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5 Career Questions that you must ask yourself this New Year

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Is my work satisfying?
How do you feel getting up in the morning and getting ready for work? Are you excited to be at a place which sparks the creative you, a feeling that you could make a difference today?
Do you feel happy to be working where you are or where your career is headed?
If yes, you are in a great career and job. Give it your best and the best shall come to you. Be positively productive at work and be a team player – two essential ingredients to a successful profession.
If not, pause now and think what cold possibly make you happier at work or give you that enthused feeling to get up everyday and contribute your best to the world – everyday.

Is my family/personal life better because of my career or is it suffering because of excessive/stressful time at work?
Whatever one says that achieving a work-life balance is not possible in the 21st century, there it not much fulfillment at work if your family life suffers or you each evening you get home with a guilt feeling of not being there for your kids for most of the week.
If you feel something is missing and this career is not helping you enjoy your life at the fullest – pause – think and evaluate – there is always a way. Yes compromises and trade-offs would be there but evaluate your priorities first.
What truly makes you content and happier, and how you can contribute to your family’s happiness and satisfaction?

How are my Skills today and what am I doing to develop new ones everyday?
Have you recently taken a new course or class that hones your present skills or made an effort to acquire a new one? Have you enrolled at your company’s regular certification courses or plan on enrolling one for this year?
If the answer is in negative – it is time to pay heed to this essential career development step. Technology develops fast and old skills are getting older faster than ever before. Be proactive towards your career – evaluate how you see yourself rising to a higher position than you are today or just be ready to learn something new this year.

Am I spending time to take care of my health?
Is the stress at work taking a toll on you? Are you finding no time to walk outside and breathe the fresh air or just relax when your body feels like? Or just you have not time left after a days work to take care of how healthy your eating habits are or finding any time for the gym?
If the answer is no, then it is time to pause and scrutinize your routine.
How much significant is your work if you suffer a major ailment down the road just because of neglect towards your health?

Does my work make someone else’s life better somewhere?
Don’t just work for the sake of being there 9 to 5 or more or just for the money. Of course, if need be this is what you have to do, but pause for a minute take time to evaluate the bigger picture. Is your work making someone’s life better somewhere? Are you helping the society in some way? Does the bigger picture make sense when you fit the pieces together?
If yes, feel proud and happy that your work is valuable today and would matter to the world even if only a small part of it – but it matters.
If not – pause and think – could you do something either in your present work or something beyond that would make a difference to someone or to the world? If you can, you’ll be even prouder of yourself and everyday getting up for work would have an energizer effect on you, because you as a single soul can make a big difference somewhere – all you need to do is to find out how?

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How Good are you at Connecting with your Team? – An Essential Tip for a Successful Leader

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No matter how many ideas are shared on good leadership skills, I believe a good leader is one who can respect, connect and also influence the people he/she leads. And of course how well you can articulate your thoughts and future actions to your team, good communication skills and good people connection are fundamental qualities of a good leader.

There’s nothing more demoralizing than a leader who can’t clearly articulate why we’re doing what we’re doing.
- James Kouzes and Barry Posner

Have you heard or read Martin Luther King’s speech “I Have a Dream”? The speech is remarkable and what makes it truly remarkable was that Dr King was able to present the thoughts of millions together articulately and all the listeners had the same thought that day – “That is exactly what my dream is.” He appealed to the common man’s thoughts and dreams and he was able to emphasize this one thought effectively.
These are the elements of an impressive, persuasive, and influential speech.

Kouzes and Posner in their brilliantly inspirational book “The Leadership Challenge” articulate these thoughts so well. I quote them here, “Dr. King’s “I have a Dream” speech illustrates how the ability to exert an enlivening influence is rooted in fundamental values, cultural traditions, personal conviction, and a capacity to use words to create positive images of the future. To enlist others, leaders need to bring the vision to life. Leaders have to animate the vision and make manifest the purpose so that others can see it, hear it, touch it, feel it. In making the intangible vision tangible, leaders ignite constituents’ flames of passion.
And there is something else you can learn when you actually listen to King’s speech. What you’ll hear is an audience that was participating. The people in the crowd that day were clapping and shouting back, “Yes,” and “Oh, yes,” and “um-hmm,” and “Hear, hear.” They were fully engaged. It wasn’t a one way street. King was in a conversation with them about their lives and about their dreams. They could see the dream he was envisioning and they were affirming it. They were telling him with their shouts and nods and claps and responses, “You have heard me, and you are talking to me about what I long for. You are saying what I am feeling.” Their shouts and claps prove that Dr. King’s dream was not his dream alone. It was the people’s vision. It was a shared vision.”

Some Tips towards Successful Leadership
If you are in a leadership position in your company, can you recall when was the last time you truly connected with your team, not in team meetings but when your team was able to share with you their thoughts and ideas on a larger scale, towards the main vision of your company or towards their career enhancement goals?

