The Company We Keep

Are You a Professional?

In recent years, I’ve noticed that people use the word professional quite loosely.  Leaders want their direct reports to operate like professionals and individuals often are frustrated because they don’t feel as though they are treated as professionals.  What strikes me in both instances is that people are often not clear on what it means to be a professional.

To me, being a professional means that you consistently behave “professionally”—that is, you hold yourself to the highest standards in a field or function.  These standards vary from field to field and from organization to organization but certainly expectations are set in both arenas.   

So, if you’re trying to evaluate your level of professionalism, consider these 3 component:

1. Competence:  This means that you continually improve your knowledge and skills in a particular area of expertise.  To be a high performing professional means that you do not “rest on your laurels” but instead continually seek to learn from publications in your field, from reflecting on your experiences, and from other practicing professionals. 

 

1. Conduct:  In this area, a professional holds themselves to a high standard of behavior that both reflects the values and interests of the organization and recognizes the rights of all persons to be treated with dignity and respect.  Professionals know how to manage their emotions and they use judgment and restraint when interacting with others. 

 

1. Contribution:  To be a professional means that you deliver value to the organization in terms of outcomes and contribution to the development of outcomes.  To be a contributing professional means that you actively participate in producing the business of the organization by working with other people, problem solving, setting and meeting goals.  Essentially—you deliver results.

 

Being a professional means consistently demonstrating the competence, conduct and contribution of your field and organization.  A competent person who is rude or surly is not behaving professionally.  A pleasant person who never participates and fails to set and meet goals is not behaving professionally.  A star achiever who meets goals at the expense of others is not behaving professionally.  A professional demonstrates each component.

In the end, you have the power to set standards for yourself and these standards affect your professional reputation.  So now it's time to reflect...are you a professional?

Managing Up

NEWSFLASH!  If you’re a middle manager, a big part of your job is supporting your boss.  Now before you roll your eyes, groan in misery or think that I’m on your boss’ payroll, think about this. 

Lately I’ve come across a number of leaders who are loathe to own their roles as managers—they like the pay, the benefits, the vacation, the comfortable office, but they find it difficult that their boss has some idiosyncrasies.    Now, I’m not suggesting that your boss is perfect, or even right all of the time but I am suggesting that you have the job of managing both the expectations of your boss and the image of your boss.

So here’s the short list of behaviors that you can adopt to successfully “manage up”

1. Follow Directions.  Your leader can and should expect you to follow her directions—even when you may not like them.  So if your leader asks you to implement a program that you believe to be flawed, your job is to a) tactfully suggest the concerns you have b) accept that your leader may have access to confidential information that she cannot share with you and c) implement the program as if you owned it.

2. Own it.  This goes along with number 1 but based on the numbers of people I see not owning, I think it bears repeating.  Ownership means taking responsibility for an initiative—it means communicating the direction with confidence while acknowledging that there will be barriers that you and your team must overcome with creativity, imagination and collective brainpower.  Owning means communicating your belief in the eventual success of the initiative. 

3. Share information.  Your job is to keep your leader in sync with the sentiments of your team.  Your purpose it to provide your boss with information to enable better decision making and to engage in a dialogue that will help you to manage the team.  By moving information up you serve as a reality check for your leader.

4. Shoulder the blame.  When your direct reports complain about a practice, expectation, initiative or approach, take the criticism without giving in to the temptation to improve your own image by blaming the decision on your boss.  Blaming the boss simply causes people to 1) question the direction of the organization which clearly is not the best use of company time 2) question your credibility—after all, you’ve positioned yourself as a lame duck or a puppet to your leader and c) lose faith in the leader who rarely is present to defend herself

5. Accept quirks.  Sure your boss may be a perfectionist, a neat freak, a rambler or a scatterbrain but the fact is that you have chosen to work for this person.  If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the fire!  When you become the boss, someone will have to deal with your quirks too! 

Management is a difficult job and typically, the broader the scope, the more challenging it is.  So give your boss a break—make her look good.  Don’t be afraid to actively demonstrate that you are fielding problems, managing expectations, massaging personalities and generally addressing all of the issues that she has hired you to manage.  So this week, show up with solutions, recommendations, success stories and well articulated plans for that new project that your boss is so passionate about. 

T'is the Networking Season

With holiday festivities just around the corner, it’s time to set your sights on a season filled with networking!  Now before you fear someone handing you a business card before a beer, relax …party-goers who understand networking would never dream of doing such a thing.

