"I didn't think that I would be in the position that I am today. I moved up pretty quickly, which was surprising, but also fun and motivating because I had gone through a lot of rough periods in my life. All I do is work now. I put everything that I had into this job just so I could prove to myself that I could be successful. It's something once I started noticing that there was opportunities for advancement and things like that."
"Because of all the promotions, it's just been one new responsibility after another. One of the things that made me such a valuable and popular team member was helping people that had been there a lot longer than me understand the little ins and outs. I guess I just got a better grasp of things for whatever reason than people who had been there a long time. So I was just always a huge help."
Thomas advanced rapidly at work after overcoming rough periods, dedicating himself fully to prove his success. He accepted promotions and became a people manager overseeing former peers and other supervisors. He previously added value by helping longer-tenured colleagues with operational knowledge. The transition from being a helpful peer to an authority figure felt jarring for him and others. He faces accumulating responsibilities and the challenge of adjusting his approach to leadership, relationships, and supervisory expectations while maintaining team cohesion and credibility. He struggles with shifting identity from individual contributor to manager and with how to set boundaries while remaining supportive.
Read at Harvard Business Review
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