Who is Your Boss? The Answer Might Surprise You

This seems like a simple question. One that would be easy to answer. But for those of us in a customer-facing and customer-impacting role or with big ambitions for our career, it is the kind of multiple choice question that leads to new insights and creates different day-to-day priorities and strategies. 

WHO Do You Work for?

Option 1: You work for your employer. This is the most obvious one. You are employed by an organization from which you receive a paycheck. You have a boss (or several). Your boss might have a boss. Your goals are aligned to the financial or strategic goals of the business and the goals of those bosses. And your primary job is to advocate for the company with customers to create enterprise value for the investors of your company and the leadership who is advocating their interest. With this mindset, the importance of “managing up” is clear. Internal relationship building and being visible in the organization is critical. Whether your manager is collaborative, a micro-manager, or empowering, this view dominates the work landscape.

Option 2: You work for your customers. For marketing professionals and other customer-facing roles, this can be a very useful perspective for day-to-day prioritization. Customers ultimately pay the bills and drive growth and profit in the company. Often customer advocacy and resulting business results can lead to personal rewards. If your goals are aligned to the business goals of your customer, this can lead to great partnership and can optimize long-term customer value. Customer experience and customer service are paramount and are driving enterprise value (not the other way around). With this mindset, the importance of customer relationship building is clear. You need to spend time with your boss, after all.  And your primary job is to advocate or the customer within the company.

Option 3: You work for yourself. Perhaps you are self-employed, consult, or rocking the gig economy, but even if you are not, it is helpful to consider this perspective. Even if you are an employee, you own your own career. You own your own development. And for most of us, we own how we apply our time and energy to the various problems and opportunities we face daily. Ultimately, you choose to join companies, which customers or markets you focus on, and how you pursue your personal passions over time. And with this approach, your primary job is to advocate for yourself with customers and the company, to align their goals with the work you want to pursue. In my experience, this perspective comes to the forefront in times of transition or discontent, but otherwise is under-prioritized. 

As you consider your answer, know that it truly is a multiple choice question. Your answer will likely be a mix of all three and will vary over time as needs and priorities changes. 

In any case, I highly recommend you spending time, being mentored by, and really understanding the needs of all three of your bosses - your employer, your customers, and yourself – to ensure that you are performing up to your fullest potential.   We often don’t listen to ourselves or give ourselves the same compassionate and honest advice we would give to colleagues or our employees, even though we could benefit from the self-reflection. And most of us don’t ask or receive advice frequently enough from our employers or our customers and we should regularly seek out the gift of feedback. Armed with these insights, we can confidently answer the question and focus on the highest impact priorities.

This article was originally published on LinkedIn Pulse.

What You Can Learn in 7 Minutes?

I am excited to participate again this year in Portland Business Journals' BizWomen Mentoring Monday on April 3rd.  After introductions and a delicious breakfast at The Sentinel Hotel, they will set up 40 of us around the room to meet in a "speed dating" format with as many women as possible in short increments.  7 conversations, 7 minutes each.

You might be wondering what you could possibly get done in 7 minutes?  And I can tell you having been on both sides of the table at this event, you can accomplish a lot.  If you have a goal in mind and you talk to the right person.

My first year attending, I visited with leaders from companies as diverse as Blue Cross Blue Shield to Waggner Edstrom.  And I received great advice.  We skipped the "get to know" you steps of mentoring.  We skipped the pleasantries where we tried to be nice to each other.  We went right to the point.  I asked their advice and then gave it - unfiltered and extremely practical.  I brought questions, queued up behind people who were knowledgable about my topics of interest, and they provided distilled wisdom that I found very useful and actionable.

Last year, I tried to do the same for the people who talked to me.  Several of them followed up and we met up for coffee and a longer conversation.  I found it very rewarding and hope they received some insights as well.  If you were one of the ones I spoke with last time, please come see me again!  I'd love to find out what the last year has brought you and what new challenges or opportunities you are facing.