Over the years, networking has taken a bad turn.  It seems that some people view it as an opportunity to be obnoxious, pushy or just plain self centered.  But the true spirit of networking is about cultivating relationships not collecting business cards and developing a hit list. 

In the spirit of the season, it makes sense to review the key principles of networking.

§    First off, networking is a life long, long term investment in your professional life.   That means that you should be open to networking all year round, not simply when you need a job, a sale or a favor. 

§    Effective networking begins with a central value—reciprocity.  Each time you initiate or accept an opportunity to network, you should view it as an opportunity to give someone a gift.  Perhaps you have an idea that might be helpful, a willing ear to listen to a challenge, or a contact that might benefit someone. Whatever gift you bring, expect nothing in return and you can bet that someone might be interested in talking with you again.  You may get a second meeting or you may have gained some information that will help you later.  Trust reciprocity--when you give freely you always get something in return. 

§    Remember to engage in a conversation not an interrogation.  If you’re at a seasonal party, do not ruin the evening by grilling someone with questions about their work or asking about work problems.  Seek to find out about a person’s life outside of their work.  How do they spend their time?  What plans do they have for the holiday?  What favorite gift did they receive or buy?  Remember that a shared experience is memorable.  If you want to be remembered, create enjoyable experiences.  Laugh a little!

§    Talk to people not to job titles.  Business opportunities arise from all sorts of people in every walk of life.  Don’t assume that a big title means big business.  If you look at everyone as your “ship coming in” you are likely to be left behind on the shore.  Successful people build relationships with people not titles.

§    Follow-up with like-minded people.  Collecting business cards without creating conversation is a sure-fire way to annoy people.  Make sure that you have developed a connection with another person before setting your sights on a second meeting.  Ask the other person if they would be interested in talking again sometime and then offer to call them.  Avoid the shot gun approach.

§    Finally, be yourself.  Being honest about your interests, dreams, and challenges increases the chance that you will meet like-minded people; more often than not, these folks will be interested in talking with you again and may well be your connection to a wealth of ideas, information, or contacts that will ultimately support your professional goals. 

Career Myths

One of the greatest challenges you will face as a young professional is taking charge of your career.  Like so many life decisions, it is easy to lose yourself in the myths fostered by sometimes well meaning people. 

Several years ago I met a young woman who was a gifted artist.  From my perspective she had both the passion for her work and the talent to carve a successful career in an artistic field.  Imagine my surprise when I learned that this gifted artist had pursued a degree in business!  Even more horrifying was her confession that she chose a business degree because her parents convinced her that art “didn’t’ really add up to a career.”

Hogwash I say!  I’m sad to say that I routinely meet professionals who have sacrificed their passions out of a misplaced belief that pragmatism always leads to success.  And on the surface, this may appear to be true.  By the North American standards, having a professional role with a steady income, good benefits and the opportunity for promotion is often viewed as success.  So why then do so many of these professionals feel empty, wasted, and numbed by the prospect of another 20 years in their chosen professions?

As a young professional, the most important gift that you can give to yourself is self reflection.  Take time to learn about the type of work that interests you and don’t worry too much if your list is a bit vague.  It takes awhile to develop a vision of yourself in the future, so just keep collecting the fragments that float on the edges of your daily experiences and start talking to professionals who do work that is interesting to you.  Write it all down!  The practice of writing will help you to clarify your goals and recognize opportunities when they arise.

Secondly, don’t be afraid to give up someone else’s dream.  Recently my nephew demonstrated considerable courage when he chucked his position with a well regarded law firm for a role as a commissioned sales person.  Some people would say he was crazy.  Others might shake their heads and bemoan the wasted law school and still others would say that he was making a big mistake.  But the good news is that they are wrong.  No experiences, education or mistakes are ever wasted; they merely provide you with a richer perspective. Unfortunately naysayers tend to project their own fears and worries, and their own rationalizations for staying in careers that don’t work for them.  Remember that sometimes, misery does love company.  When it comes to career advice, listen to those who love their choices. 

Career Myths	Career Realities
You should know what you want to do for the rest of your life	Many successful people who love their work are wondering what they’ll do next.
Future earning potential is a critical factor in determining you career path.	There is no guarantee of anything.  Sometimes earning too much early on prevents you from really exploring the opportunities.
Anything in the arts or social science arena is not practical.	Tell that to Steven Spielberg, Oprah, or Martha Stewart etc.  Passion leads to profit.
It’s who you know not what you know.	Yes and no.  Yes—start networking; you can get to know these people!  Networking is a way to make your talent visible. No— incompetence rarely sells.  Personal satisfaction generally stems from a combination of competence and interest.