• 9 to 5 Dilemma: "I'm working on it!”… Dangling Carrots + Promised Promotions.

• The Future of AI Job Searching.

• Before + After Success in Accounting.

• Upcoming Events! Let’s hang.

• Dollyism.

Ahhh, the “promised promotion.”

Often dangled by the leader who has quickly forgotten that a promised promotion doesn’t pay the bills and gives no resume clout.

When I was in HR and Talent, I can’t tell you how many times I was surprised when an employee finally came to me and said their manager had been telling them for years about a promotion.

The same manager I had sat next to in company-wide performance conversations, merit/promotion conversations, and succession planning conversations and never once mentioned that employee.

Like Marvin Gaye said… “What’s going on??”

First, you’re not being impatient.

A year is more than enough time for an organization to define a role, set expectations, and communicate a timeline. Promotions may take time, but when they’re real, you’ll see signs of movement… discussions about scope, involvement from HR, adjustments to responsibilities tied directly to a new role. What you’ve described is a pattern of verbal reassurance without any of those signals.

There are a few dynamics worth naming here:

• Some leaders overpromise. They say what they think will keep people happy in the moment, but don’t follow through. It’s a short-term tactic to buy time. Sheisty behavior!

• Some organizations avoid tough conversations. Instead of saying “we don’t have the budget” or “this role doesn’t exist yet,” they default to vague encouragement.

• And sometimes, yes, it’s intentional stringing along. Keeping someone motivated with the idea of a future reward, without ever having to deliver it, is unfortunately common. I usually see it in leaders who aren’t very competent in their work but have learned to have the right people around them so they look good. If they lose you to a promotion, they’ll have to rebuild their wall of assets.

Here’s how you can take back control:

1. Ask for specifics.
The next time your boss brings it up, shift the conversation from general praise to concrete detail. Try:

“I appreciate your feedback and I’m excited about the possibility of a promotion. Can we talk through what the official process looks like, what the timeline is, and what milestones I should be aiming for?”

This forces your boss to either outline a plan or reveal that there isn’t one.

2. Put it in writing.
If you get an answer, capture it in an email:

“Thanks for discussing the promotion path today. From our conversation, here’s what I understand: [list details]. Please confirm I’ve got this right.”

If your boss doesn’t respond or avoids confirming, that’s another clear signal.

3. Track your contributions.
Document the additional responsibilities you’ve taken on and the results you’ve delivered. Promotions aren’t just about potential; they’re about impact. Having a running list of wins makes it easier to advocate for yourself internally and strengthens your hand if you decide to pursue opportunities elsewhere.

4. Protect your career.
You’ve already invested a year in waiting. Keep performing at a high level, but don’t let all your chips ride on this promise. Start exploring the market. Updating your resume and having conversations outside your company is always a smart strategy. If the promotion comes through, great. If it doesn’t, you won’t be left scrambling.

5. Decide how much more time you’re willing to give.
There’s no universal right answer here. Some people set a 3–6 month deadline and others decide that without proof now, they’re done waiting. What matters is that you set the terms, not your boss. Whatever you decide, set a timeline and stick to it so you don’t get sucked back into la-la-land with your boss.

At the end of the day, you deserve clarity. You deserve more than compliments behind closed doors. A boss who is serious about promoting you will show it with action: paperwork, conversations with HR, and a defined timeline. Until you see that, assume this is just talk and build your plan accordingly.

I hear you… “ok, but in this market?”

Yes, in this market. And whatever the next market is. If you put feelers out and don’t get a bite, keep your proverbial fishing pole in the water.

👉 Takeaway: Hope is not a strategy. If the promotion is real, you’ll see it in writing. If not, you owe it to yourself to move where your value will be recognized.

Will AI Find My Next Job?

If you’ve ever (unfortunately) spent time on LinkedIn, Indeed, or ZipRecruiter, you know how the system (unfortunately) works.

A company posts a role, hundreds or thousands of people apply, and the applications funnel straight into an Applicant Tracking System (ATS).

The logic is efficiency: keep the process moving, keep costs down, make it possible to manage thousands of applicants.

But, fit often gets lost in the process. 

People with the right skills don’t make it past the initial weighting or review because the pool is flooded with broad “fit”.

Add in today’s market where some roles are pulling in thousands of applicants in under a day and the cracks really show.

Candidates feel invisible.

Employers drown in volume without confidence they’re seeing the best talent.

And the promise of job boards “connecting people with opportunity” starts to feel more like playing the PowerBall. I really think you may have better odds with the PowerBall in this market!

What OpenAI Says They’re Building

Against that backdrop, OpenAI has announced plans for a new jobs platform. Their pitch: move beyond keywords and resumes, and instead use AI to match people and employers based on actual skills and outcomes.