The women they have assembled as mentors this year are a diverse and accomplished crowd of business leaders in Portland from a variety of industries and backgrounds.  They include the following, including myself:

• Christy Aleckson, Owner, Single Point Financial Advisors
• Rebecca Armstrong, Managing Director/ Principal, North
• Kyra Bussanich, Owner, Kyra's Bake Shop
• Jeanne Carver, Co-Owner, Imperial Carver Ranch
• Stacey Dodson, President, U.S. Bank
• Angela Dowling, President, Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon
• Debra Dunn, President, Synergy Resources Group
• Jill Eiland, PBA Oncore Fellow
• Angie Galimanis, Owner and President, Lawrence PR
• Alyssa Gasca, Owner, Spark Executive Solutions
• Missy Gerber, President, Organizers Northwest
• Anna Hutson, Founder & CEO, Avenue
• Margie Hunt, CEO, Special Olympics Oregon
• Laurie Kelley,   President and Chief Development Officer, Oregon Region Foundations,    Providence Health & Services
• Tara Leigh Kinateder,  Senior Vice President and Private Client Advisor, US Trust
• Tara Kramer, CEO and Owner, Ri-Ky Roofing and Sheet Metal LLC
• Elizabeth Large, General Counsel Executive
• Ivo Lukas, CEO, 24Notion
• Juliana Lukasik, Principal/Director, Large Films
• Diana Marsden, Owner, Aries Apparel
• Janeen McAninch, President, Becker Capital Management
• Judith McGee, Chair/CEO, McGee Wealth Management
• Serena Morones, Owner, Morones Analytics
• Francine Read, President, VOICES, INC.
• Jan Robertson, Chief Operating Officer, Norris, Beggs & Simpson Companies
• Sara Schmidt, Creative Director, IDL Worldwide
• Ellen Schmidt Devlin, Director, Sports Product Management Program, University of Oregon
• Jennifer Sheasgreen, President, Triumph Healthcare Finance
• Angela Sheehan, CFO, Glumac
• Ann Smith, Founder/Owner, A.Wordsmith
• Janean Sorenson, Vice President, Parker | Smith | Feek
• Suzanne Stevens, Editor in Chief, Portland Business Journal
• Vanessa Sturgeon, President, TMT Development
• Chelsea Vandiver, Executive Managing Director, Ziba Design
• Michelle Weisenbach, President, Oregon & SW Washington, KeyBank
• Michelle Williams, Women Living a Richer Life Program Director, Brighton Jones
• Kimberly Wuepper Rudick, Sr. Financial Planner, New York Life

You can read their bios here.

Register here to reserve your spot!

Generation Gaps, Millennials, and the Future

I remember an interesting and impactful article I read in college in the Atlantic magazine about the different cultural norms in the generations in the U.S.  We have added a few more named generations to the progression since that article was written and got my attention.  The business world is in a tizzy about how to attract, retain, and motivate the famously free-spirited “millennial” generation as increasingly we are losing members of the “greatest generation” every day.  We wonder about the shift in our population, work forces, and voter ranks based on these changing demographics.

I heard Perry Hewitt from Harvard University talk recently about how some corporate cultural attributes like collaboration acted as “millennial nectar,” helping organizations attract new talent like colorful and fragrant flowers would attract bees and birds to a plant.  Conversely, an insistence on fixed job structures, long-term and slow-building career paths, and corporations that act too “corporate” act something like a millennial repellant.  I suppose each generation has their own nectar and repellant.

As part of the ill-defined “Generation X,” I am intrigued and puzzled by these generalizations.  I think each generation has faced its own impactful events and infrastructure.  Some things are consistent and many things have changed dramatically from generation to generation, leaving the “young people” of each generation to find their way.  A second world war, which came to US soil, demanded that the greatest generation develop a sense of duty and a fight for the common good and we wondered by in other times it wasn’t replicated by their children or grandchildren.  Today the world’s knowledge (and misinformation, as well) can fit in our pocket and we are puzzled when children raised with any answer only a click away, might feel impatient with corporate career paths and having to “pay their dues.” 

As I think of my own children, who have never known a world without the internet, cell phones, and on-demand entertainment, I am excited and curious what they will take for granted and the implications of this to their psyche and culture.

Yes, And

Responding to a new idea or engaging in conversation with "Yes, and..." is better than the alternative "No, but..."

The former opens people up to change and possibility.  The second puts them on the defensive and shuts down the conversation and collaboration.

Try not to use the word "but" today and see what subtle changes occur in your relationships.

The Secrets to Great Emails (or how to avoid big problems)

My life revolves around email. I use it to communicate with colleagues and customers at work. I use it to organize volunteers for the neighborhood block parties.  I use it more than it should, for sure. It is a horrible medium in many ways.  It doesn’t have the advantages of body language of face-to-face conversations or even the phone of voice of a phone call.  The asynchronous nature of the medium is great for convenience, yet it is not great for building understanding.  And still, I rely on it more than I should.

