Please, Boss, Please -- Don't Promote Me!

Sounds a little fishy, doesn't it? Sort of like Brer Rabbit telling Brer Fox, "Please don't fling me in that briar patch!" 

But according to this BusinessWeek item, "Please Don't Promote Me," research from Development Dimensions International (DDI) shows one in five managers ranked getting a promotion their most challenging life event, ahead of bereavement, divorce, moving and raising teenagers.

The DDI research suggests the stress is due to poor support from employers for the managers who are taking on additional responsibilities. Not only does it get lonely on the way to the top, there's less help along the way.

My personal work experience includes both managing dozens of people and working as a solo contributor. I would have to agree that the responsibility that comes with a promotion, from managing more people to greater emphasis on bottom-line performance, is pretty stressful. Not as stressful as raising teenagers -- the people who didn't rank that first probably don't have any -- but those career demands are relentless.

And, yes, it's hard to find meaningful support along the way unless your company has fairly sophisticated management development practices. That's why so many companies want to recruit senior executives from companies with highly-regarded executive training programs like GE and Proctor and Gamble.

Another factor to consider is just where you are in your career. A 20- or 30-something may be looking for the chance to advance. A 50-plus employee who is not on the executive track may not want to take on the pressures -- there are other issues involved. That was certainly a conscious choice I made along the way.

But there are a lot of different viewpoints on this issue, such as:

• The Smart Lemming blog
• "Why Minorities Distrust Employers' Promotion Policies and Practices"
• "Visibility vs. Self- Promotion"
• "Benefits and Drawbacks of Phased Retirement"

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