new projects or initiatives you could take on? Could you use your skills to contribute to the organization in additional ways? Could your boss provide you with ongoing feedback and coaching so you can further excel at what you’re doing?

Don’t:

• Paint yourself into a corner. Although you might not be interested in moving up right now, you never know if your interests, situation, or aspirations might change. Therefore, communicate to your boss that this is how you’re feeling right now, but that you are very much still interested in developing. Doing so will help you to keep your options open in case you have a change of heart in the future.
• Allow yourself to be pushed into a job you don’t want. I’ve seen many people who had strong reservations about being promoted allow themselves to be put into a bigger job because it was what others wanted for them. In a lot of cases it didn’t turn out well. For example, against his better judgment, a physician who loved the immediacy of taking care of patients allowed himself to get talked into taking on a leadership position at his hospital. Although he appreciated the prestige, he hated the constant meetings, and missed practicing medicine. As a result, he eventually vacated his position, and went back to seeing patients, where he was much happier.

The bottom line? There is no one career path that is right for everyone. Based on your definition of success, you’ll be able to decide whether moving up or staying put is right for you.

Source of this article; https://hbr.org/2019/02/how-to-tell-your-boss-you-dont-want-a-promotion