I heard this quote from Alex Hormozi and really resonated with it -

"Skills are the best hedge against inflation".

I do believe that focusing on improving earning potential is by far the most needle-moving factor for financial security and freedom 💯

Super proud!!! ✨💯🔥

This reminds me of a simple PIE framework to consider during promotion season from Harvey Coleman.

I personally find this very helpful and it has helped me secure faster promotions within the companies I have worked in i.e MNCs like Big Tech and smaller companies like start ups -

1) Performance (10%): This is about the day-to-day work you’re tasked with and the quality of the results you deliver.

2) Image (30%) : This is what other people think of you. Your personal brand. Do you maintain a positive attitude? Do you lead with solutions to issues, or are you the person that solely offers roadblocks when others suggest changes or alternatives?

3) Exposure (60%): Who knows about you and what you do? Does your boss know what you do? Does their boss know you and what you do? Do others inside and outside your organization know anything about you?

💡 I think a lot of people think that 1) is sufficient. Putting in more thought on 2/3) could help 1) with more mileage!

Omg another promo news! Is today promo announcement day or what??

So happy that our intentional work (both inner and external) paid off 🙌 💯🔥

But above everything else, things like this matter more than any promotion / pay raise / material possession ever would 🥹❤️🫂

Hard truths 🤣

Jokes aside - When people don't wanna face truths, they either (1) become very anxious and go into a rabbit hole of doing more and more (w diminishing returns) or (2) become avoidant and pretend it's not there.

My responses:

For 1) - being more measured and discerning on what truly moves the needle helps you save time and energy so you can basically stop saying you're too busy.

You're busy with things that have low ROI or don't actually matter when that energy and time can go into smth that you actually find more important or gives you joy.

For 2) - avoiding things doesn't make it go away. In fact, it causes a snowball effect which makes it even harder to deal with in future.

So stop stressing out your future self w bigger issues when they can be contained more easily now.

Performance evaluation can bring up a lot of stress.

But remember that what you think and feel about the outcome is 100% within your control.

Coincidentally, my coachee and I used our most recent session last Fri to prep for it, and we were able to reduce her anxious feelings and transmute it to something more calming and reassuring 🔥💪

Know that it is doable!! All the best for those who are having their chats soon :)

Hard truths to remind everyone of during the performance eval season as emotions might run high -

Pyrrhic victory is defined as a victory won at such a steep cost to the victory that it feels like a defeat.

The victory damages the victor beyond repair.

He wins the battle but loses the war.

Some common examples of this at work:

🟥 You hit another quarterly profit target but miss another anniversary dinner.

🟥 You earn a record bonus but fail to make it to a single one of your child's sports games.

🟥 You say yes to every single work call but can't find time to re-connect with an old friend.

🟥 You stay in a job for the security but allow your higher-order purpose to wither and die.

🟥 You host five client dinners per week but can't walk up the stairs without feeling winded.

🟥 You never leave money on the table but won't think twice about leaving your peace of mind there.

If you march ahead, eyes fixed on the financial horizon, the Pyrrhic victory awaits.

- Sahil Bloom

Recently one of my clients was asking me if she should go for this study program that helps her prepare for future VC opportunities. Sharing my response here to her here ^

My 3 main principles that underpin my response are to:

1) Start with the longer-term view of where you want to go
2) Figure out what tends to distract you from getting there
3) Think about where is best to allocate your resources (time / energy / money)

You are technically the CEO of your own life and by an extension, your career.

Focusing on gaining clarity on these 3 pillars are what I personally think is most important to steer your career in the direction that is more aligned to where you want to take it :)

I realized pivots I have made since my first role were largely based on this principle - just that I articulated it as "How can I make my next role include more of my energizers and less of my drainers" but essentially the same thing.

Steps I followed in a nutshell:

1) Articulating what my energizers and drainers are

2) Which includes being very honest with myself on what I am just not as good at and don't have a natural affinity/ inclination in

3) Reducing the power of people's opinions on my choices because its my life not theirs (And I am the one that is feeling the actions of my choices every day)

So far this strategy has worked out well for me in terms of both performance and well-being! I didn't want my best outcome to be a state where I am successful externally on societal terms but deeply unhappy internally.

I strongly believe that when you enjoy what you do, you naturally perform better (and can work harder more effortlessly) and in time, money as a by-product will come 💪

"Speaking up in high-stakes situations can be tough.

Here are ready-to-use scripts to help you navigate workplace politics smoothly:

🔹 When someone takes credit for your work:
​ ❌ Don’t say: “That was my idea!”
​ ✅ Instead, try: “I’m so glad this idea is gaining traction! When I first developed it, I was excited about the potential impact. Let’s discuss how we can build on its further.”

🔹 When you need to push back on a bad decision:
​ ❌ Don’t say: “I don’t think this is the right approach.”
​ ✅ Instead, try: “I see the benefits of this approach. Have we also considered [alternative option] to minimize risks?”

🔹 When you’re excluded from an important conversation:
​ ❌ Don’t say: “Why wasn’t I invited to that meeting?”
​ ✅ Instead, try: “I noticed that [X topic] was discussed. Since I’ve been working on this, I’d love to contribute insights next time. Would it be helpful if I shared key updates now?”

