Stop Waiting for Your Manager to Notice You: Here’s How to Make Career Growth Intentional

Because career elevation isn’t a reward for good behavior. It’s the result of bold, strategic moves.

You know that feeling?

The one where you’ve done everything right.

You showed up early.

You delivered results.

You kept the team afloat during chaos.

You even coached your coworkers through theirs.

And still, when promotions were handed out, your name wasn’t called.

You’re not imagining it.

You are being overlooked.

And it’s not because you’re not qualified.

It’s because you’re playing a game that was never built to reward quiet excellence.

Why Quiet Excellence Keeps You Overlooked

Hard work gets you noticed, they said. Just stay consistent, they said.

Here’s the truth:

At a certain level, consistency becomes expected. And excellence becomes invisible.

High-achieving women, especially Black women and women of color, are often stuck in what I call the “invisible promotion trap.”

They’re the most dependable person on the team…

But not the most visible.

The most capable…

But not the most vocal.

The most trusted…

But not the most top of mind when leadership seats open up.

Why? Because the system rewards what it sees, and too many of us were conditioned to keep our heads down, wait our turn, and hope someone notices.

But your growth was never supposed to be passive.

You don’t get promoted by being the best-kept secret.

You rise by being undeniable.

What Executive Visibility Really Looks Like

Let’s talk about the myth of “being seen.”

Recognition isn’t about hoping your manager suddenly wakes up one day and realizes your worth.

It’s about showing up strategically so your work is impossible to ignore.

That doesn’t mean bragging, faking extroversion, or becoming someone you’re not.

It means learning how to:

✔️ Articulate your value in ways that align with business goals

✔️ Speak the language of leadership, not just effort but impact

✔️ Make your growth a shared priority, not a secret hope

When you wait to be noticed, you hand over the pen.

When you build visibility with intention, you take authorship of your career story.

And trust me, that changes everything.

Intentional Career Growth Doesn’t Mean Doing More

Let’s be clear.

Making career growth intentional does not mean piling on more work.

In fact, doing more is what’s keeping you stuck.

When you rely on effort alone, you create a trap:

The more you deliver, the more they expect.

The more they expect, the less they acknowledge.

Until eventually, excellence becomes your baseline…

And you burn out trying to maintain it.

Intentional growth is different.

It’s not about volume.

It’s about visibility.

It’s about aligning your goals with the business, so your impact becomes obvious.

And it’s about shifting from reactive to proactive, so you’re not just waiting for recognition, you’re leading the conversation.

You don’t need more checkboxes. You need more clarity.

Clarity about your value, your goals, and the story you’re telling every time you show up.

The 3-Part Framework to Become Impossible to Overlook

If you’ve been silently delivering, hoping someone will tap you on the shoulder, it’s time to switch strategies.

Here’s a framework I teach inside The Vault™ to help women stop waiting and start rising:

1. Clarify Your Value Story

Before you advocate, you need language.

What’s your track record of results?

What patterns show up in your wins?

What makes your leadership different?

Crafting your value story isn’t about bragging.

It’s about offering receipts.

It’s how you help decision-makers connect the dots between what you’ve done and what you’re capable of next.

Use my STAR+ method if you need help structuring it: Situation, Task, Action, Result, and the plus? That’s the strategic insight that connects it all back to the bigger picture.

2. Build Intentional Visibility

Visibility doesn’t mean being loud.

It means being strategic.

Start sharing your work in ways that link it to team success, customer outcomes, or revenue impact. Speak up in meetings, offer insight in cross-functional projects, and position your value around business needs, not just effort.

Your work deserves a spotlight.

Stop leaving it in the shadows.

3. Set the Growth Conversation in Motion

Don’t wait for your manager to guess what you want.

Schedule intentional career conversations at least twice a year.

Come prepared with your goals, your recent wins, and the areas you want to grow.

This isn’t just performance, it’s partnership.

The more you lead your growth, the more seriously others take it too.

Why Hoping to Be Noticed Is a Leadership Liability

Let’s sit with this truth for a second.

Being great at your job is not the same as being visible in your career.

You can be the go-to person, the fixer, the one everyone relies on… and still be passed over.

Why?

Because in today’s workplace, impact alone isn’t enough.

It has to be seen, heard, and strategically positioned. Just like I share in this post about why peace is the new promotion.

If you’re waiting to be noticed, you’re giving away your power.

You’re hoping someone else will decide when you’re ready.

And the hard reality?

Most managers are too busy, too distracted, or too comfortable with your current output to initiate your next step.

Waiting to be tapped is not a growth strategy.

It’s a delay tactic wrapped in fear and perfectionism.

And you deserve better.

Your Career Story Deserves a New Author - You

Here’s your reminder:

Take Back the Pen.

No one is coming to rewrite your story.

That’s your job. And the pen is already in your hand.

If you’re done with the quiet grind,

If you’re tired of wondering why you’re not moving up,

If you’re craving a space where clarity meets action,

You’re not alone. And you’re not behind.

This is your moment to shift from hoping to happening.

From being the best-kept secret to the most undeniable voice in the room.

From silently deserving more to confidently going after it.

Ready to Get Strategic About Your Rise?

Inside The Vault™, we’re done waiting to be chosen.

You’ll learn how to lead career conversations, build visibility without burnout, and make bold moves with clarity and support. It’s not just community. It’s strategy, momentum, and receipts.

Join The Vault™ and step into your next chapter.

Clarity looks good on you. And your next level is ready.