They’re tying it to their Academy certification program, with a goal of credentialing 10 million Americans in “AI fluency” by 2030. The idea is that workers can showcase proof of skill, employers can trust the validation, and matches become less about guessing and more about demonstrated capability.

The platform is also being framed as broader than tech. OpenAI says it wants to serve small businesses, nonprofits, and governments, not just Fortune 500s. Walmart and John Deere have already signed on as pilot partners.

The Gaps and Concerns

It’s ambitious, but we’ve been promised “the future of hiring” before. And there are plenty of reasons to be cautious:

• Certification overload: If every platform requires its own stamp of approval, do workers just end up paying for more hoops?

• Algorithmic bias: If AI is matching candidates, how do we know the system won’t reinforce the same inequities we’ve been fighting in hiring all along?

• Adoption hurdles: Employers already live in LinkedIn and Indeed. Getting them to switch, or add another platform, won’t be simple.

• Conflict of interest: Microsoft owns LinkedIn and backs OpenAI. How those dynamics play out matters.

The job market has always had a broken middle: job boards feed ATS systems that reward keyword savvy more than proven capability. OpenAI’s promise is to use AI to build something smarter. Whether it actually fixes the disconnect between candidates and companies remains to be seen.

Before/After: “Willie Nelson’s Story”

When “Willie” first came to me, he had a feeling something was shifting at work. His manager had dropped vague hints, the energy was off, and he trusted his gut.

His before resume was full of achievements, but the way it read, it positioned him as tactical support. It listed responsibilities, but didn’t tell the story of where he drives impact or how he influences business outcomes. He knew he wanted to land a manager level role in his next job, but his resume didn’t sell him as a leader.

Together, we flipped the switch. His after resume re-aligned the narrative around leadership, problem-solving, and the tangible impact he’s made across industries. Instead of “prepared journal entries” or “supported compliance,” we highlighted how he cut $100K/month in costs, improved reporting speed, and built finance systems that scaled with business growth.

The result was a resume that felt true to him and positioned him as the strategic finance leader he actually is.

Then the reorganization hit.

His team was reduced to one, and he was impacted. But here’s the part I love… he was ready!

Within two weeks of his final day, while still receiving severance, Willie landed an Accounting Manager role making 17% more than before.

There’s a lot of doom and gloom in this market, and for good reason. Finding a role is more challenging than ever.

A resume won’t change everything, it’s a part of a larger strategy.

The first part is digging in deep to identify and reconnect with where you drive the most impact, for whom, with what results.

That clarity builds a strong foundation to layer on specific impact stories of you doing those things really well.

Clarity builds confidence in telling your story of impact to others when you interview. You’re not scrambling to think, you’re pulling from your core 3-5 areas of impact aligned to the role and sharing stories.

Upcoming Events

RESCHEDULED September Walk & Talk: What’s Your Character?

Wednesday, September 24 at 12 pm EST

Our brains are constantly sorting.

To make sense of the people around us, we create shortcuts: the reliable one, the fixer, the critic, the idea generator.

At work, those shortcuts become our character we play. They’re not always fair or complete, but they’re powerful. And once they stick, they can open or close doors.

This month’s Walk & Talk is about becoming more intentional in how your “character” shows up:

• Are people experiencing you the way you want to be known?

• What traits do you lean on most under stress?

• Where might others be filling in the blanks about you in ways that don’t match your true strengths?

You can’t stop your brain (or anyone else’s) from categorizing, it’s human. But you can influence the story they attach to you.

What We’ll Do

Using the 3-2-1 model:

• 3 ideas about how “character” gets formed at work

• 2 reflection questions to test how others may be categorizing you

• 1 action to start closing the gap between perception and intention

Grab your earbuds, take a walk, and join me. We’ll unpack the characters we carry and practice showing up as the version we actually want to be.

👉 Register here

New York City Workshop

Work in Progress: Rewriting Your Career Story
📍 NYC | 🗓 October 27, 2025 | ⏰ 9 AM – 4 PM
👉 Register here

Career grief isn’t just about layoffs. It can be the toxic workplace you’re stuck in, the role that isn’t what you hoped for, or the version of yourself you’ve lost along the way.

This full-day workshop creates space to acknowledge what you’ve been carrying and gives you practical tools to move forward:

• Mindset + Mantra Lab → reset your confidence

• Value Prop Walking Workshop → own your story

• Mini Labs → one on mindset, one on tactical next steps

• Action Planning → leave with a clear roadmap

• Yes, a Diet Coke break + Networking for People Who Hate Networking

✨ Includes two live follow-up sessions after the workshop to refine your story and get feedback.

Only 30 seats available.
🎟 Early Bird (thru Sept 30): $295 | General: $349

👉 Save your spot now

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