Keep your career ladder rungs strong

When you think about climbing the career ladder, what do you focus on? The top probably. It’s good to keep your eye on the prize but keep looking back down and make sure the rungs of the ladder are strong enough to carry you up; Such rungs include the following;

RUNG OF RESPONSIBILITY: You must work towards a consistently higher level of responsibility over time or you’ll be stuck on the lower rungs. Channel your passions productively. Offer yourself up for strategic assignments and do them well. Broaden your range of experience and be able to handle more difficult or complex tasks. If you’re looking to advance, you have to find a way to get your name in the hat. Don’t wait for someone to come and find you.

RUNG OF SUPPORT SYSTEMS: You can’t climb the ladder all on your own because your journey won’t be without obstacles especially if your goals are bold. Identify people who can support you; whom you can make commitments to and hold you accountable. Engage with people who can give you insights and help you ready yourself for where you want to get to. Take time to learn from them.

RUNG OF UNDERSTANDING THE BIG PICURE: You cannot get far if all you know is the work you do and what happens in your immediate environment. Take interest in the bigger picture, of your organization, your industry etc. For example, be aware of what your organization is trying to achieve and how you can support that.

RUNG OF PERSONAL VALUE ENHANCEMENT: The value you bring must increase consistently. Value can come in the form of skills, your strategic sense, your networks, your ability to cross-work etc- in short what you bring to the table shouldn't be skills alone. A way of assessing if your value is increasing is to ask yourself from time to time the following question?; in what ways you have grown and the value your offer increased?. Develop at least one area of expertise.

RUNG OF CONSISTENT ACHIEVEMENT: Long service is now never really the marker for going up. It obviously takes time to do all the above and chalk some notable achievements. But without a clear track record or story of what you’ve ‘’built’’ to date, your climb will be stunted.

Now take action: Which rung on the ladder you are climbing do you need to strengthen?

Don't spread negativity

No workplace is without its share of negative people; people who not only wallow in negativity but also spread it by complaining, whining, criticising or gossiping. However, one sure way of becoming valued is if you become a person who focuses on the positive. Here’s how to make the switch is you are tired of being negative.

KNOW THE IMPACT OF NEGATIVITY: No workplace is without its share of negative people; people who not only wallow in negativity but also spread it by complaining, whining, criticising or gossiping. Negativity has been proven to poison the work environment, stresses colleagues and breeds pessimism. Don’t be someone who exhausts everyone around by being chronically angry, indignant or focussing on doom.

COMMIT TO BECOMING PART OF THE SOLUTION: When you make this commitment you must stop the complaining, finger pointing and blaming and contribute to finding solutions; you don’t stand back and constantly talk about the problem and expect someone else to do something about it. Don’t dwell on the negative things or exaggerate issues you are facing or make things look worse than they really are.

MAKE A CLEAN BREAK WITH NEGATIVITY: Negative people tend to gravitate towards each other and often form cliques. When you commit to not being negative, you have to stay away from your former fellow complainers. This may not always be possible as you need to work with them. The alternative is to find someone to hold you accountable by drawing your attention to when you default to complaining and whinging. If a negative person comes to you wanting you to lend them an ear listen the first time but make sure not to join to reinforce the negatively. If they come to you again draw a line and disengage.

MAKE POSITIVE SUGGESTIONS: As a member of your workplace it is automatically your responsibility to help improve things; not assume it’s the job of only the managers. Bring your commitment to being positive to life by making some specific practical suggestions especially related to something you are concerned about and which you would have complained about but now have the chance to address more positively. Even if it’s someone’s responsibility specifically to fix something, if it impacts you, it’s always useful to see how you can help rather than criticise others from the sidelines.

ZIP YOUR LIPS: If you can’t come up with a positive doable suggestion or are not sure that you can say something positive then simply keep quiet. Negativity can be contagious and can negatively impact productivity. So do your workplace a favour by not saying anything if you can’t trust yourself to say something positive. Being in conversation with a negative person is extremely draining so don’t be that kind of person.

FACE THE OBSTACLE: Becoming positive is not a simple ‘sitting by the fireplace experience or process’. It takes guts to hang in there and stick to your commitment. Don’t revert to complaining at the first sign of down times or a situation that you cannot be positive about. When feeling this way avoid people who are likely to reinforce your negativity or make you feel justified to air your grievances.

Now take action: Reduce interaction with negative people in your workplace.

Earn a seat at the table

Most people want to be listened to and have a say whenever they feel they have something to share. That’s not too much to ask; these are things that any decent workplace should guarantee. But to be a real mover and shaper at work you need to develop your influence. Here are ways to step away from the crowd and grow clout.

GET OUT OF YOUR BOX: At work most people want to be listened to and have a say whenever they feel they have something to share. That’s not too much to ask; these are things that any decent workplace should guarantee. But to be a real mover and shaper at work you need to develop your influence and grow clout. One way is to be resourceful in ways you never had to before. Improvise, adapt and overcome barriers. Don’t let structural divisions or compartmentalisation in your workplace be an excuse for remaining in your corner.