  • If you are not doing it frequently, perhaps it is time for a resolution – to make time to inspire and admire your team, spare time routinely to motivate your group but first get to know them.
  • If you wish to be a good leader, think first about your role model, list the reasons why you admire him or her. Evaluate how you can emulate the qualities that you marvel at and use them in your daily leadership roles.
  • Always put your team first; never hesitate to give your people the credit they deserve. Give them the best and in return they shall give you their best. Develop strong peoples skills and encourage two-way communication and you shall see exemplary results in all fields.
  • Do not execute performance reviews as a task to be checked off your list at the end of the year. Involve two-way communication and frequent meetings to analyze your team’s performance.

The leaders who work most effectively, it seems to me, never say “I.” And that’s not because they have trained themselves not to say “I.” They don’t think “I.” They think “we”; they think “team.” They understand their job to be to make the team function. They accept responsibility and don’t sidestep it, but “we” gets the credit. This is what creates trust, what enables you to get the task done.
- Peter Drucker

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How to respond to a Bad Performance Review

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It is indeed frustrating to see a bad performance review when you were not expecting one. Getting a bad performance review is stressful and not something to be ignored and brushed under the carpet.

Howsoever rattled or tormented you are feeling now, it is time to plan diligently on what to do next. Do not take an unfair performance review lying down and feeling there is nothing you can do about it; it is time to act but good planning must precede action. There is always a possibility to change the decision in your favor.

Here are some steps to help you towards your next plan and action:

Initiate further Meetings to Clarify Review

Contact your boss to talk to him personally on the performance review. Not over phone or Email but a face to face meeting is recommended to initiate clarifications on the review. In this meeting try not to be on the defensive and do not let emotions overcome you.

Meeting preparation: Before this meeting take time to carefully analyze the performance review you have received and also research on company’s policies on how to respond to bad performance review. Often organizations have a comprehensive HR webpage on the intranet or don’t feel shy to contact the HR on tips on how to respond to the performance review.

It is very important to first acquaint yourself with the review policies and process, prepare a list of points on which you were assessed during the review and compare with the goals and expectations previously set for you for the year.

Preparing in advance will make this meeting more meaningful and successful. Just a random discussion might get you nowhere – prepare and present facts during this meeting. Don’t arrange for this session in a hurry, think about the time you need to prepare and research for the details and then suggest a time frame to your boss to discuss the performance review. Keep in mind that it should not be delayed for a long time. Ask your boss if he is on vacation in the coming days or not, if yes, then schedule this meeting before he leaves for one.

When to request meeting - Make sure that the boss is not in a hurry to end this meeting and getting ready to attend another one.
It could be your one last chance to change the review in your favor, prepare well beforehand.
 

Discussing with your Boss

Use effective communication skills during the discussion with your boss. You must prepare before.

[Read more tips here: Are you Assertive or Timid at Work?]

Some tips on this crucial discussion with your manager:

- What’s the problem? Make sure that there was no miscommunication towards expectations put upfront. Is the assessment / review based on the goals put forward at the beginning of the year, or were there some expectations you were truly unaware of? (See Paraphrase the Accusations topic below)

- Defense – but on the right foot. Defend your case logically and present written evidence in support of your argument, do not get emotional or agitated in such meetings.

- Curb emotions. Howsoever you have the urge to vent your bridled emotions on an unfair review, do not do so. If you have mentally prepared yourself on remaining calm and taking notes during this meeting, you can get favorable results out of this meeting.

 

Paraphrase the Accusations

Miscommunication often results in a bad performance review, it could be on your part your boss’s or comments through other managers which have filtered in the wrong sense to your immediate supervisor. Spend time with your boss to clarify the accusations and also ask for specific instances where you have been accused of negligence or poor performance. For example, if your boss has written in the review of delayed project submission or under performance, do ask him to pinpoint the dates or the projects he/she is referring to.
 

Follow-up on the Meeting

If you and your boss are reaching arbitration on re-evaluating the performance review, ask your boss to schedule a quick follow-up meeting within a week or so. If your boss has agreed to change the performance review based on the discussion and facts you have presented so far, use your best persuasion and negotiation skills requesting him/her to incorporate positive feedback.
 

Don’t think of Quitting on one Bad Performance Review

Bosses come and go. Teams dissolve and the company goes through various reorgs. A bad review does not mean it is time for you to start looking for a new job. Analyze the situation and see if there are some valid points perhaps you can do your best to perform better next time. Else if there have been unjustified accusations that reaching out more to the manager and the HR could be a possible solution.
Just remember to be more proactive towards your career in future.
 

When to let it go

If you think you have been wrongfully accused and there is no way that your boss is ready to change or discuss the performance review, then think about the worst case scenario.

- What is the worst that can happen with such a performance review?

- What would happen if you just let it go?

If the answers do not bother you and you truly love your job, think about getting over it and trying to see the positive side – perhaps the others in your team have got worse reviews, maybe it is not you it your boss who just has to be a terrible critic at the workplace.

