How To Deal When Someone Tries To Steal Your Crown à la Black Panther Style

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(WARNING: This post contains some spoilers for the Marvel film Black Panther. You have been warned.)

Black Panther (also known as one of the best Marvel films of all time) is getting some crazy (and well-deserved) hype at the moment, which is super cool because one of the key plot points looks at how to deal when someone is in competition with you for your role.

Alright, so most workplaces won’t involve ritual combat to decide on who gets the job, but being able to navigate the treacherous waters of career competition is a pretty nifty skill to have. So, how should you proceed when someone’s trying to take your job?

Keep chill

Guys it’s time to flex that emotional intelligence muscle and stay in control of your emotions. It may seem tricky to try and stay cool, calm, and collected when someone’s trying to sidle on in to your role but it’s super important. You’ve got to remember that, if you’re both going for the same role, they probably feel the same pressure as you, so you’ve got to be the bigger person and avoid any passive aggression.

black panther marvel GIF

If you already work together then it’s even more important to stay chill, because chances are that the people you might be working with in the new role are going to be looking to see how you work and interact with other and it’s not going to be a good look if you’re trying to undermine a fellow co-worker.

Build those supplementary skills

Every role will have key skills it requires candidates to possess – that’s a given. If you’re already looking to apply for the role, then chances are you already have those skills. What can help you get a leg up on the competition, is building your supplementary skills. These are the abilities that may not be expressly mentioned in the job description, but you can sense will be helpful to have. This could include familiarising yourself with new software or even completing a mini side project that would be similar to something you’d do in the new role.

black panther GIF

For example, if you’re looking at a new accounting role and you know that written communication would be an important skill (but perhaps not one of the key industry skills listed), you could spend some time writing a few mini articles on the more complex topics in your field. Showing that you can make complicated theories accessible is a great way to highlight (and practice) your communication skills.

Know stuff

A great way to really show that you’re at the top of your game, is to stay up to date with your industry. Having an understanding of not only what your role requires, but also how it fits within the scope of the industry is a sure-fire way to wow employers, especially at the interview stage. Try checking the news at least once a week and searching for your industry key words, or try sites like Business Insider and see what’s trending.

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Another great way to stay on top of industry news is to set up some Google Alerts for key words or phrases, so you’ll be notified when something you’re interested in trends. Check out this article for how to set up alerts yourself!

 

 

Now you know how to totally blow the socks off of your competition, it’s time to get out there and score that role!

Black Panther It Is Your Time GIF

 

(Gifs courtesy of giphy.com)

Featured image courtesy of CityMetric

By Mia Casey

By Mia Casey

Copywriter

Mia is a Sydney-based copywriter and content creator, who ran the UTS Careers Blog for five years since its conception in 2016.
 
Her freelance work focuses on branding development and helping companies create a cohesive identity narrative tailored for each of their platforms.
 
She enjoys piña coladas and getting caught in the rain.