Avoiding Professional Pitfalls

If you’re hiring right now, you need to be aware of these mistakes. If you’re looking for a job, maybe you can learn something from these. 7 Ways People Screw Up Hiring: – Mistake #1: Horns and halo biases Human beings are quick to jump to conclusions. We can move forward decisively, but we’re vulnerable to all sorts of cognitive biases. The Horns Effect is when our perception of somebody is unduly influenced by a single trait we see as negative. The Halo Effect is the opposite: one positive trait can make us feel overly positive about a person as a whole. – Mistake #2: Urgency bias A great hire is one of the highest-value things you can get right. Hiring the wrong person is an extremely expensive mistake. In hiring, many people put too much weight on the pain of that position being open. “X can’t move forward until this hire is complete,” or “Filling X position will take so much off my plate.” It takes twice as long (or more!) to find an A-player candidate, but that’s worth 10x in the long run. – Mistake #3: Not checking references 2/3rds of resumes stretch the truth or outright lie. A smart person can make their resume tell any story they want. A second-order mistake people make here is only calling the references a candidate provides. If you tell a candidate that you do 5 hours of reference calls, it it tends to scare off a lot of bad candidates. – Mistake #4: A super-narrow candidate pool Some jobs have no wiggle room when it comes to experience. Pilots, nuclear technicians, and tapdancing instructors all need direct work experience to succeed. But for lots of other roles, it can help to keep an open mind when it comes to background. Personally, I like hiring young people to leadership positions: It gives them an opportunity they’re thrilled about, They’re open to influence and training, and they’re hungry. Keep an open mind. – Mistake #5: Keeping your candidates in the dark Let’s assume you’ve landed on a good hiring system. If it’s not transparent to your candidates, you’re going to see people walk away or count themselves out. When applicants see a clear, organized process, and understand how they fit into it, they’re more likely to stick it out. – Mistake #6: Ignoring your gut Our brains are constantly building a subconscious database of information. So if you’ve got a bad feeling about a candidate, dig deeper. Note that I’m not saying trust your gut blindly. But try to find what’s setting off your radar. Look for biases. Look for evidence. If you can’t figure it out, talk it through with someone you trust. – Mistake #7: Wanting perfection Most people want to bat 100% in hiring. It’s a bad way to think about it. Because it leads you to only hire “safe” candidates with low ceilings. People are just too complex and every situation differs. I step back and think about my hit rate. Can I hit 60-70% hiring A-players?

I did everything you’re told to do to get promoted. I worked hard. Delivered stellar results. Said “yes” to extra work. Stayed “professional” and low-drama. And I was still overlooked. It was one of the most frustrating lessons of my corporate career in a big organisation. Now, after coaching hundreds of women managers in science and tech, here’s what I know for sure: It’s not always about how much effort you put in. It’s about the invisible habits that quietly cancel out your impact. The ones no one teaches you. The ones polite corporate culture tells women are “good behaviour”. Here are 7 invisible mistakes I wish I’d known earlier, and what to do instead: 1️⃣ Being too easy to work with ↪ Over-accommodating doesn’t make you a dream teammate. It makes you forgettable. Boundaries signal that your time has value. 2️⃣ Saying yes too quickly ↪ Instant agreement looks reactive, not strategic. Leaders respect people who pause, prioritise and then commit. 3️⃣ Making progress without telling anyone ↪ In male-dominated spaces, invisible effort gets ignored. Strategic updates are not bragging. They’re how leaders track impact. 4️⃣ Overthinking feedback instead of asking for clarity ↪ Spinning for hours on “what did they mean?” drains your energy. Ask for specifics so you can course-correct like a leader. 5️⃣ Trying to be liked by everyone ↪ Avoiding conflict to stay “neutral” makes you look weak. Senior leaders are paid to handle tension, not escape it. 6️⃣ Delivering “perfect” work too late ↪ Endless polishing delays decisions. In reality, progress beats perfection every single time. 7️⃣ Saying sorry too much ↪ Over-apologising shrinks your presence. It trains people to see you as less confident than you are. Bonus – the biggest trap of all: 8️⃣ Waiting for recognition ↪ Hoping your work will “speak for itself” keeps you stuck in the shadows. Self-advocacy isn’t arrogance; it’s part of the job. In today’s corporate world, visibility beats effort every time. Which of these habits hit home for you? And which one are you ready to ditch first? If this hits a nerve and you’re ready to be visible (not just busy): 🔹 Elevate – my leadership accelerator for promotion-ready women managers – opens in January. Comment ELEVATE if you want details. ♻️ Repost to help others see their blindspots. ➕ Follow Nadira Artyk for more on leadership, career and mindset.

