Getting Ahead: Three Steps to Take Your Career to the Next Level [Hardcover]

Joel A. Garfinkle (Author), Marshall Goldsmith (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 13, 2011

A leading executive coach pinpoints three vital traits necessary to advance your career

In Getting Ahead, one of the top 50 executive coaches in the United States, Joel Garfinkle reveals his signature model for mastering three skills to take your career to the next level: Perception, Visibility, and Influence.

The PVI-model of professional advancement will teach you to: (1) Actively promote yourself as an asset and valuable person inside the organization, (2) Increase your visibility to gain others’ recognition and appreciation for your efforts and (3) Become a person of influence who makes key decisions inside the organization.

Getting Ahead will put you ahead of the competition to become a known, valued, and desired commodity at your company.

• For more than two decades, Joel Garfinkle has worked closely with thousands of executives, senior managers, directors, and employees at the world's leading companies, and has authored 300 articles on leadership
• Offers detailed guidance on how to increase exposure, boost visibility, enhance perceived value for your organization, and ultimately achieve career advancement
• Explains how to get your name circulating among higher levels of management so others know you, see your results, and acknowledge the impact you bring to the company

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Two employees put in the hours, execute excellent work, and achieve results for their company. But only one advances to the next level, while the other faces the frustration of being overlooked for a promotion once again. So, what exactly makes one person more successful than another? The answer: leveraging and applying perception, visibility, and influence better than anyone else. While some people leave the fate of their careers in someone else's hands, others determine their future using these three critical skills.

In Getting Ahead, top executive coach Joel Garfinkle reveals his signature PVI model—Perception, Visibility, and Influence. Through practical advice, true-to-life examples, and action-oriented tips, you'll learn how to create the right image, increase your profile across the organization, and exert influence by driving change and inspiring people. Get effective tools and tactical approaches that you can implement immediately to become an invaluable—and noticeable—resource for your company, including:

• A four-step perception management process to evaluate how you are perceived and change that perception, if necessary

• Identify and recruit advocates who will speak up on your behalf

• Discover the mind-sets that are stunting your growth, and overcome your fear of the spotlight

• Speak up, speak first, and speak often in meetings

• Become a master influencer who understands the needs of executives up the ladder, empowers subordinates, and builds relationships with peers

Eliminate the roadblocks that keep you from advancing. Get your name circulating among higher levels of management so that others know you, see your results, and acknowledge the impact you bring to the company. Getting Ahead will put you out in front of the competition. You've done the hard work; now learn how to reap the rewards.

From the Back Cover

Praise for Getting Ahead

"Getting Ahead is packed with common sense advice about how to advance your career without sacrificing your integrity. Read this book and let Joel Garfinkle lead you down the right path toward personal success."
—Ken Blanchard, coauthor of The One Minute Manager and Lead with LUV

"I recommend this book with great enthusiasm. In a world going out of control, it's a godsend to have a man who teaches us how to get greater control over our own lives. Joel Garfinkle is his name; remember it. He is one of the very best counselors I have ever met."
—Dick Bolles, author of What Color Is Your Parachute?

"In today's hyper-competitive business world, just being great at what you do will not (alas) get you to the top. Joel Garfinkle knows what will: perception, visibility, and influence. His insightful guide is a must-read for anyone looking to turbocharge his or her career."
—Anne Fisher, "Ask Annie" careers/workplace columnist, Fortune.com

"In Getting Ahead, Joel Garfinkle offers an original, memorable, and powerful approach to becoming more influential, more visible, and highly regarded. Filled with practical advice, real-life examples, and documented evidence, this book is an essential guide for anyone wishing to take charge of their careers."
—Jim Kouzes, coauthor of the award-winning and bestselling The Leadership Challenge

"An indispensable, professional advancement handbook for leaders at every level."
—Frances Hesselbein, President & CEO of Leader to Leader Institute (Formerly the Peter F. Drucker Foundation) Former CEO, Girl Scouts of the U.S.A.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 271 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (September 13, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470915870
• ISBN-13: 978-0470915875
• Product Dimensions: 6.3 x 1 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #196,021 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Joel Garfinkle is recognized as one of the top 50 coaches in North America. His valuable insight has been sought after by companies, including Google, Amazon, Hewlett-Packard, Gap, Starbucks, Deloitte, Cisco Systems, Oracle, Bank of America, Citibank, Microsoft, and many more.

He is the author of 7 books and more than 300+ articles on leadership, executive presence, getting ahead at work, career transitions, and work fulfillment. He is regularly featured in the national media, including ABC News, National Public Radio, New York Times, Forbes, Wall Street Journal and BusinessWeek, Newsweek and Fast Company.

