Didn’t get that promotion? How to turn ‘no’ into opportunity

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. You got turned down for a promotion, and you’d love nothing more than to bolt for a better opportunity at another firm. Trouble is, hiring is slowing, starting salaries are stagnant or shrinking, and companies are hollowing out middle management.

Job openings are down 8.6%, year over year, according to federal data published Tuesday. The number of people quitting their jobs—a proxy for workers’ ability to find greener pastures—has fallen 2.6% during the same period. So you might be stuck making the best of your current situation.

That might not be such a bad thing. Staying put with a strategy for advancement can actually help your career, according to people who have turned rejections into future promotions. The key is recognizing you have leverage as a runner-up, even though you might feel undervalued in the moment.

Carson Heady, who now works for Microsoft, says he once jumped ship after missing a promotion and regretted leaving. Carson Heady, managing director of the Americas region in Microsoft’s Tech for Social Impact group, left a previous employer in a huff after losing out on a promotion. He quickly regretted the decision, partly because starting over at a company where he had no internal network proved harder than he anticipated.

Years later, at Microsoft, he was more deliberate when he got passed over for a promotion he expected to win. He congratulated the person who beat him and studied the qualities that set the successful candidate apart. He also sought constructive criticism, requested a mentor and asked for a clear path to a bigger role.