ACT THE PART: A seat at the table calls for someone who is self-motivated, self-directed makes way where there is seemingly no way, can see around corners and ahead, can roll up their sleeves and be able to roll with the punches. Show perspective and ability to see things from other’s viewpoint. Expand your knowledge so that you can ‘speak into’ conversations rather than ‘hijacking’ them by pulling them down to topics you are comfortable with.

BE DISCERNING: Don’t be one of those who believe the workplace is divided into two groups of people; thinkers or deciders on one hand and the ‘doers’ on the other and that you are just a doer. If you think this way you’ll constantly feel disempowered. Some people’s jobs make them decision makers but you can be creative about influencing decisions. Reach out, offer an opinion or even instigate discussions and deliberations that give you voice. Don’t make people guess what you’re thinking neither should you go shooting from the hip. If you can make this mindset shift you’ll become able to engage more at increasingly higher levels. Don’t think in ‘this or that polarising’ terms. Seek exposure to new people who are relevant so that you have access to new thoughts and ideas.

SHOW YOUR METTLE: Go above and beyond. Be visible, be useful and be interested. Don’t go for easy work or duck out of challenging situations or assignment at the first opportunity. Don’t sit back and expect someone to identify your capability or to build it. Get out there and show what you can do. Understand the strategic challenges of your organisation and find or ask for the opportunities you feel prepared for that will help you participate in what will take the organisation where it needs to go. Show by the way you work that you deserve to be taken seriously. Be flexible within the corporate structure and be open to responsibility. Most people are happy to lay back, perhaps not content but not also willing to do anything different so your being proactive will take you much further along.

Now take action: What one thing will you do to increase your influence at work?

Become more strategic

Strategic’ is probably one of the more overused words in the workplace and it isn’t always clear what this looks like in action. But being strategic is important to how impactful you become. Here’s how to operate in a more strategic way.

DON’T REACT EQUALLY TO EVERYTHING: ‘When you are strategic you know not everything is important or deserves attention. Don’t plunge straight into things without stopping to assess whether you need to take action or not or indeed what action to take. Avoid reacting immediately. Focus on the few things that will deliver the best result and will advance the key agendas.

DON’T GET WRAPPED UP IN SMALL THINGS: Have a goal that you are driving toward and key your eye on that goal so that you don’t get too much into the tactical issues. Stay knowledgeable about the key things your organisation is implementing or driving forward and stay involved. Don’t look at issues in isolation but develop the broader organisational understanding that helps you identify where to invest your time, energies, skills and insights. Avoid simply performing functions rather than taking a view on whether and how to make your engagement more meaningful.

KEEP EVOLVING TO MEET BUSINESS NEEDS: Don’t be a relic expecting the organisation to meet you where you are. You’ll fizzle out. Don’t just focus only on the now and what’s directly ahead. Know what is changing and tune how you work so that your role becomes what your organisation needs it to be. Identify what you need to get better at; because you cannot afford to remain the same. You cannot keep up good work without growing. And you cannot be part of any transformational activity if you keep doing everything the same way you’ve always done it.

DON’T ALLOW THE MEANS TO OVERTAKE THE ENDS: Keep your eye on your end goal and measure the right things at the right level along the way. Have meaningful measures not measures that are simple but don’t tell you much about how you are progressing. Protect yourself against urgent demands that take you off course. Plan well so that important tasks are done when they need to be done. Focus on reinforcing what will help you achieve your targets.

STAY COURAGEOUS WITH CONVERSATIONS: Playing nice or safe when you need to make critical shifts will keep you in a rut. Face up to basic questions such as what’s not working, what specifically has to be fixed and what will be the fallout if you don’t deal with what needs tackling. Being strategic calls for not missing the opportunity to do what needs doing, when it needs doing or indeed creating the space to do so. Honest and open conversations are risky and uncomfortable but unless you are willing to be bold in uncovering and addressing what’s impeding growth, you’ll go no where.

Now take action: How fit are you for what your role needs to evolve?

Do the needful to deserve better

Most people appreciate the importance of honing skills, working well with one’s manager, finding mentors, setting strong goals and getting the right experience in order to advance one’s career. However, there are other things that are equally vital. Here are a couple of critical questions to help you reflect on how to increase your chances of personal and career success.

WHAT WILL YOU STOP TOLERATING?: Some typical things not to tolerate are sloppiness, tardiness, toxic people, time wasters and mediocrity (in yourself and in others). You teach people how to treat you so don’t do anything that will give others the excuse to disrespect or treat you badly. Be friendly with everyone but who do you want to be associated with? Avoid office cliques because they generally do not have a good reputation; but there should be nothing stopping you from having a network of high performing colleagues in your workplace to learn from.

WHAT BAD HABITS WILL YOU DROP?: It takes courage to do this especially if you’ve had these habits for a long time. But it comes down to a simple choice, carry on as is or take action and free yourself to become better and do better. Have a ‘stop doing list’ which should include all the time wasting activities; for example being on social media endlessly on company time, keeping company with the complainers and office gossips or even keeping up what may seem like a harmless habit like wanting everything you do to be perfect. Procrastination is also one to ditch!

