S7 Ep7: How to Get on the Radar for Leadership Opportunities

Welcome back to Your Path to Career Success, the podcast that helps you build the skills, confidence, and strategy to thrive in your career.

In this 11-minute episode, we dive into a question that comes up often in coaching conversations: “How do I get noticed for leadership opportunities?”

Maybe you've been quietly excelling in your role, but feel overlooked for leadership opportunities.
Perhaps you've informally taken on leadership tasks, or you’re considering that next step and wondering how to put yourself forward without appearing too pushy. The reality is: leadership opportunities don't just land in your lap—they're often earned through strategic actions and visibility.

In this episode, we'll walk you through key strategies to ensure you're seen, remembered, and considered for leadership roles when they arise.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
•Own Your Career Narrative – Be intentional about your leadership journey, clarify the type of leader you want to be, and make decisions aligned with your goals.
•The Importance of Visibility – Learn how to ensure key decision-makers are aware of your contributions, both through in-person actions and online presence.
•Lead Before You Have the Title – Start demonstrating leadership behaviours now, even if you don’t have the formal title yet.
•Executive Communication – Develop the ability to communicate clearly and confidently to inspire and influence others.
•The Power of Sponsors – Understand why you need sponsors—not just mentors—to open doors and advocate for you when leadership opportunities arise.
•Deliver Impactful Results – Showcase your achievements in a way that highlights your readiness for the next step in your career.

What next?
A big thank you for tuning in to Your Path To Career Success – where your dreams and your career intertwine!
🦉 Book a free discovery call to explore how my Unlock Your Career Potential coaching programme can support your leadership goals.
🦉 If this episode resonated with you, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone ready to lead with intention.
🦉 Interested in working with me 1-2-1? Book a slot here: https://calendly.com/thecareerowl.
🦉 You can also connect with me over on LinkedIn for more career strategy and leadership insights.

Stay tuned for more episodes focused on helping you unlock your full leadership potential!

Useful Resources:
🎧 Further Listening & Reading
•Book: Own the Room: Discover Your Signature Voice to Master Your Leadership Presence by Amy Jen Su & Muriel Maignan Wilkins – A guide to building executive presence and speaking with influence.
•TED Talk: How Great Leaders Inspire Action by Simon Sinek – A compelling talk on how leaders can inspire others to act.
•Article: How to Position Yourself for Leadership Opportunities – Harvard Business Review – A valuable read on leveraging your skills to be noticed for promotions.

🧠 Coaching Tools You Might Love
• My Unlock Your Career Potential Coaching Programme – Dive deeper into leadership development and career strategy with tailored 1-2-1 support.

Transcript

Welcome back to Your Path to Career Success, the podcast that helps you build the skills, confidence, and strategy to thrive in your career. 

I’m your host Kathryn, and today we’re talking about something that comes up a lot—especially in coaching conversations:
👉 “How do I get noticed for leadership opportunities?”

Maybe you’ve been quietly delivering strong results for a while. Maybe you’ve stepped up informally, led a few projects, mentored others—but it still feels like you’re being overlooked. Or maybe you’re eyeing that next step and thinking, “How do I even start putting myself forward without sounding pushy?”

The truth is: leadership opportunities rarely just appear. They’re often the result of consistent, visible action—paired with intention.

So in this episode, we’re going to unpack some of the most effective ways to make sure you’re not only seen, but remembered when opportunities arise.

In today’s episode, we’ll cover:
✔️ How to take control of your career narrative and be intentional about your leadership path
✔️ Why visibility is crucial—and how to make sure key decision-makers know your value
✔️ The power of acting like a leader before you have the title
✔️ How to sharpen your executive communication to influence and inspire
✔️ The difference between a mentor and a sponsor—and why you need both
✔️ How to deliver results that make your leadership potential undeniable

That’s what we’re unpacking today—with practical, actionable steps to make sure you’re on the radar for leadership roles, whether that’s an internal promotion, a step up in a new company, or even board-level roles in the future.

But before we jump in, I invite you to grab your favourite beverage, find a comfy spot, grab a notebook or just sit back and relax and keep listening for those lightbulb moments to map out your leadership path!

🧭 Step 1: Own Your Career Narrative
Leadership doesn’t begin with a title—it starts with clarity. If you’re not clear on what kind of leader you want to be or the direction you’re heading, it’s easy to drift.  Too many professionals assume that if they work hard, someone will tap them on the shoulder and offer them a leadership role. The truth is, leaders are intentional about their growth.

So, ask yourself:
• What kind of leadership role excites me?
• What do I want to be known for?
• Where are the gaps in my experience or skillset?

When you know where you’re going, it becomes easier to say yes to the right things—and no to distractions.

I worked with someone we’ll call J. She was doing great work but waiting to be noticed. Once we clarified the type of leadership role she wanted and how to position herself for it, she became intentional about the projects she said yes to—and how she spoke about her future. Within a few months, she was approached for a strategic secondment that aligned with her long-term goals.

This step is about being the author of your career story, not just a character in someone else’s plan.

👀 Step 2: Visibility Matters More Than You Think
You might be doing brilliant work, but if the right people don’t know about it, you’ll stay stuck on the sidelines.

Let’s shift that.
• Speak up in meetings—not just with updates, but with insights.
• Put your hand up for projects that stretch you and get you in front of different parts of the business.
• Connect beyond your immediate team—relationships are currency in leadership.
• And yes, let’s not forget LinkedIn. It’s more than a CV—it’s a platform to position yourself as a thinker and future leader.

“One of my favourite examples is someone I coached called R who was flying under the radar. He assumed his results would speak for themselves. We worked on increasing his visibility—he started contributing more actively in meetings and sharing insights on LinkedIn. It wasn’t long before a senior leader reached out and said, “You’ve been on my radar lately—we should talk about what’s next for you.”

