Ever wondered why some people succeed, whilst others struggle to achieve their career aspirations? Of course there are a multitude of variables and no one recipe for success, however there are dually some very clear behaviours to avoid, in order to set yourself up for success.
Trying to be someone you are not:
Think about your personal relationships and how you have built and developed these? Invariably this will be on the basis of high trust, truthful and open conversations, shared experiences and the fact that they see you for who you are, including the good, bad and the ugly right?
Now think about how you present at work… are you the same person with friends and family or someone quite different?
The discussion around vulnerability and authenticity is not new in business, however this is often an area most struggle with at work, as we attempt to juggle the face they believe others want to see from us, in a professional environment, including what matters to us, things that we are passionate about and our core beliefs.
When we attempt to be someone different at work/create a lens that does not align with our natural behaviours, view points and personality, this takes huge energy and leads to people failing to connect with us. This in turn can absolutely be a “career breaker”, with an impact on influencing, building successful relationships and playing to our strengths.
The authenticity paradox
Chasing dollars over opportunity/ challenge & stretch
We have all done this right? Made a decision to take a role or promotion based on an offer we could not refuse!
In reality this is often the reason people fail in senior roles, because they have been swayed by the offer/ package offered or title. The reality is that money is very rarely why people leave roles. We leave roles because of the people we work with, the lack of purpose/ challenge or because of pressures out-weighing achievements.
Stay focused on the challenge, a growth mindset (what the opportunity will do in terms of your growth), the impact you can make and what you are interested and excited about and this is a recipe for success and often the $’s will follow closely!
The 10 reasons you should follow your passion and not the money
Seeking rapid promotions
Ever worked with someone or being the one who has gone from promotion to promotion, at pace and then landed up in a very senior role without the technical skills and experience to excel in the role?
Whilst I personally am a believer in promoting people on merit and not on ‘ time served’ the fact is that for most roles and to develop depth of expertise, in any area, this requires the right exposure and practical experience to develop your tool kit along the way. When people chase rapid promotions, without gaining some of these tools along the way, this is often when people land in senior roles, with gaps in knowledge that they find difficult to then acknowledge and plug, without feeling a sense of huge vulnerability and fear around acknowledging this, given the expectation they should have developed these earlier in their path.
Back yourself and just remember that sometimes it is better to acknowledge gaps and deal with them early on, whether this means moving in a linear fashion9 going sideways to go forward) or moving into another role, project or challenge to develop these skills before you seek out that next move up.
Set yourself up for success and not failure because you leapt one step too high, too fast and remember to stop, reflect and reset and protect your ultimate goals and personal brand throughout.
The promotion you don’t want to take
Failing to seek coaching & investment in self
No one else is going to do this for you! Self growth and development is your responsibility but enlisting someone to provide challenge, coaching and further accountability, at all levels, is invaluable.
The more responsibility we take on the harder it is to make time for self reflection, growth and investment. This however is critical to success in leadership and highly valuable at every stage of your career.
The differential in those that seek out coaching, feedback and opportunities to grow and those that do not is often very visible and we see this daily in practice.
‘If you are the smartest person in the room, you are in the wrong room’(Confucius)
If you are reading this article then there is a good chance you have high self awareness, a thirst for knowledge and a desire to succeed.
‘Our only limitations are those we set up in our own minds’(Napoleon Hill).
The authenticity paradox
Michelle & Wayne are Co-Directors and Founders of Fusion Partners, delivering consulting and recruitment services. To find out more, Visit: www.fusionpartners.co.nz
