Dr. Carol Gallagher’s book Going to the Top details 15 proven strategies for advancement:

1. Display leadership
2. Don’t take everything so personally
3. Find your passion

4. Expect crises
5. Be aware of your attitude
6. Never be afraid to communicate, but communicate clearly
7. Pick your fights
8. Use humor
9. Ask for help
10. Remember, the company is not your family
11. Make strategic moves
12. Sometimes you have to go with the flow
13. Be smart about being promoted
14. Take ownership of your career
15. Remember, hope is not a strategy

Source: Gallagher, Carol, PhD, Going to the Top: A Road Map for Success from America’s Leading Women Executives, Viking, 2000.