As a result of this personality flaw, I have learned a thing or two about email communications that are worth sharing.  Before you hit “send” run through this quick check list that has served me well.

1.Watch Your Buts

In spoken conversation, the words “but,” “however,” or “that being said,” all have a way of deflating energy.  They have a way of negating whatever positive thing you might have said before the word but and over email the negative tone comes through even stronger.

You are beautiful, but you have spinach in your teeth.

You are doing a great job, however you could do better.

It’s going to be a sunny day, although it will likely be too sunny and hot

You get the idea.

Before you hit “send,” go through and edit out the buts.  Break the sentence into two.  Think about how you can start the sentence with “Yes, and” instead of “But.” 

2.Scan for I’s

Have you ever finished up a note and noticed that every sentence in the email begins with the word “I.”  That is a great way to communicate selfishness in your email communications as they come off a little more one-sided than they would in a face-to-face conversation.  Scan your emails for sentences beginning with pronoun word “I” (or variations “me,” “myself”, “my”) and if there are too many, edit them out.  Instead of saying “I appreciate the invitation” say “It was great to receive your invitation.”  Those little edits will go along way to communicating gratitude and your regard.

3.Watch Your Column Inches

I am famous (infamous) for the long email.  Just because I can type like a bandit on my iPhone (or Blackberry before that) doesn’t mean I should.  Journalists writing for the newspaper would get a certain number of “column inches” to fill.  You should think about email in the same way.  A lot of email is read on mobile devices (or in preview panes in email software) and if your recipient has to scroll too much they will miss things or refuse to read it at all.  It is good to remember that not everyone is as comfortable with lots of words (I confess and you know who you are).

4.Don’t Bury the Lead

Taking another page from newspaper journalists, they assumed that most people would read the headline, some people would read the first sentence and most would not finish the article.  This means they would organize the facts, explanations, and outcomes of their story and prioritize the important things to the top of the article.  You should do the same.  Don’t bury action items, questions, or the like at the bottom of an email.  Put them at the top or in the subject line so that people know why they are reading.  You can always repeat them at the bottom (with some highlights for the most important things) for emphasis.

5.Be Prepared to Walk

Some things are best not handled via email.  Even for those of us who love it, it is not the best way to confront bad behavior, deal with sensitive or controversial issues, or to build relationships with new people.  So, if you read your email and sense there is an emotional tinge to the conversation or things not being said, walk away from email and walk over to that person instead.  Call them, visit with them, call a meeting, take them to coffee (or happy hour), anything to take the issue away from email where it will only get more spun up and complicated.  You wouldn’t think something as innocent as email would be capable of such rabble rousing and drama.  Don’t let it take control of you.  Email is a great tool and it is there to serve you.

Know Thyself: The Toolbox

I must start out with a confession.  I am a self-assessment junkie.  I love analysis tools that help me better reflect on my strengths, style, and effectiveness and how I relate to the world and approach problem-solving.  I understand that not everyone does.  But even more so, not everyone even knows that tools like this exist or how to use them. This post is meant to remedy that.

Below is a round up of some of the best assessment tools that I have used in the past.  With a short description of each (not exhaustive or complete by any means) and a link to where you can learn more or take the assessment.  I'd love to hear your thoughts on your favorites (or these or others that I might not have heard of before).

They are in rough alphabetical order.  I have no professional relationships or affiliations with any of these organizations, although I have taken all of these assessments over the years.

DiSC: This personality assessment might be one of the best known.  It is administered by hundreds of consultants (chances are your own HR team might have a certified trainer) and can be accessed online for less than $40 (and there are plenty of free "knock offs" out there as well).  It identifies people's dominant dimensions (Dominance, Influence, Stable, Compliant) and graphs individuals and groups into different combination profiles like "Promoter" or "Counselor".  This is a simple tool to help people understand each other better.

EQ-i: This is a measurement of emotional intelligence, thus EQ-i stands for Emotional Quotient Inventory.  It is administered by lots of professional coaches and trainers and can be accessed online for less than $40.  It provides composites along several factors includes self-perception, self-expression, interpersonal, decision making, and stress management.  I have been told that a high EQ score is more important than any other single factor (IQ, etc) for professional success, but I do suspect that is subject to the field and role of the individual.  However, there is no denying the impact of interpersonal relationships on success.  

