Many mid-career or senior professionals realise that their career has plateaued. When they were young, they grew very fast, but that growth has now slowed down.
Your income, status or position grows 10-20% per year, 100-200% jumps don’t look feasible now. You earn well and are comfortable, but you are not able to jump to the next level – seemingly enjoyed by only a few top managers.
For some of you, it has been a while since you have been in this phase.
This is the middle-management trap. It is difficult to escape. More than 90% middle managers and professionals get caught here.
On top of that, you can sense competition intensifying every day with younger, hungrier professionals coming up the ranks. You sometimes wonder what you will have to do in order to stay relevant, stay ahead of the curve. Staying stationary and comfortable starts to feel like a bad idea.
Do you feel like this sometimes?
Are you facing the middle-management trap maybe consciously or without even realising it?
Many professionals are forced to keep working even after the time when they should retire. The financial situation does not add up to allow them to retire!
Age will not always be on your side, and the opportunities shrink as you get older. Also, there is tremendous pressure to stay relevant in a fast-evolving world. Technology is changing. New industries and new companies are coming up, and younger people are always doing something new and interesting. If you don’t keep up with the times, you will not be able to contribute to the new economy.
Escape the trap
So what is your current strategy to beat the middle-management trap confronted, as you are, with an ever-changing professional landscape and relentless competition?
What are you going to do that will allow you to retire in peace while you remain relevant and productive?
How can you get to the next level fast?
How can you build a legacy? Be a part of top management?
Motivational speaker Jim Rohn famously said that we are the average of the five people we spend the most time with. Basically, you are who you hang out with.
To take your career to the next level, you need to be in a position where you rub shoulders with top management. Where you regularly interact with them. That is the only way you can get opportunities to play a bigger role.
Today we introduce you to an unique opportunity that puts you squarely in that position – becoming an independent director!
All listed companies need to appoint at least one-third of the directors on their board as independent directors (IDs). If the Chairman is an executive director (e.g. MD, CEO, etc.) then at least half of the board members must be independent.
In addition to that, public companies with a paid-up capital of INR 10 crore or more, or a turnover of over INR 100 crore, or with debt/loans of INR 50 crore or more, need to appoint at least 2 independent directors even if they are not listed on the stock exchanges.
These are basically the largest businesses in India. And they need to appoint unrelated people, outside their network – but people with certain qualifications.
And currently, there are not enough people qualified to be appointed in these positions. There is a huge shortage, and there lies your opportunity.
As an independent director, you sit on the board of these companies. You are responsible for asking the right questions about their governance in relevant meetings. As a side effect, you are also networking with the top management, CEOs, promoters, MDs, investors – basically the movers and shakers of the industry.