To ask women for the steps you took to get to 100k

[madasawethen]

If you're a woman making 100k or over, what steps did you take to get there.

Job title(it can be general like manager, solicitor)
Training
How long it took?
Any tips or advice for others who want to get there?

I manage a team of senior lawyers. They all earn well over 6 figures. The ones that do really well are the ones that display many of the additional skills listed on this thread. Others are good but will never be as successful because they think all they have to do is show up.

I’m in the same position although my team are in the 80k ish bracket mostly. Some people do just turn up and they’re not terrible employees actually, it can be quite good to have people who consistently and reliably get on with their job and don’t push for progression.

The people “going places” are quite different and it’s fairly obvious who they are early on.

@Pruella what attributes would you say those who are obviously going places have?

They have a sort of entrepreneurial attitude to their own careers. So they’ll seek out profile raising projects to get involved in, they’ll always be stretching themselves and learning. They take ownership of their work and know when to check in on points and when to take decisions themselves.

Thanks @Pruella I have been told by my seniors that I do stand out and they know I will do exceptionally well (most recently told by my supervisor when I handed in my notice and other senior colleagues as I move up the ladder to a city firm). Just collating all these tips on this thread to ensure I keep improving and taking the necessary steps to further my career!

See just the fact you’re taking steps now and care enough to think about your progression shows you’ll do well I think! I’ve just taken someone on who is about 2 years pqe and she’s so on it about progression. In some ways it’s harder work as her manager but I love seeing people do well!

It seems fake, and disgusts many people to think this way.
But you, as an employee, are a product. You have something to sell (your skills), to employers. You want to make sure that your target market knows what you have to offer (advertising). You have to build credibility (brand).

I got my first big break by talking to anybody and everybody. Convincing someone to recommend me. I participate in networking events, outreach etc. I managed to get things done quickly, or be thought of for plum opportunities because I had a reputation.

When managers want something done especially for internal recruiting they don’t put out a job ad and wait. They often source someone from their peers, have a chat then go through the whole formal recruitment process.

I’m now in the process of trying to be known across my industry. Podcasts, contributions to open source projects, blogs, curating online courses. It’s like a whole other ‘job’!

Also to add I’m not on 100K yet but well on my way

Thanks @Pruella ! I honestly love my job and adore my practice area. It's so challenging and rewarding and I just want to excel. It sounds a bit 'cringe' to say but I have a fire in my belly. As an NQ I would get up early and read around the subject for my own benefit. I would work in the evenings to prep webinars and write articles. I would lead D&I initiatives, all of that helped me get my new job and they of course want me to continue that there and I want to. I think it's the desire that separates people out tbh.

I already have an action plan for when I start! Excited and just want to keep going from strength to strength, especially as I've seen on here that it's important to climb as much as possible before kids so you can create the image you want and then it's easier to maintain after maternity.

Thanks for your invaluable advice, it's women like you that help those coming up behind you ☺️

The “get a few qualifications and just turn up” comment is so telling. Lots of people think that’s all you have to do and the only things that differentiate the high earners from them is luck and privilege.

I manage a team of about a dozen people on between £60 and £100k and even some of them think that’s enough. An opportunity has come up internally that most of my team are qualified to apply for. Interestingly a lot of the people who are vocal about wanting more money and a promotion aren’t going to go for it as it will be too high stress. Not sure where they think that the low stress, well paid jobs are.

I've been inspired to sign up for a mini MBA. Going to ask my boss if work will fund it next week. Thanks all!

Some people do just turn up and they’re not terrible employees actually, it can be quite good to have people who consistently and reliably get on with their job and don’t push for progression

As a manager I agree. But this thread is about how you get into the top bracket and the point is the vast majority need to do more than show up.

Oh yes completely agree.

I’ve had some real issues with the occasional junior who expects to move ahead but then asks to not take on any responsibility.

I have to politely take them through the realities of the career that they have chosen to join, explaining that a starting salary of £60-70,000 per year for a graduate fresh out of college is not the right wage for someone who just wants to prepare some reports with pretty graphs but to bear no responsibility for attesting that the data is accurate.