There are some hard-earned lessons we wish we had learned earlier in our careers—here’s what we’d tell our younger selves:

1️⃣ Avoiding politics doesn’t mean you’re neutral—it just means you’re invisible. If you’re not advocating for yourself, someone else is shaping the narrative.

2️⃣ Office politics aren’t just about getting ahead—they’re about ensuring your contributions are valued. If you don’t engage strategically, you risk being sidelined.

3️⃣ Building connections is not “extra”—it’s a force multiplier. The biggest career shifts often come from relationships, not just skills."

- Uma and Jingjin from The Elevate Group

We live in a world obsessed with quick wins.

People then get upset/ frustrated/ discouraged that they don't see any wins and give up.

In my opinion, these are the 4 foundational levers that truly matter -

1️⃣ Consistency of working on yourself and your skillsets so your growth does not plateau or stagnate.

2️⃣ The courage to define and walk away from ‘good enough' so that you can eventually get to 'great'.

3️⃣ Cultivating relationships that are authentic and not transactional i.e actually caring about the people you work with instead of seeing them as a resource.

4⃣ Investing in strategic impact areas which can compound over time and pay back dividends in future e.g your personal brand.

The results will then culminate into something more enduring.

Happy Friday all! ✨

Context: She was a mum who was doing well in her career but took a 2y break to be more present when her kid was born. I didn't know everyone before me told her to settle and that my words gave her some hope.

Awwww so happy to receive this msg today!! 🥹

I don't believe that people should settle or tolerate just for the sake of it and I am glad to empower more people to believe that they are much more than their past programming ❤️‍🔥🙌

When you realize that interviewing does NOT have to feel so painful and draining.

It usually is if you let it mean something about you personally e.g when you attach the outcome to your self-worth.

But it is possible to feel calm and collected like my client here.

I am soooo proud of her because she used to be such an anxious wreck before just a couple of months back.

And the best part? You not only feel better, you actually perform much better in this optimal mind space 💯

Progress and wins after she worked on herself 🔥🙌🙆‍♀️

This article sums up perfectly what I shared with some of my clients recently -

Strategic hard work > Hard work

We must first be more strategic about i) what levers we want to put MORE effort in and ii) also what we should do LESS of.

This not only helps us to ensure our hard work goes a longer way - it also helps us to differentiate ourselves from others and leverages the key skill of DISCERNMENT which is required in more senior positions.

Do check out the article :)

https://thewokesalaryman.substack.com/p/worked-hard-so-what

Woo a great eg fr my client that retrenchment doesnt need to be more painful than we let it.

Esp if we don't let it mean anything about our self worth and we have clear plans on how to move forward even more powerfully.

Super proud of him 💪👏🔥

A lovely article by @thewokesalaryman as always!! 🙆‍♀

I see this a lot in my clients actually - them striving to not be like their bosses (or parents as well for that matter).

We can always break the cycle - it's a choice 💪

https://thewokesalaryman.substack.com/p/lessons-ex-bosses

Effective influencing does not simply come from delivering a great presentation. Your ability to influence is shaped by what you do long before stepping into any meeting room.

Specifically, this boils down to three key questions:

1) "How much credibility do I have? What is my reputation? Does my track record help with or detract from my actual spiel?"

2) "How consistent have I been in my messaging? Am I selective and focused? Am I telling the same story over time?"

3) "Have I sought out the right champions? Do I have allies in the room? Have I consulted the right people beforehand?"

None of these things can be manufactured on the spot. They all take time and effort, way before any meeting is even on calendar.

And they always make a huge difference.

- Herng Lee

There is an enormous difference between working hard on something that is a grind and working hard on something that comes easily to you.

Exceptional results almost exclusively happen when you work hard on an area where you have some natural aptitude.

Play to your strengths.

- James Clear

If you're feeling stuck (even though you're smart, experienced, and performing well), there's a reason:

You're not stuck because you're underperforming.

You're stuck because your strategy no longer works at this level.

Most high performers eventually hit a wall where the old playbook stops working.

But instead of changing the strategy, they start refined thrashing:

Another certification

→ A department switch

→ Updating the résumé again

→ Taking everyone's advice

→ Hoping something finally clicks

Here's the hard truth:

If your strategy is dead, no amount of optimization will bring it back to life.

What got you here won't get you there.

Because the next level doesn't require more.

It requires different.

You need a better vehicle-one that aligns with:

🔥Where the market is going

🔥 What decision-makers actually reward

🔥 The kind of work that energizes you

Top performers don't just climb.

They fast-track the right outcome.

- Misha Rubin

Some reminders from The Woke Salaryman as the work week starts on how to be visible at work without being cringe!

Having worked at Google previously where visibility is so key to things such as performance evaluations and promotions, I saw how our culture of keeping our head down,woke doing the work and expecting people to notice it just does not cut it.

I think this topic is very much needed and glad they covered it :)

Key points from TWS here but check out their link below for the full version -

1️⃣ Focus on being competent first

2️⃣ Uplift others as a way to uplift yourself

3️⃣ Be mindful of context - not all situations are opportunities to be visible

https://thewokesalaryman.substack.com/p/visible-at-work

Another great post by The Woke Salaryman on identifying whether one is stuck in a dead end job!! 💪

This is my fave snaps of the article but do check out the full one :)

https://thewokesalaryman.substack.com/p/dead-end-job