Hey BAFAM, this episode is sponsored by State Farm. Are you a small business owner looking for insurance that fits your needs and budget? Look no further than State Farm. State Farm agents are not just insurance providers, they're also small business owners who live and work right here in your community. They understand the unique challenges of running and protecting a small business. When it comes to small business insurance, State Farm knows what it takes.
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Hey, be a fan and happy new year. It's officially 2025. It is a new season for Brown ambition. You see, we have a little mysterious look now as far as the show logo goes. I'm taking my time. I'm not trying to come out here with a brand new Luke.
just yet in my new season as host of the show, solo host of the show. So for now, we're going with the classic Brown Ambition logo. And if we have some new listeners this week, thank y'all for joining us. I don't know if y'all saw, but on TikTok, we went a little tiny bit viral. And it was one of those moments where you just can't plan for it. And I'm not going to lie, I really needed a reminder that
I believe in our show so much. I know we're providing so much value, and I know our BA fan that y'all always ride for us, and you've been so incredible through this transition, but it's never enough. It's never too late or too much to just tell.
the people that you love and that you turn to that they're doing a good job. And I just really appreciate y'all rallying around the show and letting everyone on TikTok know where the girls can find us. And so if you found our ambition through TikTok this past week, welcome.
You are right where you need to be at the right time. We're going to take real good care at you. And this is the B.A. Q.A. So every Friday we take questions from our listeners and I told y'all I am emptying out. I am dusting out, dusting off and getting rid of all the old dusty questions in the inbox that we have been collecting for years. And I'm starting from scratch.
So I need some new questions, y'all. Hit me up, Brown Ambition podcast at gmail.com or slide into my DMs. I'm at Brown Ambition podcast on Instagram. You can send us a DM, a voice memo, whatever works for you, okay? We'd love to get your questions, career, finance, investing, relationship, health, whatever it may be, whatever's on your spirit. And to kick off the new year, we are gonna take a question from a listener who is
Doing what I think a lot of us are looking at for the new year is, how the hell am I going to get this raggedy job to give me a promotion, honey? Right? So I'm going to take a question or listener there. And I hope you guys enjoy. Happy, happy new year. Again, this is Mandy with Brown Ambition.
ABA fam, it's time for the B-A-Q-A. A, the B-A-Q-A. What to say, the B-A-Q-A with Manday, the B-A-Q-A-A. I am here to answer one of our beautiful B-A listeners' career questions. I can't believe you guys trust us like you do. And we love that, but
I will just go ahead and do the mandatory obligatory disclaimer so that you can listen, but you can't sue us because we are your financial besties. I am a career coach, but I'm not your career coach, which is really important. And ultimately, you got to do what you got to do with the information that you have. We're not your lawyer. We're not your financial planner. All of that good stuff. So this is just for funsies, just what basically your financial bestie slash big sister, big sis.
would say to you. And today we are jumping in with a really juicy career question from listener Brie. Thank you, Brie. And let's dive on in because this question is really, really good. All right, Brie says, hey, Mandy, I'm looking for some career advice. I am a program manager at a mid-size nonprofit. And I've been with this organization for almost four years. In the last year, I've seen a lot of staffing changes happen at the organization.
various people have been let go while others have chosen to leave on their own. I've been trying to keep my head down and not get too shaken up by this because the job itself has pretty good benefits. However, two weeks ago, I was informed that my supervisor was let go for legal reasons. I'm trying to figure out what this means for me. There has been no decision yet.
about whether they will fill my old manager's position. Currently, I'm reporting to his old supervisor and managing some of his responsibilities. My question is, how patient should I be with waiting to hear the direction of our department and my decision? Should I suggest a promotion for myself or wait to see what they decide? If I should assert myself, how should I go about it? And if I should wait for how long? Thank you both.
Oh, I really love this question. It's multifaceted, multilayered. And the first thing I'm going to say is you may think that the word nonprofit is not you personally breed, but just the listeners like y'all may think that nonprofit world and the nonprofit space in general is, I don't know, some sort, like on a different level than the for-profit corporate space, but I have said it once and I'll say it. I probably said it more than once.
I say it all the time, nonprofits can be just as janky, just as dysfunctional, just as greedy and toxic as name the most toxic company you can think of. Like, why is Tesla coming to mind? I don't know. Maybe because I read things.
