earn one's stripes

earn (one's) stripes

To prove that one is deserving of a particular position or designation. I told the recruiter that I earned my stripes as a teacher before moving into administration. You'll need to earn your stripes around here before they consider you for a different position. The head of the department is not easily impressed, so you definitely need to earn your stripes as the file clerk before she'll consider you for a full-time position.

See also: earn, stripe

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

earn one's stripes

Gain a position through hard work and accumulated experience. For example, She'd earned her stripes by serving for years as the governor's secretary and personal aide . This expression alludes to a military promotion or award, indicated by strips of chevron or braid added to the recipient's uniform and known as stripes since the early 1800s.

See also: earn, stripe

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.