Communication
The coffee-chat script that isn't creepy
Most early-career coffee-chat requests miss because they're either too vague or trying too hard. Here's the script that works — and the one that doesn't.
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Career Development
Goal setting, feedback loops, promotion paths, and what to optimize for in years 1–5.
Promotions aren’t the goal. The goal is building a track record and a network that give you options when you need them. Chase the title and you end up in whatever job has the loosest promo criteria. Chase the options and you end up somewhere you chose on purpose.
Feedback is the engine, and most people run it wrong. They wait until review season, collect a paragraph of vague praise, and walk out with nothing actionable. The version that works is smaller and more frequent: after a presentation, after a launch, after a hard conversation, ask one person you trust one specific question — “what would you have done differently?” — and actually write the answer down. Twenty of those in a year will move you further than any training program.
The five-year version of this topic is about compounding. The skills that matter most at year five aren’t the ones on the job description at year one. Writing well, running a meeting, scoping a project, managing up, giving feedback — these transfer across every role, every company, every pivot. Get slightly better at each of them every quarter and the curve gets steep fast.
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All posts in career development
Career Development
Your probationary review: 5 questions to pre-answer
How to walk into your 90-day review with the answers already prepared — the questions every manager asks, and the scripts that get you a clean pass.
Career Development
A reader asks: I'm benched as a first-year consultant — am I going to get fired?
Being on the bench for a few weeks isn't a firing signal. Being on the bench and invisible is. Here's what to do in each week.
Career Development
How to get promoted when there's no clear ladder
Not every company has a neat level structure. When the ladder is fuzzy, the promotion path is a conversation — not a document. Here's how to run it.
Career Development
A reader asks: I'm in FP&A and want to pivot to IB — is it too late?
Corporate-finance-to-IB pivots are harder than people say, but more doable than the internet makes them sound. Here's what actually works.
Career Development
Your first performance review: what actually changes after
Your first real performance review is less about the rating than what it sets in motion. Here's what changes and what to pay attention to in the 90 days after.
Career Development
A reader asks: how do I get promoted before my MBA application?
A promotion on your MBA application isn't about the title. It's about the story. Here's how to earn one in the 12 months before you apply.
Career Development
A reader asks: my first industry conference — do I actually have to network?
Conference networking for introverts (and everyone else): the two conversations that matter, and the many you can skip.
This topic maps to Chapter 9 — The long game of the book. See the full chapter →