Welcome to Part II of this two-part series! As you might recall, I had the pleasure of hanging out with some of my former Cal Poly students a couple months ago. These amazingly talented young men and women now work in Silicon Valley, as well as in health care, finance, and advertising/marketing, and several of them are already in senior management positions with very large corporations. We had a fascinating discussion about what they believe to be the most important career success-builders.
Once again, I want to point out this interesting observation: three of the four habits are states of mind, whereas only one of them (the “take notes” habit, which appeared in Part I) is an actionable behavior. I think this has important significance: no matter what’s happening around us, we have so much influence and control over our environments via our own thoughts, self-talk, and personal attitudes. And if you’ve been following me for any length of time, you know this is something I talk/write about…a lot.
Let’s jump right in with the second two habits.
Rather than blame, fix the cause
Think back to when you were a kid, especially if you had siblings: “Mommm…I didn’t break the window! Adrian did it! "Whether Adrian did it or not, blaming is often a natural response when things go wrong, but the biggest drawback is that it simply doesn’t work. Alternatively, nothing is as professional as the ability to get to the heart of a problem and fix it–without bothering to place blame.
How often have you heard someone say something like this: “Martin should have told us we were running out of Number 7 boxes before now! We’ll never have enough to fill these orders!”
And how often have you heard this instead: “Well, it looks like we’re going to run out of our Number 7 boxes today. I’ve placed a rush order for more, and they’ll be here next Wednesday. In the meantime, let’s pack all the orders we’d normally pack in a Number 7 box into two Number 5s. I’ll check to make sure this solution works for our supervisor."
You can bet the supervisor will be so thrilled about not having to develop the contingency plan herself that practically any workable suggestion will win her favor—as well the professional who suggested it.
By the way, if you don't have a solution at the ready, and the problem is urgent (an office fire, a flood in the bathroom, the customer phone lines went down), go right ahead and report the issue anyway. Everyone will be grateful for the heads up.
Be a Team Player
The ability to work well with others is crucial to your professional success. However, this can be a difficult skill to master if you haven’t participated in very many team sports, because team skills don’t necessarily come naturally.
Nevertheless, working with others will most assuredly be a vital part of your job. Here’s a summary of what Psychology Today says you’ll need to work effectively in a group setting:
• Flexibility. This is a key trait that successful team players need. When a project doesn’t go as planned, or takes an unexpected turn, you’ll have the advantage if you can alter your strategies to deal with unforeseen circumstances. And in a weak economy, workers who can adapt to change are more valuable.
• Compromise. Learning to funnel many different viewpoints into a plan of action goes hand in hand with flexibility. It’s important to learn to listen to those on the team—and yes, even those who don’t agree with you. If you are part of a group, you won’t get your way all the time. Taking into account all viewpoints can make a team stronger.
• Positive and negative feedback. Do you know how to offer reinforcing comments to others? What about the art of critique? Both can be equally difficult. Be honest, but also, be gracious. A little generosity can pave the way for productive team relationships. This also means accepting feedback from others and lowering your defenses as you listen.
• Physical cues. Some of us grew up learning that direct eye contact was disrespectful. Others learned the opposite. Generally speaking, in adult-to-adult, professional interactions, eye contact communicates interest and involvement. So does nodding, leaning forward, and sending back the occasional "yes" or "I agree." In the workplace, body language can be important in conveying that you are not only listening to a person, but that you are really taking them in. Pay attention and make sure the other person knows it.
• Own up to it. This one’s obvious: If you make a mistake, acknowledge it. That means not shifting the blame onto others or making excuses for failure. It takes a mature and strong will, but it’s a great way to build a team. Other members will learn to trust you and to value your integrity.
• Strong or weak. It’s a common job interview question: “What’s your greatest strength, and what’s your biggest weakness?” When it comes to teamwork, it really helps to know the strengths and weaknesses of your team members. Some people are better able to communicate in person than in writing. Others are unwilling to share their expertise because of a competitive streak. Teams are a great concept precisely because contrasting personalities and skills can complement each other. Your team will grow and flourish if you learn to capitalize on each person’s greatest strengths.
That’s it for today! Thanks for being a subscriber/follower, and as usual, please let me know if there’s a topic you’d like for me to cover in a future article—I always love hearing from you, and I love tackling your topic requests! Bye for now.
