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
Una	['ju:nə]
Widald	-	Ancient Germanic
GrÍMhildr	-	Norse Mythology, Ancient Scandinavian
Fanni	FAHN-nee (Finnish), FAWN-nee (Hungarian)	Finnish, Hungarian
Tama	-	Maori
Braxton	['brækstən]