Laughing a little at "just" getting a few degrees and turning up. Most jobs that pay that sort of money expect rather a lot of output.

That's not saying that people don't work hard in lower paid jobs or that they shouldn't be valued more. The two aren't mutually exclusive.

lemme gues : investment banker, management consultant or data analyst/finance professional of some sort 😂😂😂

I think most people who into those professions know they will be tough. Obviously some miscalculate, think they can cope but can’t. Very few go in expecting it to be easy.

My current role is in a more laid back area. Most people work nine to five. I think my team look at my role and see my drift in at 9.30 after having dropped off my kids, or taking a long lunch to go to sports day and think I have it pretty relaxed. They are oblivious to what it took to get here. When I took on my current role I was fighting fires everywhere, red audit reports, rapid staff turn over as quite frankly it was a shit place to work and huge pressure from our internal clients as the team wasn’t providing the service it needed to. It took a lot of time and energy to fix this, some difficult decisions and some unpopular messages to convey. The effort I put in those early days has paid off now, and yes I’m fairly chilled at work. But I’m also bored and looking for the next challenge. These particular team members want the money and kudos that comes with my position but none of the stress it took to get me there. Not sure career path I can recommend for them.

Argh, the typos. Clearly rushing while I eat my lunch and need to get back to work!

In finance, yes.

Most people do hit the ground running, and understand what’s needed to move up in the organisation, but some seem to think that they should do no more than the most junior of admin tasks.

When I was in uni doing a finance degree there were quite a few of those types. Mainly because so much fuss was made about the ‘technical’ bits and spreadsheets so the smart ones who got in didn’t realise there was so much more to it. And that the higher you go the more it is about the other stuff.

It’s also similar in tech , a lot of software devs think their job is to sit and write great code/pretty algorithms. They don’t realise putting it all together is and communicating to deliver value what makes a senior technical staff… and why they get paid more.

I’ve got one guy who’s brilliant with the data, but who despite years of working with him on it can’t communicate acceptably and is never going to be a good manager.

He still has value to the team, but unless I can find a way that I haven’t thought of yet to fix those issues, he’s what I’d describe as terminal in his current role. Topped out, not going to go any further.

The slightly sad consequence of this is that inevitably someone else will come up from below who has the same technical skills but who also brings the other ones too.

At that point the first guy is going to struggle to maintain his position.

They don’t realise putting it all together is and communicating to deliver value what makes a senior technical staff… and why they get paid more

Worth their weight in gold - I've fought over them for my team before!

If you want a sorry tale of long hours, a divorce and no kids... sorry to disappoint. I work 9 til 5, I take my own kids to school, and I cook dinner.

The thing with high paid roles in respectful, mature companies is they don't treat their staff like shit - they'll simply leave and go elsewhere. So they treat staff rather well, in fact. In my workplace, doing unpaid or unasked-for overtime would be seen as a sign you were crap at your job and couldn't finish in work hours.

No one mentioned 'work ethic'. What we did do is explain there are good jobs out there. Far too many women believe a £20k job is the best they can ever hope for, and they will be exploited for it. My family are like that. No one believes well-paying jobs are "for them" or that they even exist in my city. They don't know where to look for them or what the roles involve. If the next generation can grow up knowing they can have a well-paid role that's a good thing.

You can just be bitter if you like, but the roles are all right there ready for applying for.

Actually, my experience(in tech (not my experience as I'm not a great developer more a 'put it all together' person) is that it is possible to 'just' be a great developer, have no interest in management, and comfortably earn well north of £100k. I frequently run teams where the team members mostly earn more than me, especially when they are contractors.

So many of these women earning these salaries have the entitlement to believe noone else earning less has a work ethic!

Who said that? We were only discussing that work ethic and 'working hard' (which undoubtedly many people on lower salaries do) might not be all that it takes.

A contractor needs all the skills I mentioned, even more so. Hustling for contracts, dealing with new people every time. Marketing themselves and their skills. Once you have a reputation it gets easier, but there’s an initial leap to make.

The people I was talking about don’t see why all of this is necessary. They just think their technical brilliance speaks for itself…