Too many careers die in silence. Not because someone lacked talent But because they were too polite to be taken seriously. I once worked with someone who was liked by everyone. Helpful. Reliable. Always said yes. Never caused waves. Never said “I disagree.” They were the definition of “easy to work with.” But when a stretch role came up? They were passed over. Again. Why? Because while they were agreeable… they were also invisible. Here’s the hard truth: Being easy to work with should never mean being easy to walk over. Let’s talk numbers: 🔹 61% of professionals admit they’ve taken on more work without more pay just to seem like team players. 🔹 But research shows that high performers who don’t speak up for themselves are 46% more likely to be overlooked for promotion. So no...it’s not your talent that’s the issue. It’s that you’ve been told to shrink it to keep the peace. my point is: We were taught to be helpful. To make life easier for others. To not “be difficult.” But here’s what I’ve learned: 🚫 Quiet loyalty doesn’t get rewarded. 🚫 Agreeability isn’t a promotion strategy. 🚫 And if you never challenge the room, no one will ever see you as a leader. So what do you do instead? ✅ Speak up...especially when it’s uncomfortable ✅ Set boundaries without apologizing ✅ Bring ideas, not just answers ✅ Stop managing others’ comfort and start owning your value Because the person who’s the easiest to work with… is often the easiest to forget. Follow Feras Asakrieh  for more bold truths and real strategies about how careers actually grow. #CareerAdvice #Leadership #Boundaries #Visibility #Promotion #MindsetShift

The Flip Side of Being Always Available at Work 📱⚠️ Being “always available” often looks like commitment. Quick replies. Late-night calls. Weekend fixes. Instant support. At first, people appreciate it. You become the dependable one. The go-to person. The safe pair of hands. 👏 But there’s a hidden cost. When availability becomes your identity, boundaries disappear. People stop planning because you’ll handle it. Urgent and important get mixed together. Your responsiveness becomes an expectation, not an exception. And the biggest risk? You may look busy all the time, but not necessarily strategic. Careers grow through impact, thinking, leadership, and decision-making — not just being online 24/7. Being professional does not mean being permanently reachable. Sometimes the most productive thing you can say is: ✔️ Let’s discuss this tomorrow. ✔️ This can wait. ✔️ I’m offline now. Availability is valuable. But sustainability is essential. 🚀 #WorkLifeBalance #Leadership #CareerGrowth #Productivity #WorkCulture #ProfessionalDevelopment