The Flag Page: The Flag Page was developed in cooperation with the marriage expert, Mark Gungor (Laugh your Way).  Although it is used by organizations, it is an inexpensive tool ($10) designed first for individuals.  It uses the language of citizenship to identify which "country" is dominant in your style (Fun, Control, Peace, Perfect). This is very accessible assessment and they even have one for children to use for family dynamics.

Harrison: The Harrison Assessment is a complex tool administered by trained professionals often as part of a team workshop.  It is based on paradox theory, which illustrates how individuals can act in seemingly contradictory ways, especially under stress.  It highlights 12 paradoxes that relate to the workplace (things like diplomacy and frankness or organization and flexibility) and plots each individual in a default position and indicates what behaviors they might demonstrate when under pressure.  The resulting individual assessment is over 20 pages long and the team assessment is equally as rich.  I understand the assessment is relatively expensive (over $300 per person), but I have never personally purchased it, so I am not certain.  It is much more complex and requires more work to understand and apply the insights than the other assessments.

Kolbe: Designed based on the research of Karen Kolbe,  the Kolbe Cognition Survey looks at how individuals approach problem solving and rates them on four dimensions (Fact Finding, Follow Thru, Quick Start, and Implementor).  The individual assessment is $49 and available on their website (a Kolbe A index).  They also have a series of products for determining job fit (managers complete a Kolbe C to develop a profile for a job and the employee completes a Kolbe B to identify their perceptions of the job requirements and when compared these B and C indexes show areas of gap or opportunity).  It can be used for recruiting and job fit analysis.  There is a youth version (Kolbe Y) as well.  This assessment is easy to digest, but allows for nuance and discussion than some of the more simple tools.

Myers-Briggs:  This is probably the most popular and extensively used "personality test" given.  Myers-Briggs is administered by thousands of practioners and is available online for less than $50 (and there are a number of free knock-off versions out there as well).  The survey gives back a score along four criteria (covering interpersonal styles, structures, decision making, and information) and sorts people into one of 16 personality types based on their responses. This is used in casual and in-depth coaching settings with success.

OAD: The Organization Analysis and Design survey is administered by an independent consultant or trainer certified by the organization.  It measures individuals along several constructs including assertiveness, extroversion, pace/patience, detail orientation, versatility, emotional control, and creativity.  Doing this as a group can reveal patterns and organize individuals into four profiles (architects, builders, experts and facilitators).  I have seen this used effectiveness to identify general patterns in groups.  It can be explained fairly easily (it is more complex than Kolbe and less than Harrison).

Clifton StrengthsFinder: This survey (developed by the "father of strengths psychology" Donald O Clifton and Gallup Organization) came free with my copy of Now, Discover Your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham.  It allows you to self-identify your top 5 strengths and identifies how we can use those talents.  

There are many other assessments that one can do individually and in facilitated conversations with executive coaches or consultants, which I can cover in future posts.  

Which are your favorites and why?

No One Knows

Since your potential is unknown, and as a result is virtually limitless, use your imagination, ask your friends and mentors, and believe in yourself.

Eavesdropping on Success

You learned your native language largely through eavesdropping.  Listening in on conversations.  

The language that might be critical for your career success will likely be learned in the same way.  Whether it is insight about how work gets done in your organization or the vernacular of your industry, you will pick it up by proximity.  If you want to accelerate your learning, how can you do that?  I don't suggest spying on meetings or lurking on conference calls (who has the time anyway?), but there are ways you can get this access in other ways.  

• Reading trade publications,
• reaching out to executives at your companies and offering to take them to coffee to ask questions,
• researching your company's financial filings and analyst coverage,
• following an influential blogger in your space,
• by studying the moves of competition,
• by talking to your sales team regularly.  

These are all ways in which you can, with intention and integrity, eavesdrop on success and learn the language through immersion.

How have you accelerated your own learning?  Share your success stories here.

The Not-So-Civil War of Self-Confidence

Each one of us is fighting a battle of self-confidence.  No matter how many years you have under your belt or how established your reputation in your industry, there are still things you are learning  (at least I hope) and things about which you are not on sure footing.  You are very aware of these areas and each of us have our own coping mechanisms.

