I spent many years of my life working in hourly and blue-collar jobs before I ended up in tech. The good news is some strategies will help you get ahead in any job in any industry (e.g., IT, retail, restaurant, construction, manufacturing, health care, etc.).
During my previous non-tech career, I found ways to get promoted and land better jobs. I also sat on the other side of the table as a supervisor and leader, so I know who performed well and got ahead vs. those who did not (and occasionally got fired).
In the episode and newsletter linked below, I share some lessons I took away, which helped me with the rest of my career. I hope some of this advice will be useful to you, too.