Career Confidence The 50/50 Rule: Why Performance + Relationships = Career Success
Think working harder and letting your work "speak for itself" will get you promoted? Think again.
Meet Claire Seeber, leadership consultant, career coach, and author of "Less Hustle, More Happy," who's about to flip everything you've been told about career advancement on its head. After 15+ years in HR working with organisations worldwide, Claire discovered that most people are only operating with 50% of the career success equation.
In this episode, Claire reveals the career currency framework that's helped thousands of professionals go from stuck to strategic, shares her incredible story of resilience (including being stranded on a boat for 11 weeks during COVID), and breaks down exactly how to build the visibility and relationships that actually drive career progression.
If you've ever felt frustrated about being overlooked for opportunities despite your hard work, this conversation will change how you think about career strategy forever.
______________
Connect with Georgie
🔹LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgiehubbard/
🔺 Instagram: http://instagram.com/georgielhubbard
🔸 Website: https://www.georgiehubbard.com
📚 Early access to Pivotr (AI Career Mentor): https://www.pivotr.com
______________
Connect with Claire
🔹LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claireseeber/
🔸 Website: https://claireseeber.com.au/
📚 Book: "Less Hustle, More Happy": https://claireseeber.com.au/book/
______________
💡 What You'll Learn in This Episode:
The 50/50 career currency rule that most professionals are missing
Why "your work will speak for itself" is outdated career advice
How to practice strategic self-promotion without feeling pushy
The difference between resilience and anti-fragility (and why it matters)
Claire's framework for knowing yourself before growing yourself
How to identify who needs to know you for your next career move
Why most retention strategies fail (and what actually works)
The career exercise that helped Claire transition from employee to entrepreneur
How to build relationships that accelerate your career growth
What companies are getting wrong about keeping great talent
______________
⏱️ Timestamps:
05:00 - Who is Claire and what drives her work with organisations
08:06 - The biggest lessons from transitioning from employee to entrepreneur
13:08 - The career exercise that changed everything: loves vs. frustrations
17:01 - Why asking the right questions beats staying stuck
18:37 - Claire's incredible resilience story: 11 weeks stranded at sea during COVID
23:51 - The difference between resilience and anti-fragility
30:00 - How to reframe challenges as adventures (practical mindset shifts)
31:00 - What companies are getting wrong about talent retention
35:05 - Why throwing money at people doesn't solve engagement
38:04 - How to actually know your people (beyond surveys)
43:08 - The flexibility debate: what great talent really wants
44:09 - Individual strategies: how to step up and be visible
46:36 - The career currency equation: 50% performance + 50% relationships
49:04 - Strategic self-promotion that actually works
52:37 - The framework for building career-advancing relationships
57:11 - Claire's book journey and the 5-part career framework
58:47 - The powerful statistic that will change how you think about work
🚀 Mentioned in This Episode:
"Less Hustle, More Happy" by Claire Seeber
The ELEVATE online program for career development
2024 Gallup Report on employee disengagement ($8.9 trillion cost)
Career currency framework: Performance + Relationships
Strategic self-promotion techniques
Anti-fragility vs resilience concepts
The "loves vs frustrations" career exercise
📋 Claire's Career Success Framework:
The 50/50 Rule:
50% Performance (delivering outcomes, not just knowing things)
50% Relationships (visibility with decision-makers)
Strategic Self-Promotion Steps:
Get clear on what you actually want (not just "growth")
Identify who needs to know you for that next move
Build genuine relationships with those decision-makers
Communicate your interests and ask for feedback
Demonstrate value while making your aspirations known
The Career Exercise:
List what you do on your best days at work
List what you do on your worst days at work
Analyse the patterns and design your next move around more of what lights you up
📝 Key Takeaway:
Stop waiting to be discovered. Career success isn't just about working harder—it's about working strategically. Performance gets you in the game, but relationships and visibility get you promoted. The most successful professionals understand that career currency comes from being known by the right people for the right reasons, not just from being the smartest person in the room.
Your career is 25,550 days if you live to 70. What do you want to get out of it beyond just paying your bills?