A few years ago, I met a CEO who was confused about why his team wasn’t working well: → Morale was low → People were leaving → Results were below expectations Initially, he thought that the culture was the issue. Until we realized the issue was the way how he hired. He had made one mistake after another but he couldn't see them. This happens a lot. Most hiring mistakes don’t show up right away. They slowly damage what you're trying to build. Here’s what I’ve noticed from working with leaders: → A perfect resume can hide big issues → Rushing to hire often leads to regrets → And the wrong mindset on a team spreads like wildfire Here are 9 key mistakes I’ve seen (and how to fix them): 1️⃣ Overvaluing experience → Many years on a resume doesn’t mean future success → Look for curiosity, a learning mindset, and adaptability 2️⃣ Ignoring cultural fit → A hire who doesn’t match your values will deeply hurt → Hire for values and attitude first, skills second 3️⃣ Asking weak questions → Like “What’s your strength?” don’t reveal much → Ask how they’ve grown or handled challenges 4️⃣ Relying too much on resumes → A polished resume doesn’t show who they really are → Use interviews and tasks to uncover their character 5️⃣ Focusing only on talent → A star who can’t work with others will destroy culture → Hire people who help everyone around them do better 6️⃣ Ignoring integrity → Skills change, but honesty doesn’t → Make the character a must-have in hiring 7️⃣ Skipping real tests → Interviews can miss how someone works in real life → Use tasks or scenarios to test their abilities 8️⃣ Overlooking potential → Hiring for today’s needs creates gaps for the future → Choose people who can grow with your company 9️⃣Rushing the process → Fast hiring often leads to bad decisions → Take your time to assess mindset, fit, and potential In summary... Hiring isn’t just about filling a job. It’s about building the best possible team to fulfill your vision as a leader. I'm curious: Which mistake have you seen the most? ♻️ Repost it to help leaders avoid these mistakes and follow Andrea Petrone for more.

Being "easy to work with" made me invisible. Here's how I fixed it: For years, I thought being calm, flexible, and agreeable made me a great teammate. It did... until it didn't. I wasn't just being "easy to work with". I was being overly accommodating. And it was costing me credit, confidence, and opportunities. 5 simple shifts that changed everything ⚡️ 1) I paused before saying yes ↳ That tiny silence signaled thoughtfulness, not hesitation ↳ It showed I was weighing the request, not rushing to please 2) I stopped apologizing for boundaries ↳ Instead of "Sorry, I'm swamped," I said: "I can start this Tuesday, does that work?" ↳ Ownership sounds stronger than apology 3) I gave updates before being asked ↳ Visibility builds trust ↳ Proactive communication = dependable and competent 4) I shared input instead of just agreement ↳ "That could work. Another option might be X, what do you think?" ↳ It turned me from agreeable to valuable 5) I kept kindness, but added clarity ↳ "Yes, I can help, but I'll need to wrap up two things first" ↳ Calm boundaries earn more respect than charm ever will Now people still describe me as easy to work with. But it means reliable, respected, and clear. Being kind doesn't mean being a pushover. It means being steady enough to speak with clarity. Which one of these would make the biggest difference in your week? -- ♻️ Repost to help someone reclaim their confidence at work 🔔 Follow me Dr. Carolyn Frost for more tools on EQ, boundaries, and sustainable success.

Career tip: Don’t try to be ‘nice’ As a young woman, I spent most of my career people-pleasing and saying yes to basically everything. Here’s what it cost me... → Worked weekends without extra pay → Avoided negotiating my salary or promotions → Smiled through unfair decisions instead of pushing back → Took on responsibilities outside my role without recognition → Avoided giving tough feedback to my team And this isn’t just me. Women are 48% more likely than men to volunteer for ‘office housework’ aka tasks like note-taking or making coffee. And get this, 57% of women around the world have NEVER even asked for a pay rise. Being “nice” doesn’t just hurt your career. It teaches others to undervalue your time, your ideas, and your leadership. Be polite. Be firm. Hold your boundaries. Start choosing what serves your growth, not just their comfort.

Audits are the most exciting part of recruiting. Said no one EVER. That’s probably why most companies aren’t audit-ready. Here’s the thing: you can’t scramble to get ready for an audit when it happens. The key is staying compliant every single day. Here’s how: ➜ Documentation: Keep track of job descriptions, candidate conversations, interview notes, and hiring decisions. A good ATS is your best friend for keeping it all organized. ➜ Training: Make sure your hiring managers and recruiters know the rules—EEOC regulations, fair hiring practices, all that good stuff. Most mistakes happen because someone didn’t know any better. ➜ Checkpoints: Regularly review job postings, candidate criteria, and interview questions. They need to stay consistent, compliant, and bias-free. ➜ Technology: Use tools that help track compliance, generate reports, and flag risks. Humans make mistakes. Automation can catch them before they become problems. ➜ Audit Yourself: Internal reviews matter. Do them consistently to spot gaps before an external audit does. It also shows you’re proactive about compliance. Don’t stress about perfection. Just have the right systems in place to show fairness, consistency, and compliance. If you need some help building that system, shoot me a DM. #hr #talentmanagement #workforceplanning

