Michelin indirect growth strategy That Can Change Your Career
In many workplaces, professionals ask for promotions, salary hikes, or recognition. But managers often ask a silent question in return: what value are you creat...
Avinash Chate - Corporate Training Expert at team building workshop The Indirect Growth Strategy That Can Change Your Career In many organizations, I meet professionals who ask a familiar question: Why am I not growing fast enough? They work hard, stay busy, and sincerely believe they deserve more recognition, better opportunities, or a bigger role. But growth in a career does not happen only because we ask for it. It happens when our contribution becomes too valuable to overlook. Key takeaway: If you want direct rewards, focus first on indirect value creation. When you help the organization grow, your own growth follows. This is one of the most important lessons I share as Avinash Chate, a corporate trainer, TEDx speaker, and author of The Winning Edge. Over 15+ years, I have seen one truth repeat itself across industries and teams: the people who rise consistently are not always the loudest self-promoters. They are the ones who solve bigger problems, improve trust, strengthen relationships, and make results easier for everyone around them. What Michelin Can Teach Us About Career Growth The idea of indirect growth becomes powerful when we understand a simple business lesson. Michelin wanted to sell more tires. But instead of only pushing tires aggressively, they encouraged people to travel more. More travel meant more road usage. More road usage meant more tire wear. And naturally, that increased tire demand. That is the brilliance of indirect growth. Instead of chasing the outcome directly, they influenced the conditions that would make the outcome inevitable. Now apply that to your career. If you only chase promotion, title, salary, or appreciation, you may become frustrated. But if you focus on increasing team performance, improving communication, supporting customers better, solving recurring workplace issues, and becoming a dependable leader, then your value expands. And when your value expands, growth follows. I often tell participants in my corporate training sessions that your manager is silently asking one question every day: How is this person making the organization stronger? If you can answer that question through your actions, your growth story changes. Stop Asking Only for Growth and Start Creating It Many professionals make one common mistake. They think visibility alone creates growth. So they talk about their effort, their long hours, and their intentions. But organizations reward outcomes, ownership, consistency, and influence. Indirect growth means shifting your focus from What can I get? to What can I improve? For example, instead of saying, “I deserve a better role,” ask: Can I improve collaboration in my team? Can I reduce conflict through better communication? Can I take ownership of a challenge others avoid? Can I help my manager trust me with more responsibility? Can I become the person people rely on in difficult moments? When you do this consistently, you stop appearing like someone who wants growth and start becoming …
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By Avinash Chate — Maharashtra’s #1 Corporate Trainer & Motivational Speaker. Published 2026-04-08.