You’ve been working in your current position for a while now and you have consistently exceeded all of your anticipated goals, performed exceptionally well during your performance reviews, and have offered to go above and beyond the expectations of your management team. Now, you may be wondering when you can expect a promotion. Should you ask for one or should you wait to see if you should be expecting one?

Before you can determine the answers to those questions, you must first ask yourself if you are ready for what comes with that promotion. To help you out, we’ve taken the time to list 8 signs to help you determine if you’re ready to take on the next steps in your career.

“With great power comes great responsibility” – Spiderman

1. You are ready to handle more responsibilities

If you haven’t felt that your daily workload is challenging or keeps you busy enough, you may be ready for something new. As you are probably already well aware, more will be asked of you as you continue to grow within a company. If you feel that you may crack under the pressure of having more on your plate, maybe wait a while and reassess later on. The last thing you want to do is take on more than you can handle and drop the ball.

It is important to challenge yourself, but it is also equally important to know your limits. If you can confidently say you are ready for more, then it may be time for you to go for it.

2. You are able to manage your time well

As we have just mentioned, you can expect to take on more responsibilities as you progress. In this situation, time management becomes a key skill to have. When at work, do you often feel as though you are accomplishing tasks at a higher level or find yourself actively needing to find work to do? If so, you’ve probably mastered your current daily routine using good time management. If not, you may need to work on perfecting those skills a bit more before you’re ready to move up.

Here are a few tips we recommend to help you make the most of your time:

• Develop workflow and stick to it
• Get rid of all distractions
• Prioritize tasks based on necessity
• Stay organized

All of us can have our off days, even if we are good at managing our time. For more help, read our articles here and here.

“A leader is someone who demonstrates what’s possible” – Mark Yarnell

3. You can take on a leadership position

A good leader can come from anyone who is willing to put in the effort and who actively works for the betterment of those around them. If you are already setting a good example for your fellow employees, you have the makings of a leader. As you continue on, this leadership role will become more and more apparent.

Others may begin to look to you for guidance and assistance. And it won’t always be an easy task. You may have to do some jobs that you may not want to do like having difficult conversations with your staff or with clients. Nonetheless, these jobs must be done and they must be done by a leader.

4. You feel that you have learned all you can from your current role

If you’re anything like me, you learn by doing. Unless you were overly qualified for your current position, you probably did some learning while on the job. This is normal for most employees and is something to be embraced. But what happens when you’ve learned all that you can? In short, it means that you are ready for something new.

While it is important to be ready and willing to learn new skills while on the job, it is also helpful to go into those roles with some preparation to ensure you don’t fall flat on your face. If you’ve decided you’re ready for that promotion but want to make yourself even more prepared, check out our article here on certifications you can earn for free to help give you that boost.

“What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals” – Henry David Thoreau

5. You have accomplished many of your initial goals

When you first earned your current position, you probably established goals for yourself to accomplish. While it is important to constantly be creating new goals for yourself, it is also good practice to pride yourself on what you already have accomplished.

When you look back and reflect on what you have done in this position, examine whether or not you were successful in achieving the goals you set for yourself. Were you constantly meeting or exceeding your mark? Were you consistently performing well during performance reviews? If the answers to these questions and others like it are positive, you’re on the right track towards that promotion. If not, consider reading this article on how to navigate performance reviews and perform better in your job.

6. You’ve gained the trust and confidence of those around you

If your superiors and your fellow employees do not trust you or have faith in you, you will not be getting a promotion anytime soon. Sometimes hiring managers take risks, but more often than not, they won’t. If you appear to be a risky option, they won’t advance you.

This type of honest criticism can sometimes be hard to accept. But you have to ask yourself, “What have I done to build their confidence in me?” If you come up without an answer, consider what you can do going forward to build that trust. To take it further, it isn’t enough to simply earn that trust, but you have to keep it. Trust is a difficult thing to earn but an incredibly easy thing to lose. Always keep that in mind.

7. You are self-sufficient in the workplace

When you first begin a new role, it is normal to have questions or need reassurance. We would even recommend you ask as many questions as you can early on to ensure you don’t make a critical mistake. However, you shouldn’t have to keep asking questions forever. After spending some time in your current role, you are typically expected to learn the ropes and be able to function independently.

If you are unable to make a move without the reassurance of the coworker next to you, you still have some things to learn before you can move on. It can be easy to see this as a negative, but you shouldn’t. If anything, view it as your eagerness to learn and to do your job correctly. The more you are willing to learn, the sooner you will see that promotion. It just may take a bit of time.

“Take the risk or lose the chance.” – Unknown

8. You are willing to take the risk

Taking on a new position comes with its own set of challenges and risks. Even that, in and of itself, can be scary. If you are unwilling to take those risks, you may not be able to accomplish all of your goals. That’s the hard truth. In this case, the only person who can stand in your way is you.

We can’t tell you whether or not to ask for that promotion or even tell you with 100% certainty that you’re ready for what’s next. Although we do hope these 8 signs can help you determine just that. You know yourself and your experiences better than anyone else. Reflect on yourself and your capabilities. Assess the pros and cons. And be ready to make your next move, regardless of what that may be. At the end of the day, it all comes down to taking a leap of faith. So, are you ready?