part0028

One of the most determining factors in a successful career is to work for a person you respect and who will challenge you, recognize you, and promote you. Will you ever have the perfect manager? Likely not, unless you become your own boss, but you will quickly appreciate a manger who motivates and engages you.

As you develop your career, you will find your job satisfaction and the decisions you make will be dependent on your relationship with your manager. So, when you seek job opportunities, size up your role and the company. But also check out who will be your manager.

If you are already in your career, you will likely remember your first manager.Your first and last managers are often the most memorable. As you move through your career, learn from each of your managers. Take note of those behaviors and attributes you respond well to and those you don’t. This inventory will help you in your own career by recognizing your responses to future managers. You also will likely become a better manager yourself by remembering the best of your previous managers.

If you are faced with a career opportunity where you think your manager will not motivate or promote you, take a second look. In the heat of the moment, you may say, “Oh, he’s not that bad.” But that’s not a good sign. It’s likely a bad fit.

Effective communication between you and your clients and colleagues is important. Understand that by helping them become successful, you will, too. Learn what is important to communicate and how best to communicate key messages. Be sure to truly connect with them. Find out what makes them tick, what motivates them, and what they do outside of work. For many people this comes easily, but for others, it takes work, energy, and may force them out of their comfort zone. Little by little, you will begin to understand how your clients and colleagues think, and how to best communicate with them in order to be an effective member of the team.

Be aware that as you communicate upward in your organization, you’ll need to simplify and be very direct. Your manager and her manager do not have time to get into the details. They want recommendations supported by your analysis and judgment. Similarly, if you are communicating down the organization—asking those who report to you to act—you need to be specific about the assignment, expected outcomes, and explain their responsibilities and how they benefit.

Begin developing your personal brand. What are the first and lasting impressions you want to leave with your clients and colleagues? Your brand can change over time as you develop your career, but be sure you know your strengths, weaknesses, and how you want to present yourself. These should obviously be positive and reinforcing.

Be cautious, define a brand that is you, a brand you will reinforce with your actions. Use your brand to your advantage. Consistently present yourself in a way that is aligned with your brand. Be careful to not make your brand too common. Your brand should differentiate you positively in the organization.

While your brand is uniquely yours, you should also consider the norms or culture of the organization. Ideally, your brand and the organization’s culture are aligned. If not, think about changing one of them. Know, too, that it’s nearly impossible to change the culture of an organization on your own.

Sometimes you get that “startup” job and you are left on your own. Entry-level roles seldom get the attention they need from managers, and therefore you might find yourself wondering what to do and feeling insecure or anxious about the role. This is an opportunity for you to exercise some control and exhibit leadership. You will likely have a job description, but it usually covers all the possible needs the organization may have. So take the time to evaluate the organization, your team, and your strengths. Then meet with your manager and offer to take on assignments you feel will benefit the organization the most. I am not suggesting that you chase a new role. Instead, you should intentionally develop your existing role with focus and purpose.

This is also a great time to learn how to differentiate between short-term, medium-term, and long-term goals. Depending on the organization and its ability to project long-term needs, you will need to focus on short-term and medium-term goals. So, set yourself up with meaningful assignments that are achievable—ones where you can demonstrate success within the next three to six months.

There are many facets of effectiveness, but I believe one of the key things to understand is how to differentiate between what’s important and not in driving the desired outcomes of your job. Your ability to recognize and focus on the important things will help you have a successful career.

That is, learn how to make the routine and administrative activities as efficient as possible. Working long hours—being the first one in and the last one out—should give you a clue that you may not be efficient. If you find yourself working this way, seek advice on how to streamline things. Then, as you gain control of the routine activities, give yourself time to think creatively and learn new skills.

Becoming effective will naturally come as you develop your career, but try to accelerate your effectiveness early in your career. There are numerous books and publications on how to be more effective. I have found that the first step is to align your goals and assignments with those of your manager. The second challenge is filtering unnecessary work out of your daily routine. Each morning, organize your day and stay focused on those activities that move you toward your goals.

