According to a 30-year career expert, showing up to work early and staying late won't necessarily help you advance in your career.

Early in their careers, workers who are ambitious receive a lot of advice on how to advance. One frequent suggestion is to demonstrate commitment to the job by being one of the first to arrive at the office and the last to leave.

Brianna Doe used to feel that way. When she started her career as a marketing professional a decade ago, she would frequently arrive early at the office and work late into the night to demonstrate her dedication and ambition, and to prove her commitment to the company's growth.

Doe was determined to demonstrate her dedication to her manager and colleagues by consistently being the first to arrive and the last to leave, according to her interview with CNBC Make It.

I too felt intense burnout cycles while performing that task.

Recognizing that well-intentioned advice often includes a caveat that working long hours demonstrates dedication to work at the expense of personal time and life, Doe looks back.

"Doe, who now runs her own marketing agency, Verbatim, says that she didn't have any work-life harmony in her life. However, she now believes that this is an outdated take, especially in the new era of setting boundaries and prioritizing mental health."

ResumeBuilder's chief career advisor, Stacie Haller, with over 30 years of recruiting experience, concurs.

She remarks that people are smart enough these days to understand that working long hours in an office doesn't always equate to being productive.

A better way to get ahead

There are numerous ways to demonstrate your enthusiasm for your job and desire for growth.

"Form connections, seek guidance from a mentor, and learn from a team," Haller advises. "Study successful individuals, understand their methods and strategies, and request counsel."

Haller advises Gen Z workers to prioritize building work relationships that will benefit them in the long run, stating that focusing solely on arriving early and staying late in the office to appear as a diligent worker will not suffice.

If bosses are focused on an employee's time spent at their desk rather than what they're completing or how they're expressing their ambition, Doe believes they should re-assess their expectations.

"If your employee is performing well and requests more responsibilities and diverse projects, that indicates greater dedication than simply working longer hours," she remarks.

Haller emphasizes the importance of following your team's lead regarding workplace arrival and departure times.

Haller advises being punctual, avoiding tardiness, attending meetings, and not providing weak explanations.

If everyone is present from 8:30 to 6, then be there from 8:30 to 6. However, if you arrive at 7 just to prove a point to no one, that's a bit irrational.

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