Being visible doesn’t mean being loud. It means being intentional about where your voice is heard and who hears it.

🧠 Step 3: Lead Before You’re Given the Job Title
This is one of the biggest mindset shifts I see with clients. Waiting to be officially made a leader before acting like one is backwards.

Start now.
• Be proactive – Spot problems and propose solutions, even if they’re outside your official remit.
• Develop others – Take time to mentor junior colleagues or offer support to your peers.
• Be decisive – Show confidence in your decision-making, even when the answer isn’t clear-cut.

“L didn’t have ‘manager’ in her title yet, but she was already acting like one. She began mentoring a new starter, leading more confidently in team huddles, and stepping in during a period of change (something which I also did before I gained my first leadership role).  Her leadership behaviours didn’t go unnoticed—her manager said, “You’ve been leading this team quietly for a while now. Let’s make it official.”

Leadership is a behaviour. Practise it now so that when the opportunity comes, it feels like a natural next step—not a giant leap.

🗣️ Step 4: Sharpen Your Executive Communication
Strong leadership and strong communication go hand-in-hand. This doesn’t mean you need to be the loudest person in the room, but you do need to communicate in a way that builds trust.
• Be clear and concise. Get to the point with confidence.
• Learn to influence without overpowering—can you bring people on board with your ideas?
• And don’t shy away from difficult conversations. Being able to handle feedback, pushback, and high-stakes conversations calmly? That’s a leadership superpower.

“My client K was brilliant at what she did, but often got lost in the detail during stakeholder presentations. We refined her executive communication—leading with the ‘so what,’ simplifying her slides, and using confident language. After her next presentation, a senior director told her, “You sounded like someone who belongs in this room.”

🤝 Step 5: Seek Out a Sponsor (Not Just a Mentor)
Here’s something that changed my own view of career growth: mentors give advice. Sponsors give access.

A sponsor is someone in a position of influence who speaks your name in the rooms you’re not in. 

They advocate for you when opportunities come up.

To attract a sponsor:
• Do excellent work.
• Be visible.
• Build genuine relationships with people who are ahead of you.

“I remember working with my client, M, who had had plenty of mentors but no one advocating for her when it mattered. Together, we identified someone she respected and built a strategy to connect authentically. Over time, that person started opening doors—mentioning M’s name in the right rooms and putting her forward for an opportunity she might never have heard about otherwise.

Sponsorship isn’t transactional. It’s built on credibility, trust, and the value you bring.

💥 Step 6: Make Your Results Impossible to Ignore
Let your work speak—but make sure it’s heard.

• Go beyond your job description.
• Document your wins—especially those that align with business outcomes.
• Don’t assume people know what you’ve delivered. Share it in a way that’s confident, not boastful.

“One of my first coaching clients, T had done some incredible work, but very few people knew about it. We created a simple impact tracker she could use in her 1:1s—focused on outcomes, not just tasks. The next time a stretch role came up, she was the first person her director thought of. “You’re ready,” they told her. “And we’ve got the numbers to prove it.”

If you’ve led a successful initiative, make sure the right people hear the story. This isn’t about ego—it’s about evidence.

🎯 Final Thought: When the Moment Comes, Will You Be Ready?
That’s it for todays’ episode.  Leadership opportunities don’t always knock with warning. Sometimes they appear when someone leaves. Or a new project opens up. Or someone says, “We need someone who can handle this…” and your name pops up—because you’ve already been showing up that way.

Let’s quickly recap everything we’ve covered today:

1️. Own Your Career Narrative—Don’t Wait to Be Chosen
Leadership doesn’t happen by accident. It starts with clarity. What kind of leader do you want to be? What experience gaps need filling? The moment you start shaping your career with intention, you shift from being a passenger to taking the wheel. Decision-makers notice those who know where they’re going.

2️. Make Yourself Visible—Strategic Spotlighting Matters
You could be brilliant, but if the right people don’t know it, opportunities will pass you by. Visibility isn’t about self-promotion—it’s about showing up, speaking up, and adding value where it counts. Share insights in meetings, take on high-impact projects, and make LinkedIn your professional stage.

3️. Lead Without the Title—Demonstrate, Don’t Wait
Leadership is a behaviour, not a job title. Start now. Be proactive, mentor others, and take ownership of challenges—even outside your remit. Leaders are recognised not just for what they do, but for how they show up every day.

4️. Communicate Like a Leader—Clarity Is Currency
Your ability to inspire, influence, and handle tough conversations separates you from the crowd. Be concise. Be impactful. Whether you’re pitching an idea, managing conflict, or presenting to execs, speak like the leader you want to be.

5️. Find a Sponsor—Not Just a Mentor
Mentors support you. Sponsors elevate you. They speak your name in rooms you’re not in. Start nurturing relationships with people who have influence—and show them you’re worth betting on.

6️. Deliver Results That Speak for Themselves
No one can argue with impact. Go beyond expectations, track your achievements, and share your wins with the right audience. This isn’t bragging—it’s strategic storytelling. Make sure your value is impossible to ignore.

So here are your action steps:
1. Audit your visibility. Are the right people aware of what you bring?
2. Choose one leadership behaviour to start showing this week—even if it’s small.
3. Think about your sponsor strategy. Who could advocate for you, and how can you build that relationship?

You’re not waiting to be chosen. You’re preparing to be ready when the moment comes.

And when it does—you’ll already be halfway there.

If you found today’s episode valuable, hit that subscribe button, leave a review, and share it with your network. You can also connect with me on LinkedIn—just search Kathryn Hall, The Career Owl.

Until next time—keep growing, keep leading, and keep building your leadership pathway!