And some of us are very critical of ourselves about these discrepancies.  About the things we could be doing better.  About the things we didn't say or do.  About the things we did.  About what we have yet to do.  It can take the form of worry, guilt, or stress.  And it can mount a full-blown attack on our ability to approach the future with calm assurance.  This not-so-civil war is raging constantly under the surface.  And we often are quite violent with ourselves, over-playing our failures and inadequacies and under-playing our strengths and abilities.

Somehow it is easier knowing that everyone is feeling this, at least to some extent.  Whether it is articulated or not. And I find comfort in our ability to change our perceptions, and the confidence with with which we bring to our work, by changing our mindset.  Of course, we should never finish working on our skills, our experience, and trusted counsel from advisers we trust.  And in the meantime, we have it in our power recognize that the internal battles we are fighting are just that.

And it is critical to be encouraging to folks on your team, to your boss, to your peers, and even to your customers.  Not to whitewash skills gaps or performance concerns, but to give people an opportunity quiet their self-critic and apply their strengths to the problems at hand and see success.

Question of the Week

You can always find reasons to be more conservative, be smaller, and sit back.  But what if you didn't?  What do you lose by being bolder?  What do you lose by not being bold?

Jennifer Davis Joins the Board of Marathon Scholars

Last night, I attended my first board of trustees for Marathon Scholars.  I am excited about what this organization has accomplished and what we can do to further the mission of making the dream of college a reality for talented and low-income kids.  They identify high-potential students in the 4th grade and walk with them, providing them mentoring and a college scholarship, until they complete their bachelor's degree.

I first learned about Marathon Scholars, when their executive director spoke at an iSing Choir concert as the beneficiary.  I was attracted to several things about the organization.

First, they measure and hold themselves accountable to the right thing: college graduations. Not college enrollments.  The statistics around low income and first generation college student graduation rates are deplorable and often these same students, with great potential and good intentions, cut their college careers short of a degree (and the earning potential and opportunity that brings), but take with them student loans that can further burden their lives in the future.  Marathon Scholars takes seriously their commitment, and that of the student scholar and their parents, to complete college.

Secondly, they start at the right time: 4th grade.  They select students in the Portland Metro and SW Washington area through an application progress and pair them with mentoring resources to help with individualized guidance, advising, and college prep programming for the next 12 years.  In addition, they receive the first of their college scholarship, totaling $12,000 donated month-by-month over by a sponsor who also partners in their potential.  4th grade might seem like too early to be talking about college, but it seemed to me to be the perfect time.  Before they must persevere through advanced math and English classes.  Before they start making life-impacting decisions that would later affect their college readiness.  Before they are told that they are not college material, Marathon Scholars reminds them that they are!

I welcome you to join me in this good work.  You can participate in many different ways.  We are in need of some scholarship sponsors that would commit to donate every month or quarter to fund the scholarships of one of our 2015 cohort of 4th graders.  A one-time gift could also help with operational plans, including helping to off-set the cost of the Annual Summer Celebration happening on June 20th.

At this family friendly event, we will be serving up ice cream and stories of hope and accomplishment.  All are invited and you can learn more and RSVP here.  I hope you can come.

You can also follow Marathon Scholars on Twitter, Facebook, the blog, and via their email newsletter which you can access on their home page.  While you are there, you can also check out the great video of what mentoring means to these scholars!

5 Things Everyone Should Know How to Do

I have had the privilege of doing a number of different functional roles in my career and throughout all of them, I have have found the following five skills critical in all of them:

1. Gather Requirements

Of course, you'd expect those in product management or market research would need to know this skill, but frankly, it is critical across all functions and in all organizations.  Being able to understand the needs of the customers (internal or external) and identify success metrics is absolutely critical to every role, even those in executive leadership where resources are allocated and capital is obtained to fund the work.  This requires the ability to ask good question, perceive needs, and broker ideas from one part of the business to another.

2. Identify Decision Makers

Professional sales people make their living by understanding what, but more critically who, stands between them and a sale.  They understand how to work with champions, financial buyers, and other profiles to achieve results and make certain that the customer is getting full value for their purchases. But in my experience it is not just account managers who need to have this skill.  Knowing this avoids wasted time and effort convincing people with no purchase power or decision making authority on the merits of your offer.  Whether you are advocating for an internal proposal or influencing key suppliers, everyone should know how to determine who the real decision makers are.  Often this is achieved through a combination of observations and questions.  The best sales people are ones who can tactfully ask who needs to be involved in the decision and process by which decisions of this type are made.  Those are good questions for everyone to be ready to ask.