This is also an important time to develop your first mentor, someone you admire in the workforce or in your circle of friends. Look for an individual who can challenge you and teach you the “non-book” skills you need to be successful. Your mentor should help you develop your longer career aspirations. I find that “organizational” mentor programs are not very effective unless there is a demonstrated culture to develop leaders from within the company or firm. You need to select your mentors, make the time to engage, and ask them for help.

You should have a “lifestyle” mentor and a “career” mentor. Sometimes these attributes can be found in a single mentor, but that’s rare. Find mentors who will make you think critically about your life and career. Your mentor should know you, your skills, and your behaviors. A mentor can challenge you to think bigger and more broadly, beyond your current role to potential future roles.

Consider your mentors as key members of your team. I have had several mentors throughout my career, some formal and many informal. Ask your mentor to help you evaluate the career path you are on: Is it a good fit? What might you do differently to achieve your career aspiration?

The workplace can be dangerous. Every day, you are making decisions that can affect your colleagues, your clients, or yourself. You will be under pressure to decide and act, sometimes before you are comfortable or ready to act. Trust yourself and have the courage to make the decision, but be accountable for the outcomes and learn from any poor decisions.

Teams and managers must be counted on when decisions need to be made and actions taken. I have worked with clients and organizations where teams are paralyzed by their inability to decide on a clear action plan. The organization waits while nothing happens, perpetuating the status quo. Status quo in today’s workplace will eventually kill a business. Don’t contribute to this indecision.

Yes, not all your decisions or actions will lead to the best results. Generally, there are many options in deciding a path forward. There is no single, unique solution that will generate the perfect results. But the saying goes, “Not to decide is to decide.” That is, it’s generally better to chart a path forward than to chart no path at all. The decisions that are made and the actions taken will allow you to learn how to accelerate the desired outcomes.

Sitting in front has many advantages. First, it is likely you will become more engaged in the meeting or presentation, and so, learn more. Second, you will make your presence known! This is important. Your success depends a great deal on how others perceive you. Being thought of as interested, engaged, and curious is always good. So, you should actively listen, take notes, and ask a good question or two, if appropriate. Conversely, don’t fall asleep, daydream, or have an attitude.

Try to attend company or organizational events including town halls, training sessions, or industry presentations. Take the time to introduce yourself to the presenter after the session. A simple, “Thank you, I found your presentation very informative, interesting, and exciting,” is all you need to say. Be honest, of course. If the presentation was boring, hold off on the praise. A speaker will know if you’re being forthright. But if the session was valuable, let the presenter know that.

Remember, it is more than showing up. It’s how you show up that counts. Make yourself known and demonstrate positive behaviors. Employers like to see these characteristics in their leaders.

Start developing your value proposition as a leader and a colleague. Your value to an organization and to your co-workers will change throughout your career, but take the time to think through what and how you bring value. What is your personal value proposition?

Achieving your assignments and meeting your organization’s expectations is the first step. Beyond that, what future value can you bring to your organization and team? Does the organization see you as a future leader, a long term and committed employee?

Often it is hard to sell yourself, but be sure your closest colleagues understand your commitment, your work ethic and your ability to perform. Take time to recognize your accomplishments, congratulate your team and let your manager know you are ready for another challenge.

Somewhere along your career, the complexity of your role, the culture of the organization, or the dynamics of the people you work with may feel like too much. You will see this manifest itself in numerous ways. A colleague of yours may get that promotion rather than you. Your organization may go through a major merger or reorganization. Maybe your manager moves on and the new manager is not a good fit. While these things will happen throughout your career, now is a good time to learn how to handle them.

The first order of business is to not trouble yourself with actions or decisions outside your control. This is not about ignoring issues or using the excuse “this is not in my job description.” You should challenge those that you think are not right, or will not lead to the right outcomes, but pick your battles wisely. It is much more effective to focus on the positive and constructive actions that you believe will help meet your goals.

If your colleagues are discouraged or focused on negativity, don’t be one of them. You may not control the decisions in the workplace, but you can always control your response and reactions as a team member.

