How to Ask for a Promotion in Sales: Margaret’s Story

“I never asked!”

Margaret, a CMO, shared a phenomenal story at her company’s “Gals in Sales” event in Seattle.

In a previous role, she was asked to interview candidates to be her new boss. But halfway through the process, she realized…

“I can do this job.”

Problem was, she’d never let anyone know.

Margaret’s story isn’t uncommon. We see this all the time with high-performing sales reps and managers. They’re doing great work, hitting goals, and showing leadership potential… but they’re not actually communicating what they want next.

More than one-third of #GirlsClub participants say they hesitate to ask for development or discuss their career goals for fear of wasting people’s time. This fuels the “Confidence Gap” that HP identified a few years ago, showing that women tend to wait until they feel 100% ready before raising their hands for a role, while men often do so at around 60%.

What you may not realize yet is that Margaret is amazing. Microsoft. Intel. Wharton. Northwestern. I’m feeling more and more inferior as I type this. Ladies, if Margaret felt intimidated to raise her hand, it’s more than fair for the rest of us to feel that way too.

But this story has a different ending.

Because Margaret found the courage (I call this putting on my big girl pants) and asked her boss to be considered for the position.

Please note:
She didn’t complain that she wasn’t considered.
She didn’t blame him for the experience of interviewing people she felt less qualified than.
She didn’t assume she was being disrespected or marginalized.

She simply realized she hadn’t communicated and fixed it.

And his reaction?

“I had no idea.”

Margaret quickly found her way to the top of that organization and others. I won’t say it starts with raising your hand, because it doesn’t. It starts with being exceptional, working hard, having great ideas, following up. You know, all the things you’re already doing.

But the next part of your story starts with raising your hand and communicating what you want. Because confidence isn’t just personal, it directly impacts your performance, visibility, and career trajectory. If your manager doesn’t know what you want, they can’t help you get there.

Not sure how?

Check out our webinar, “Earn That Promotion: Asking For It The Right Way,” where we cover not only how to throw your hat in the ring, but the earlier step of letting people know you even have a hat and want to learn more about the ring. (And yes, this is something we coach sales teams and leaders on all the time.)

In summary, I hear this story over and over. Why aren’t there more women in sales?

Sure, there’s bias in job descriptions. There are still boys’ clubs that make us feel like outsiders. The numbers aren’t always in our favor.

But we are often our own biggest blocker.

If you’ve read this and haven’t talked with your boss in the past six months about where you want to go in your career, make that appointment.

Not to demand.
Not to complain.
Not to convince.

To discuss, learn, absorb advice, and consider.

This is one of the simplest, most overlooked skills we see in sales organizations. The people who grow fastest are the ones who communicate early and often about where they want to go.

It’s step one.

And it certainly worked for Margaret.