3. Tell the Truth (in love) 

I consider the truth a gift and regularly remind my staff that I rely on them for their candor.  I sincerely hope they take me up on the offer to listen to their complaints or suggestions with an open mind and a willingness to change, if necessary.  Being able to receive the truth is a made a lot easier when the truth teller is gifted in this area.  The effective truth teller strikes a balance between frankness and concern for the individual.  They speak the truth in love, as the writer of Ephesians penned.  

And it is easy to lose that balance.  Taylor Swift's song "All Too Well" poetically describes the person who emphasized truth over love:

Hey, you call me up again just to break me like a promise.

So casually cruel in the name of being honest.

Being able to deliver a tough message in a tender way is a very useful skill for any professional.

4. Advocate for Yourself Resourcefully

We often employ our full range of resourcefulness on tasks at worth, without taking stock on how we might marshal the same energy to advocate for ourselves.  No one else will do it for you (no, really, it is true).  It's up to you.

5. Identify Opportunities for Personal Growth

And part of advocating is knowing what to advocate for.  This is why it is critical that people continue to grow and be on the look-out for professional opportunities.  They don't have to cost money or take a lot of time.  They can be as simple as asking the advice of people you admire or reading a blog or book on a topic of interest.  Being intellectually curious is one of the things that sets the the high performers and high potentials apart from the crowd.

The Plan of Record

In business and strategy we often talk about the “plan of record.”  This is the documented and agreed upon plan against which we might measure results or track our progress.  But plans, of record or otherwise, are subject to change.  New information, market conditions, changing circumstances should cause us to adjust our plans.  A Prussian Field Marshall, by the name of Melmuth Carl Bernard Graf von Moltke, is credited with the statement “No plan survives contact with the enemy,” and oft quoted phrase among those responsible for planning.    His actual statement is translated more closely to “No plan of operations extends, with any certainty, beyond the first contact with the main hostile force.”  It is the reference to certainty has me thinking.

But even as those plans are being evaluated and course corrections anticipated, it is important to remain clear in our communications.  To never let certainty muddy our clarity.

Many writers, poets, and priests have expressed the desire for clarity, when they really wanted was certainty.  That a certain course of action would bring them happiness or profit.  Certainty about the gender of the unborn baby or the outcome on a battle field.  Certainty is grounded in fact and can really only be found in the past (and even that, because of the nature of memory and perception, is unreliable at times).  Clarity, however, is in the present.

In his book The Five Temptations of a CEO, author and consultant Patrick Lencioni talks about the importance in clarity even when certainty is elusive.  Clarity is clearly communicating direction to the team in a way that removes ambiguity and keeps the organization moving forward. Clarity is clearly communicating with ourselves about what we are doing now, until things change and other decisions are made.  In other words, the plan of record.

So, what is your plan of record?  What are you driving for today?  Focus on that and you will find yourself feeling more clarity and possibly creating more certainty as you gain results.  Or you may find evidence that a change is required and you can find clarity in that as well.

Is Trust Build or Revealed?

I recently re-read Patrick Lencioni’s The Five Dysfunctions of a Teambusiness fable and was reminded of the foundational importance of trust among a team.  His definition is fairly precise and limited to a belief in the intention of the person (not in their ability or capacity), yet it got me thinking about trust in a more general sense.

We often talk about building trust.  But I wonder if that is the right metaphor at all.  Do we really “build” trust with people?  Or is it more that we reveal the trustworthiness of others in our interactions and in their promises made and kept? 

Some people can never build (or re-build) our trust and others can’t seem to shake our feelings of goodwill, no matter what they do. This led me to another thought.

Is trust not about the other person, and their trustworthiness, at all, but in our own willingness to be trusting?  So, perhaps we don’t build trust at all, but rather we reveal the trust within ourselves.

5 Things I Wish I Knew in the First 5 Years of My Career

In my career in technology, I have helped many customers create wayfinding systems—the touchscreen-enabled systems that allow people to chart where they are and where they are going as they navigate a shopping center or college campus. Wayfinding is a lot like the lifelong effort of shaping a career.

