The Hard Work Trap: Why Doing More Won’t Always Get You the Pay Rise

You’ve taken on more responsibility.

You’re answering messages later.

You’re managing projects that weren’t originally in your job description.

You’re the person everyone calls when something goes wrong.

Surely somebody will notice?

Maybe. But relying on that is a risky career strategy.

One of the most interesting ideas from our recent Pally Talk training session with former EA Siobhan Mears was what she described as the “hard work equals worth” loop.

It’s the belief that if we just do a little more, prove ourselves a little harder and become a little more indispensable, recognition will follow.

Sometimes it does.

Sometimes all that happens is that doing more becomes the new expectation.

When did “above and beyond” become your normal job?

Scope creep can happen remarkably quietly.

You volunteer to help with a project once and it becomes yours. You cover a gap in the team and six months later you’re still doing it. You start handling something for your executive because it’s quicker than explaining it to someone else.

None of these decisions seems particularly significant on its own.

Eventually, though, you can find yourself operating in a substantially bigger role without the title or salary having moved with you.

As Siobhan put it, you can end up overdelivering well beyond your scope and absorbing responsibilities that nobody has formally agreed should sit with you.

More output isn’t always the answer

This is particularly important for EAs because being helpful is part of the job.

You’re there to find solutions.

But if your response to feeling undervalued is always to give more, you can create a difficult cycle.

You feel overlooked, so you work harder.

Your increased output becomes normal.

You still don’t feel recognised, so you take on even more.

Eventually you’re carrying an enormous amount while wondering why nobody seems to understand how much you’re doing.

Start documenting the change

If your role has expanded, don’t wait until salary-review day to try to remember everything.

Keep a simple record.

Note new responsibilities, projects you’ve taken ownership of, problems you’ve solved, costs you’ve reduced, time you’ve saved and decisions you’ve been trusted to make.

Then change the language of the conversation.

Instead of:

“I’ve been working really hard and doing a lot more.”

Try:

“My role has changed considerably over the past year. I’m now responsible for X, Y and Z, and I’d like to discuss whether my title and compensation still reflect the level I’m operating at.”

One asks someone to reward your effort.

The other asks them to recognise the reality of your role.

That’s a much stronger conversation.