Does your company also have this really cool thing?

I laughed out loud when I saw this:

Here's the text, in case you can't open it:

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If you've been working for a while, you've probably experienced some version of this.

You're the person who can figure things out. The one who doesn't need much supervision. The one who can be trusted to handle something complicated, sensitive, or just plain messy.

And because you're so good at handling things, people keep giving you more things to handle.

Someone drops the ball? You pick it up.

A project is going sideways? You're brought in to fix it.

A colleague can't quite manage their responsibilities? Somehow, those responsibilities migrate to your desk.

Congratulations. Your reward for being good at your job is more job.

There's actually a term for this: competence tax.

It's the extra work that falls to people precisely because they're capable of doing it.

And the really frustrating part is that competence doesn't necessarily translate into advancement.

Sometimes it does, of course. Being reliable, resourceful, and willing to take on challenges can be an excellent way to build your career.

But there's an important difference between being given opportunities to grow and being given everyone else's leftovers.

Here's how to tell the difference.

When someone asks you to take on something extra, consider what you're actually getting in return.

Is this work helping you develop a skill you want? Increasing your visibility with people who influence your career? Giving you experience that will position you for something better?

Or are you simply making someone else's problem disappear?

Not every task needs to be a career-building opportunity. Sometimes we pitch in because we're part of a team, and that's what good colleagues do.

But if you're consistently the person who absorbs the extra work, while other people get to stick to their actual job descriptions, you may have a problem.

And the solution isn't necessarily to stop being helpful.

It's to stop being automatically helpful.

You can say, "I'm happy to take this on. Which of my current priorities should move down the list?"

Or, "I've been handling quite a few responsibilities outside my role. Can we talk about how my position should evolve to reflect that?"

You can also simply let someone else figure something out, even if you know you could do it faster.

(I know. It's painful.)

Being indispensable isn't always the career advantage we think it is.

Sometimes it just means you've become the person everyone depends on, without becoming the person anyone thinks to promote.

Your competence is valuable. Make sure you're getting some of that value, too.