So think about a nonprofit like you would any other job. I don't care what, I don't care how sanctimonious your causes or what your admission statement is and all the incredible work you do for the world. Some of the best businesses do incredible things for their customers, for the people who purchase their products. That's the same thing as customers. You know what I mean before the world, but they can still be really effing toxic inside. Who doesn't love Amazon, but y'all have heard the worst thing about working there.
Okay. The same things can be true for nonprofits. And I just want to like preface my answer by saying that, um, don't let them get away with toxic shit and don't fool yourself into thinking that you will be treated anymore.
you know, I don't know, generously or, yeah, just treat it any differently than you might in the corporate world because at the end of the day, they also have money to make funds to raise. And the level of toxicity really is like a people thing, right? So if they hire the person who is more toxic or a leader who is more toxic,
then it can be quite toxic. They can also have free organizations. They can also have cuts to budgets, like the same stuff that happens in the for-profit world. So first, Brie, I want to commend you because you are not keeping your head down. You are keeping in the loop about what's new. You're not trying to ignore what's going on. Like you are seeing the signs of dysfunction and seeing the signs of the boat is rocking and then where do I fit?
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Hey, VA fam, this episode is sponsored by State Farm. Are you a small business owner looking for insurance that fits your needs and budget? Look no further than State Farm. State Farm agents are not just insurance providers. They're also small business owners who live and work right here in your community. They understand the unique challenges of running and protecting a small business. When it comes to small business insurance, State Farm knows what it takes. Create a plan that fits your needs and your budget.
State Farm agents are ready to help you choose personalized policies that truly understand your business. Ensure your small business with a fellow small business owner. Talk to a State Farm agent today and get started on personalized small business insurance that fits your needs. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there. Talk to your local agent today.
The first thing I'll say is this doesn't necessarily have to mean that your job is on the line, although that ultimately could be the case. But in this case, you might find an opportunity for yourself, like you say, to move into a different role, or at least present yourself or position yourself as someone who
can be relied upon, can be counted on during these times of a little bit of chaos, all these different fluctuations. When companies, nonprofit or for-profit, when they are going through reorganizations, there is that level of what on earth is going on. And it seems like the leaders kind of sometimes know what's going on, but that doesn't really trickle down. And that causes a lot of misinformation. It can cause a lot of stress and anxiety just from the lack
of understanding. And I will tell you as a, you know, former corporate leader myself, what can be really frustrating is when you have direct reports or team members who are very, very antsy and don't really do well in times of uncertainty and they start like losing their shit and they start getting really stressed and their work product starts to get affected. If you can prove and show by your actions that you are someone who is steadfast,
who can get the shit done and still show up and be reliable. The holes and the gaps that are being created as they shift things around and as people leave for whatever reason, whether it's like just personnel cuts or like in the situation with your manager, sounds like they were fired for cause. When that happens, if they can turn to you and they can say, okay, Brie.
We don't know what's going on with this particular project, but we know that you're a really good program manager. So we're going to put you on it. And then you just take the ball and you run with it. Like that can actually open you up to additional, you know, opportunities for promotion raises down the line because they rely on you. All of a sudden, someone who like maybe you were a really important team member, but you become even more important during times of uncertainty like this because they start to rely on you for the knowledge that you have from working there.
for as long as you have, maybe you were the only person who knew what the F your supervisor meant by the emails they were sending and the plans that they had.
and you know basically where all the bodies are buried, like that institutional knowledge makes you important, makes you special, okay? So as far as your decision, and as far as their decision or whether or not they will fill your old manager's position, I myself was in this exact same situation about a decade ago when I was a writer,
um, for a big publication and my editor was fired and I was maybe there for a little over a year and I didn't waste any time and I don't think you should either going up to leadership whoever's there and telling them, hey, um, you know, I'm really sorry about what's happened with so and so I just want to let you know that I feel more than capable of taking on additional responsibilities, taking on this position. So please consider me if you were looking to, um, fill that manager's position.
I believe the word that one would use to describe this kind of tactic is opportunistic, but like, so what? I don't know. I feel like opportunistic is the same as ambitious, where when you put it in the same sentence as a woman at work, it has this like connotation of negativity, but girl, be opportunistic. That's what a career is. You got to take your chances and you know, you don't have to feel or I hope you don't feel
You know, some type of way about, oh, this is my old manager's job. Am I being disloyal? Like it is what it is. You're still there. You have a long career ahead of you. So I think it makes perfect sense for you to just go and tell them like, Hey, I'm here. You know, feel free to ask me questions. Feel free to rely on me, like let them know they can count on you in there. Yeah. And your manager is absence. Okay.