  • Discussing with your career coach or your colleagues in this issue is also a suggested step. Perhaps your co-workers have received bad reviews from this manager before and maybe it is his/her working style to see a better performance in employees (though not a good way for sure!). A second opinion and a second look might clarify things more than how you have been looking at it so far.
  • Having a positive attitude also helps – once you have accepted that there were some areas where you need improvement, move on and take on the challenge to do better. Make your goal to excel at your next performance review.

But if it is an unfair review, then definitely do not let it go just because you do not feel like fighting back.

Don’t let it go before a good discussion (not a fight!).

 

Consequences of a Bad Review

But be cautious of all consequences, if you cannot afford to be out of job or be in the bad books of management of HR re-think your steps towards the protest. It is a good idea to talk to your colleagues who have been in the company longer to find out if there were any actions taken against those who “revolted” against a bad performance review.

 

Related Articles:

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A Book Review – Lessons on Leadership: The 7 Fundamental Management Skills for Leaders at All Levels

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This book by Jack Stahl, former Revlon CEO and former president of Coca-Cola, is presented in a very simple to understand style that offers some essential lessons on leadership with valuable framework on leadership, indispensable skills for someone to have even in a non-corporate world.

Stahl in an interview with Business Week says, “Leadership is a bundling of very concrete action steps that can be taken and that what’s I have tried to outline in Lessons on Leadership.”

The book progresses step-by-step leading you from valuable information on how to actively develop your leadership and management skills to people management and financial policies and models that are appropriate for your business.
Some of the examples that Stahl gives from his Coco-Cola days and Revlon experience are insightful and offer the first hand cognitions on leadership qualities and people management skills.

I loved the “leadership insights” and the “key points” or the highlights all through the various chapters. These are simple and quite often known words of wisdom in the corporate world but often it is the simple things that we miss out in dealing with large organizations and projects.
Use these simple tips at all management and entrepreneurial levels – put them up in a poster format or just as reminders on your laptop or handheld devices, you’ll never go wrong with these, some of these I list here – leaving a strong desire for want for more!

  • A modest view of your future brings modest results and rewards. Think
    big and give people the opportunity to win big.
  • Prioritize your potential marketing programs and then focus on quality execution on the programs you have selected. This will maximize impact on the marketplace and the growth of your brands.
  • Be disciplined about not committing resources to low-return capital projects and investments.
  • Listen closely to learn about the little things you can do as an added service to your customer. They may be big to them.

 

But note that these values not only for your walls as a motivating adornment but must be truly used daily in developing your management and leadership abilities.

The book discusses the seven fundamental management skills for leaders at all levels. Whether you are a budding entrepreneur or at any level of management ladder in your organization, reading these valuable tips from one of the stalwarts of management success presents a marvelous opportunity that you don’t want to miss.

Careerbright – Career Article and Information for Professionals and Working Women
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Need for Better Communications Skills in a Collaborative Workplace

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This year has seen a remarkable change in the work culture in the Silicon Valley, more globalization for sure and more collaborative workspaces that have sprung up and are being considered by other large IT giants who are still entrapped in the cubicle workplace. Is it the end of the cubes and the lone worker on a deadline and begining of the new era of working together as a team with effective collaborations in a cubicle-less work environment?

Though accommodating to this new change will take time and opposition from mnay cannot be ruled out but the results talk for themselves. In an article in the San Jose Mercury News about the new trend of Valley companies dump cubicles for open office spaces, the authors Mark Boslet and Katherine Conrad elaborate on the new accelerated productivity at the workplace:

“Productivity also is up, said Larry Matarazzi, Cisco’s senior director of workplace resources. Ted Baumuller, a senior manager in Cisco’s information technology department, agrees. He said the time it takes to make decisions has been cut by 25 to 30 percent because it’s easier to round up the team, and collegial relationships have improved by working in a more open environment.
Baumuller believes he is much more accessible now that he no longer has a door. His office is wherever he wants it to be – from a couch to a chair by the window, known as a touch-down site. Workers need only look across the floor to find him.”

Employees and management need to emphasize better communication skills in this new environment which enforces or encourages more collaborative working. Workers need to be more tolerant and respectful towards different work styles and cultures.
Some tips to help you be more effective in a collaborative workplace:

  • Listen first, talk next.
    Emphasize more on listening and clarifying the issues, arrive at a conclusion only when you know that you have paraphrased the queries or concerns and your colleague agrees to the same. In short – Listen, paraphrase and clarify. Follow this simple rule to avoid misunderstanding and miscommunication.
  • Be open to suggestions.
    In a collaborative workplace more interaction is encouraged on personal basis than going back and forth over emails. Suggestions and discussions over your coding style or management style could be coming in more and more with this approachable style of the new workplace. Be open to suggestions, be patient and control retorts and instant feedbacks. It’s hard to eat your words up, and if you feel more comfortable with the Email decision making then use it more as your preferred way of communication to colleagues and management.
  • See more tips on effective communication at the following posts:
    Working with a Difficult Boss
    Are you Assertive or Timid at Work?

Related Posts:

Careerbright – Career Article and Information for Professionals and Working Women
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