Sign up to Joel's weekly report, Fulfillment@Work Newsletter, and receive the free e-book, "40 Proven Strategies to Get Promoted Now!" Go to his website home page.

For more than two decades, Joel Garfinkle has had first-hand experience advising thousands of executives, senior managers, directors, and employees at the world's leading companies. He draws from this experience to provide coaching programs that serve individuals and organizations throughout the world.

Joel is also a sought-after speaker who conducts workshops, trainings, and keynote addresses that empower corporate audiences. He has delivered more than 1000 customized presentations that provide fresh insight into common issues that employers and employees face.

Joel publishes a popular bimonthly newsletter "Fullfilment@Work," which is delivered to more than 10,000 subscribers in 25 countries around the world.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Getting Ahead Is Good For Getting Noticed November 11, 2011

By Timothy R. Milburn

Format:Hardcover

I have spent the last few weeks working through the pages of Joel A. Garfinkle's latest book, Getting Ahead - Three Steps to Take Your Career To The Next Level. I say "working" because this book is full of great insights, stories, and practical action steps one can take to move forward.

Garfinkle's model is simple and is divided into three parts: Improve your perception, Increase your visibility, and Exert your influence. But his methodology is not simplistic at all. If you want to develop your leadership and increase your odds of future success - you'll have some work to do. This book helps you know what kind of work that will entail.

Each section contains a wealth of anecdotes, quotes, and powerful questions for you to reflect and evaluate your own efforts. There are concise summations at the end of each section, along with a list to "Take Action Now." Each of these provides an important review to make sure you don't miss out on the key points Garfinkle is emphasizing. The book also provides a wide variety of charts and graphs, both to share important data and to demonstrate how concepts may relate to each other.

Overall, the book is a great guide to get you noticed within your workplace. I did wrestle a little bit with the author's depiction of a leader in the section on increasing one's visibility. While it was offered within the context of getting noticed and getting involved, I felt like it didn't leave much room for the quiet, behind-scenes-type leader who may lead with a more introvertive style rather than always being the one who is up front. I did appreciate how Garfinkle brought the concept of leadership up again later in the book as he related it to the level of one's influence. Influence becomes the means by which one advances to higher levels of responsibility and recognition within an organization or group.

Finally, one of the most helpful parts of the book, in my opinion, is the valuable guidance Garfinkle gives in improving one's perception (of you by others). At one point, he provides with ten specific steps you can take to "reinforce a positive perception and/or change a negative one." Some of the advice includes:

- Be assigned to highly visible projects at work.
- Educate management about what you do and what your position is in the company.
- Surround yourself with people whom others respect.
- Know the impact you have on others.
- And six others

I came away from this book greatly encouraged to take more responsibility for the impressions I make in my working environment. Good things aren't just going to magically fall in my lap. Most of the time, it will happen as the result of doing the right things. A lot of those right things are listed out in Joel Garfinkle's book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Invaluable advice good for leaders and entrepreneurs too January 19, 2012

By life story media

Format:Hardcover

Getting Ahead is chock full of practical advice you can apply right away. Even if your career has come to a standstill, you can get it started again by applying the PVI model to get the competitive advantage you need. As a current entrepreneur who has used Joel's consulting services to help create a successful business, I find the advice he gives in his book about many issues such as effective self promotion, creating advocates, and seeking out projects with visibility, to be as valuable to my company, as it is for climbing the career ladder. Besides providing wonderfully concrete advice for your career, its a fantastic way to enhance your own business and marketing plan!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Applicable to All-Including COO's, Drs...-Getting Ahead Helps All January 4, 2012

By Dr. E

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is an exceptionally well-written book in a very user-friendly format. It contains excellent examples that are not only inspiring, but also ones the reader can actually relate to. The chapters flow together well and at the end of every chapter there is a review of the essential points. Information is not delivered in a way that is so esoteric it is difficult to follow. It is rather delivered with a very practical and applicable approach. It is actually a quick and easy read.
Most authors of similar type books instruct the reader what to do, how to believe. This book however starts off asking the reader to make an honest and truthful assessment of themselves. The author then helps you apply his information with that assessment in mind.
Early in the book, in fact, in the introduction, the question is answered "Who is this book written for?" The answer separates the readers into "new employees, mid-level, and upper-level management." Hoever, the concepts of Perception, Visibility, and Influence, as the author points out, actually apply to everyone, Both in the workforce and in our life in general. As a Cardiologist, I found that to be the case. It also enlightende me re: my interactions with my peers and patients.
After reading the book, I passed it along to the Chief Operating Officer of our medical practice. She also found it very informative and insightful, and has recommended it to many of her colleagues.
Whether or not the reader is happy with where they are in their career path, "Getting Ahead" is informative and useful to our lives in general. I strongly recommend it.