If you need to take on an issue, be direct, be respectful, and try to discuss your concerns directly with those who can act. If this is a management issue, take it up with your manager. If this is a client issue, take it up with your client. Some of these harder conversations can lead to career-lasting respect and support from your colleagues and clients.

This might be easy for some of you, not so easy for others. Why is it important? Primarily, because your career will depend on how well you work with others and lead others to perform as a team.

There are few careers where you can be a lone contributor. Instead, your solutions and results will be attributed to your team, not to you individually. Also, you may be working with many of your team members and other colleagues throughout your career. You don’t want the reputation as a loner—in it just for yourself.

Your team members will want you to engage and contribute to solutions. Work hard to build respect, and likewise, you should respect others. Try not to be exclusive; instead, embrace diversity.

You will find that hiring and advancement decisions are determined by many things. At times, you just might be the right person. Yes, your knowledge and positive attitude are important, but many factors are out of your control. Maybe the role needs immediate attention, maybe the firm has made a commitment to hire from within, or maybe you are the easiest decision to make. Often, these things are driven by luck.

Regardless of the reasons, we all welcome luck when it comes. I am a believer that luck arrives for those who deserve it. Not all agree. But the best approach is to fully develop your career plan. Then, if luck comes around, it can only accelerate your success.

So, luck alone may deliver some short-term results. That said, you need to be sure to keep your lifetime career in focus and learn not to depend on luck. At times you may think everyone else gets all the luck. But don’t lose your focus because of it.

As you begin developing your career, you will find that often there are no obvious right or wrong answers. Your ability to define challenges and offer solutions will rely more and more on your judgment. So, it’s important to understand how you process information and make decisions ... the bedrocks of sound judgment.

Depending on your career, an organization can have a certain personality that drives its decisions. Some organizations are very process driven, some are more analytical, and others may be very entrepreneurial. But you also have a personality that drives your decisions.

So, it’s important that you understand early in your career how you decide on things. Why? First, you’ll want to examine your efficiency in decision-making. That is, evaluate the steps you take in gathering research, talking with others, and asking the right questions. Establishing a basic process will make the decision-making more thorough and also make it happen more quickly. It’s a more effective use of your time. Second, self-examination forces you to understand your blind spots—finding those things that you normally do not include in your decision-making. Here, it helps to find colleagues and team members who will complement your decision-making approach.

If you accomplish the above steps, you will have fortified your ability to make the right decisions. You will have ample reason then, to trust your own judgment.

Keeping a balance between the work you do and your career is important. I hope your career will be full of companies and people who support you and your ambition. You should feel that you are fairly treated for the contributions you make to your company. Assessing this on an ongoing basis is important.

Unfortunately, at times, you may feel you are giving more to the organization than you are getting. Be patient, but if you don’t feel fairly treated, it may be time to move on.

Often, employees and employers develop a “psychological contract” that defines mutual expectations. The tough part is that these expectations usually aren’t formally communicated. You should develop such a contract that clearly outlines your career expectations. Share this contract with your manager if appropriate, and if you think it would be constructive. If your employer is failing to meet your expectations, consider looking for new opportunities.

Leaving your job and finding another job can be intimidating. First, you may be leaving a paycheck. Second, you will be leaving a familiar network of colleagues and starting over. Regardless, you need to find an organization and a role where you feel your contributions are recognized and valued.

THE INVESTMENTS YOU MADE
IN ACQUIRING YOUR SKILLS MAY BE
A SIGNIFICANT BURDEN TO YOU OR YOUR FAMILY.
THIS A TIME TO START PAYING BACK THOSE INVESTMENTS.

You may also be challenged with new life costs—your first apartment, a new house, or a family. Little by little, you can begin paying down these investments. Be disciplined, manage your spending, and consistently apply some of your earnings toward these payments.

You may find yourself in a place where your desires are greater than your ability to financially support them. Live within your means. Many of your desires will be better fulfilled later, in your Apply or Produce stages. Be cautious of significant financial commitments and use this time to gauge your lifestyle costs. Are you a Starbuck’s latte-a-day person, or do you make your own coffee? It will feel good to make some money and keep it after working so hard.