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.

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Madeleine	['mædəlin]
Arber	['a:rbə]
Bald	[bɔ:ld]
Arsenio	ahr-SE-nyo (Spanish, Italian)	Spanish, Portuguese, Italian
Teofil	te-AW-feel	Polish
ThorbjÖRn	-	Swedish