Being "easy to work with" is not always a compliment. It's one of the most praised traits in leadership and one of the least defined. Right now, LinkedIn is full of advice encouraging leaders to be more collaborative, more agreeable, more easy to work with. That sounds right. Until you ask a harder question: Easy for whom, and at what cost? At the executive level, "easy to work with" should mean: ✅ Clear expectations ✅ Calm under pressure ✅ Open to challenge ✅ Consistent in standards ✅ Decisive once context is understood But too often, the definition slowly shifts: ❌ Avoids tension ❌ Doesn't challenge assumptions ❌ Keeps disagreement quiet ❌ Prioritizes harmony over clarity ❌ Accepts misalignment to preserve relationships Those are not leadership strengths. They are signals that truth is being filtered. Here's the paradox: The more senior the role, the higher the cost of artificial ease. Because friction is information. Disagreement is data. Tension often signals something important trying to surface. When leaders optimize for being “easy to work with”, teams learn to make leadership comfortable instead of making decisions better. Reality becomes harder to see. The strongest leaders I've advised are not difficult people. They are clear people. Working with them is easy because expectations are known, not because truth is avoided. Leadership is not measured by how comfortable you make the room. It is measured by how clearly the room sees reality because you are in it. ⸻ ➕ Follow me (Tash) for leadership clarity where truth improves decisions ♻️ REPOST if this reframed collaboration for you 📌 Ready to lead with clarity over comfort? Join: https://lnkd.in/edvRXWvu

7 Signs You’re a People-Pleaser at Work  (And how it’s holding back your career) It's easy to fall into the trap,  thinking you're just being a good team player. Believing that saying yes to everything is the path to success. I see it happen with the brilliant women I work with. Here's what unfolds: - You get passed over for promotions - You burn out from lack of boundaries  - You watch less qualified colleagues advance past you Sound familiar?  Then it's time to break the people-pleasing cycle. Here's how to recognize and reverse the pattern: (And what the research tells us) 1. You minimize microaggressions  ↳ You let it slide when interrupted or questioned  ↳ Say "I wasn't finished speaking" when needed  💡 78% of women who face microaggressions self-shield. (McKinsey) 2. You apologize for having boundaries  ↳ "Sorry, but I can't" instead of "I'm not available"  ↳ Remove unnecessary apologies  💡 Women's qualifiers undermine their authority. (Forbes) 3. You hesitate to negotiate salary  ↳ Accepting first offers to avoid seeming "difficult"  ↳ Research market rates before discussions  💡 Australian women earn 78 cents per male dollar. (WGEA) 4. You downplay your achievements  ↳ "It wasn't just me" becomes your reflex  ↳ Practice saying "Thank you" instead  💡 75% of female executives experience imposter syndrome. (Forbes) 5. You avoid speaking up in meetings  ↳ You stay quiet despite having valuable insights  ↳ Start small, then build to bigger opinions 💡 Companies with 30%+ women executives outperform others. (McKinsey) 6. You take on invisible work without credit  ↳ Documentation and support fall to you by default  ↳ Document all extra duties outside your role  💡 Women often handle unrecognized responsibilities. (CIO) 7. You overcompensate with extra hours  ↳ Working longer to prove your worth  ↳ Set firm offline hours and stick to them  💡 Only 21% of women in tech find it easy to thrive. (Accenture) Your worth isn't determined by how much you give to others. It's time to please the most important person in your career journey: yourself. What's one people-pleasing habit you're ready to break?  Share below. 📩 If you enjoyed this content, you might like my newsletter here: https://lnkd.in/g6PUXtCc ___ ♻️ Share this to help someone in your network 🔔 Follow me for more insights on career and wellbeing.