Oct. 2, 2026
There’s an incredibly easy way to move into a leadership position early on in your career, even within your first year or two…
The magic secret: Work in a field with extremely high turnover.
At one of my first “real” jobs (aside from temp work and brief manual labor gigs), I worked as a direct care staff at a group home for children. I was promoted to a supervisory position within the first year.
This was not due to my high performance; I was reliable and a hard worker, but I certainly wasn’t better than anyone else who was reliable and hardworking.
Rather, I was promoted because I stuck around!
The field of residential youth work tends to have a very high rate of staff turnover. It’s stressful work, and there’s usually little in the way of recognition and rewards.
In fields like this, if you show up and work hard, then…simply don’t quit…then you’re going to find yourself as one of the senior staff in relatively short order.
Obligatory caveat: I did have a bachelor’s degree, which did set me apart from others who did not. But I wasn’t the only college grad.