Your next question is, should I suggest a promotion for myself or wait to see what they decide? Like I just said, you should go in there. You don't have to suggest a promotion, but you should just say, hey, I'm here. Here's what I understand. Here's what I can do. I know that this person is left. I want to throw my hat in the ring if you're looking for someone to take that place and let them decide. Now, if you're, they may have certain levels, even at a nonprofit, there's like levels, you know, and job levels and job titles and,
Like if it's too far of a jump for them for you to go from program manager to like, I don't know, director of programs or whatever your manager's title was, maybe there's another title they can give you and give you a bump up and give you more responsibilities. So I think you should, even if they, even if they say, Hey, we're working on a plan, we'll get back to you. You should schedule some time, chat to them candidly and say, Hey, I'm ready for more responsibilities. I don't know what it's going to look like in the future here, but a I'm not going anywhere. I'm down.
Okay, maybe don't say you're not going anywhere because, you know, you might, but at least let them know that you're around, you're available, like, reach out. All right. Now.
You also ask if I should wait for how long. I don't think you should wait. So that's an easy answer. Don't wait. All right. I'm going to take a quick break and be right back. And we're going to talk about Brie, what else you can do to become professionally resilient and how to not let this situation hinder the rest of your career. All right. Be right back.
And I am back to answer Bree's question. Bree has a very juicy question about what's going on at her nonprofit right now. Manager has been quit. There's been staffing changes. Things are in flux. It's all shenanigans. All right, Bree. So we already said that you should assert yourself. You should go for the open opportunities if you want them. And if you feel like you're a good fit for that, however, I think you would be wise to make sure that your LinkedIn is updated
that you are contacting your network and staying in touch with your network so that they know what's going on. And you can kind of keep them on watch like, hey, guys, it's a little funky over here. I might be reaching out in the future, but if you know of anything that's open, here's the kind of role I'm looking for. Feel free to reach out to me, make connections with your network just to start warming them up on the off chance that
you also are affected by these staffing changes, because we all know shit can happen. On top of that, I would say while you're making those connections, what I want to caution you against is being overly candid about what's going on at your nonprofit. This goes in the same category as what to do when you're interviewing for a job.
and you're leaving a really shitty experience where you're currently at. You don't want to spend a lot of time in an interview or in a conversation with someone from your network who can potentially lead you to another opportunity like bashing your ex. It may feel good, but save that conversation for happy hour with your BFFs. Don't take it to a professional conversation. Why? Because maybe they'll understand where you're coming from, but it's going to leave them with an impression of you of being someone who is negative.
being someone who's going to gossip and talk smack behind their backs if you decide that they are toxic and that you want to share what's been going on. So I would just keep a professional. You can say, hey, I've been at this nonprofit for a few years now as a program manager. There's just a lot going on right now. There are staffing changes. My supervisor has been let go. And it's just made me sort of reevaluate where I'm going in my career. And so I'm reaching out to you to have a discussion about
potential opportunities at your firm and you can like insert the name of the firm there and just leave it at that. And if they want you to like spill the tea, then you got to make a call. Like, is it worth sort of like loosening your professionalism just to kind of give someone else a little kiki and give someone, everyone loves a little gossip, right? But it could actually do more harm than good if you kind of take that path and follow the like, ooh, let me tell you every little detail of what's happening here.
Like keep it professional and just keep focused on the value that you can bring and the work that you have done. Yeah, so that's what I'll say, Bri. Thank you so much for your question. Good luck. We love updates, y'all. So if we answer a question and you have an update, feel free to hit us up again. We are brand ambition podcast on IG or you can email us brand ambition podcast at gmail.com. All right, until next time. Bye, B.A. fam.
Hi, I'm Joe Salci. Hi, host of the Stacking Benjamin's Podcast. Every week, we talk to experts about saving, investing, personal finance trends. Oh, crypto. Can't do it. You could have done all that research, all the breadcrumbs, and thought this company's never going bankrupt. Foiled again. You never knew personal finance could be this fun. Throwin' down the gauntlet. I'm bringin' it today. I'm only gonna be off by six figures. Perfect and seven. Every boy has a dream, Doc. Every boy has a dream. Sure. Stacking Benjamin's. Followin' listen on your favorite platform.