The first step is to identify where the “You Are Here” pin might be and to determine what direction might be a good next step. Unlike the touchscreen map in the shopping mall, however, one’s entire career landscape typically isn’t visible. This is because people create their careers as they go, and the total career map is only available in hindsight.

As my own career approaches two decades (and spans two millennia), I have been reflecting on the things I wish I better understood in the early years of my career. Here are some of the top insights:

1. Don’t wait for permission to get the experience you want.

Finally, you don’t need to wait for a specific job opening or opportunity to get the experience you want. In today’s world, it’s easier than ever to proactively develop your experience.

Do you want experience planning a highly visible event even though your company doesn’t have that need? Volunteer for a non-profit that puts on a fun run or festival.

Do you want to put your journalism degree to work even though your current job doesn’t require writing?Start a blog.

Do you want to learn a new skill, like programming iPhone apps? Take a class, read a book or join a local hack-a-thon group.

Are you not getting what you need from your manager to help you take your career to the next level? Join a professional development organization or seek out a mentor.

2. Whom you know isn’t as important as who knows you.

Knowing a lot of people and building a network is key, but it is also critical that they know you—to allow people to get to know you including what you’re good at, what you’re curious about, what you’ve done and what you’d like to do. This puts other people in a position to help you.

One way to get people to know you is by developing a special area of expertise. As an appreciator of artistic talent, I am often struck by how many famous artists get known for a particular style of art even though they can often paint in a variety of styles. Vincent van Gogh built his brand on the rough brush stroke style depicted in his Sunflowers and The Starry Night paintings, not his more realistic paintings of potato farmers. The artists who achieve prominence do so by getting known for doing one thing. They have talents and interests outside of that focus, but they develop a signature style. The same thing is helpful in your career.

When the industrial design firm IDEO hires new staff members, it looks for “T-shaped people”—individuals with a broad span of curiosity and experience (the top of the T), but a deep expertise in a single area (the base of the T). Think about your own experience and interests. Decide what your T looks like and reinforce it in your communications with other people.

Another way to get people to know you is to ask for advice. There’s nothing that makes you look smarter than asking smart people for their counsel. So put yourself out there to learn more from others on both small and big things. Ask the Excel expert in your office to show you her most useful tips and tricks. Ask someone in your circle his advice for graduate school programs. And even after you land a position, continue the informational interviews and other networking techniques you learned in college. An ongoing curiosity will serve you well. Not only will you learn, but the people you meet will get to know you on a deeper level.

3. What you know isn’t as important as whom you know.

Everyone has heard this maxim before and it is generally true: You are more likely to hear about a job or be given an opportunity from someone you know. But it goes further than that. Second-degree connections are of critical importance as well.

Early career individuals often seek to build a network of people who are hiring managers or executives, and as a result, they might miss the networking opportunities that exist with their peers. When I was in graduate school, I found that I often learned more and had more relevant professional connections with my classmates than my professors. The same is true in the business world. If you go to graduate school, join a company or volunteer for a non-profit, pay special attention to those whom you will be working alongside and attach yourself to the talented, smart, high-potentials in that group. You can grow your future network in this way.

4. Nothing is a life sentence.

It’s common for college students to feel like their selection of a major is setting them on a career path that’s more defined than it actually is. And many new college grads bemoan getting a job “outside their major.” But this is not a tragedy. Instead, it illustrates how fungible one’s career path and choices actually are.

In your lifetime, you may have several distinct careers. You will likely work for multiple companies, or at least multiple groups and managers, and although there will be skills gained from one assignment that you will use in others, the path will only be clear in hindsight. Don’t be afraid to take a leap and do something new, pursue your interests and have those take you in a different direction. Don’t be afraid to take on new responsibilities.

I often hear early career professionals say they feel pressure to pursue a defined career path despite not fully knowing what they want to do. The truth is you will always have additional choices and nothing you start doing today has to be forever.

5. Know how the score is kept and lead with it.

Any business—whether it’s a services firm, technology manufacturer or even a retailer—uses a common scorecard for measuring success: financial results. Sure, some organizations are starting to track triple-bottom line results in recognition of their impact on the community and the environment. But those factors typically supplement the traditional financial statements and metrics that allow all organizations to measure their results. It is critical that you understand how the score is kept.

If you want to obtain more responsibility in the organization, lead with the financials when making a proposal, explaining an initiative or presenting alternatives. Overall, you will be more strategic.