My manager said "keep doing what you're doing." What did that mean?

Which of these have you heard or lived in the last 12 months?

• "Keep doing what you're doing."
• You were told you're "not quite ready," and no one could say ready for what, by when.
• You have mentors. You cannot name one person with power who has spent anything on you.
• You'd like to talk to a senior leader and you don't have a reason to.
• You're doing the next-level job at this level's title and pay.
• Someone else briefed your work, or your idea came back with another name on it.
• You know you did good work and you cannot put a number on it.
• You've wondered whether you're reading too much into it.
• Two review cycles have passed and the answer sounded the same both times.
• You've started to wonder whether you should just leave.

Every one of these has an answer in the guide. Every question in it came from women in STEM, in their own words, and every answer is how I'd answer it.

Who wrote this

Hi, I'm Jennifer.

I spent 28 years in aerospace at Lockheed Martin, and I sat on both sides of the promotion table. First as the engineer hearing these sentences, and later as the manager and chief engineer saying some of them. That second seat is where this guide comes from.

I'm also building The Inside Track by Gravity Assist, a career development and networking community for women in STEM at every stage, where the question you can't ask at work gets answered by women who've been there. Downloading this guide puts you on the list for a founding invitation on November 9.