The biggest career cheat code

The biggest career cheat code:
Only work with exceptional managers.
7 questions to ask when you're interviewing them:

1. Who have you recently promoted (and Why)?
   What I'm looking for:

• Are promotions merit-based?
• Can they get people promoted?

2. Have you had to fire anyone (and Why)?
   What I'm looking for:

• Do they protect the team culture?
• Are they willing to make hard decisions?

3. When do you know it's time to help people rotate off your team?
   What I'm looking for:

• How supportive are they of great people?
• Are they well connected inside & outside the company?

4. If someone is struggling, how do you support them?
   What I'm looking for:

• Are they close enough to know? Do they care enough to correct?
• How many arrows are in their management development quiver?

5. How do you keep your stars challenged?
   What I'm looking for:

• Are stars taken for granted b/c they aren't needy?
• Can they source meaningful opportunities or just "make work"?

6. Tell me about how accountability works on your team?
   What I'm looking for:

• Do people know what's expected of them?
• Is there enough trust to have hard conversations directly?

7. Who are you developing to take your spot?
   What I'm looking for:

• Are they freeing themselves up to leave? How soon?
• Do they have the ambition to generate opportunities for the team?

No individual answer is that critical to me.

Find the patterns. Connect the dots to determine if they foster an environment you'd thrive in or not.
Remember: Interviews go both ways.
You might need work.
But not with a manager that'll hold you back.