HOW WILL YOU PRE-EMPT YOUR STAGNATION?: Doing well in one’s career isn’t just climbing the corporate ladder. Growing your career can also involve gaining diverse experiences even if it means making lateral moves to stretch yourself and become more competitive. You can do this by using your strengths more, improving your time management so you can be involved in more things. Purposely put yourself in challenging situations, try new things, seek more stretch assignments and look for opportunities to work in not so familiar situations. Identify new skills you want to develop, how you will go about developing the skills and how you will know you have gained such skills.

WHAT BOUNDARIES WILL YOU CREATE AND ENFORCE?: Establish boundaries that can keep out unhealthy influences, stresses and negativity. Avoid in particular those who always create conflict, complain or are plain hostile. Enforce boundaries that help you maintain your sanity and be more accountable and meet your commitments. Boundaries that enable you focus attention on what is crucial. Do what helps you keep your sanity and takes unnecessary pressure off you. If a colleague oversteps the boundaries, have a constructive discussion about why you have set those boundaries and that you’d appreciate others respecting them.
Honestly answering these questions and any additional ones of your own will help you remove a lot of the toxicity and pitfalls that can stall your career or at worst flat out kill it.

Now take action: What one action will you do to avoid professional stagnation?

Don't just be a job holder

What do you consider to be your purpose in your organisation? Many would say they are there to do a job. Fair enough but being a job holder is not good enough. When you act like just a jobholder, you get lost in the ‘average’ crowd and make it difficult for your superiors to entrust you with anything important. Don’t leave yourself behind; Play your ‘A’ game. Here are some ways to start.

MAKE YOUR WORK IMPORTANT: If you see your job as’ just a job’ and do it as such, you could end up on the margins of the organisation or even let go if the organisation is not getting what it needs from you. Don’t just hold the job, run with it, take pride in your work and give it your very best. Stay on your toes and ensure that your output contributes to what makes the organisation tick and perform well.

BE ESSENTIAL TO YOUR ORGANISATION: And not just in your job. There are two types of essential people in any organisation. The first group are those in positions considered critical and the second are those who become so by virtue of their contributions. When you are essential you don’t limit your assignment to that under your authority. You push yourself and let people know from your attitude and results that you will never let them down or get involved in triviality.

SHOW RANGE: You don’t have to be a jack of all trades but need to show versatility Have a body of work that includes everything you create, effect and impact positively. Your knowledge, experiences and accomplishments should tell the story that you are evolving and growing in terms of the depth and breadth of your contributions and increasing level of responsibility.

ALWAYS TRIUMPH: Triumph suggests difficulty, hurdles, even obstacles. You need to be seen as someone who can get the job done no matter what is happening around them or the challenges you face. Most people can do their job well where things are plain sailing but can you do as well when things are stacked against you? You must give confidence that you persevere and come through whatever difficulties you meet.

BE A THIUGHT LEADER: When an organisation does not generate enough new thinking to drive improvements it becomes stale. So consistent improvement should be your philosophy. You must always be aware of the challenges that your organisation or team is grappling with and engage with it. Keep up with trends so that you can add your insights. Set time aside to do some quality thinking and propose ideas worth listening to.

Now take action: What one new additional responsibility will you take on?

Get better at execution

Everyone agrees planning is important but ability to execute the plan well is equally important. A good plan gives you a headstart but good execution is your commitment and follow through to making important things happen. Here are my 7 ‘S’s of strong execution;

SET UP: First thing is to be clear what is the defined problem or issue you are trying to overcome or solve. This clarity helps you plan how to move forward. The key question to ask yourself is ‘’What am I aiming to tackle and what workplan is fit for that purpose?’’

STANDARD: Be clear what results you are committed that ideally exceeds expectations. Prioritise the right activities that will ensure the quality you desire. Keep an eye on even the small things and check that any tasks you delegate will be delivered to a high standard too. The key question to ask yourself is : What will be my best and most effective work I can and should do?’’

STORY: Take responsibility for understanding why you are doing what you are doing; (And don’t say it’s because your boss asked you to do it). When you know the purpose you approach the task with the end in mind and can think through what you have to do, what you will require for the purpose to be served. The key question to ask yourself is: ‘’Why is what I am doing important and worth doing well?’’

SPEED: Be clear when you need to do the work by. Define meaningful progress checkpoints so that you keep a good pace and keep on track. Build in some time slack for dealing with unforeseen events that might risk slowing things down. If you need other people’s involvement, get their commitment and involvement early. The Key question to ask yourself: ‘’When do I need to get this done by and how can I ensure I deliver on time?’’

SHOCKS: Plans don’t always go totally accordingly to plan. So anticipate potential obstacles and challenges and have a strategy for dealing with them. A Key question to ask yourself: ‘’What could derail or delay progress and how will I address those?’’

SUBSTANCE: Know from the start what is tangible evidence that you are implementing to a high standard and getting the right results. What will you measure and how? A Key question to ask yourself: ‘’How will I know I am doing this task well?’’

SMARTS: Take time to reflect on how things went, what you can learn in order to set even higher standards and do even better next time. A Key question to ask yourself: ‘’What new thing did I learn that I can apply next time to improve my execution?’’

Now take action: How can you execute your assignments better?