Become More Productive and Successful by Rough Guider (ebook reader computer .txt) 📖

from your career advancement point of view, consider the following:

 

Prepare an agenda before each time you meet (even if you are meeting informally over a coffee).  You don’t have to send through the agenda in advance but rather make sure that there are items listed on it which will be of interest to the other party.

 

Think about the frequency of your catch-ups.  If you meet up very regularly you may run out of interesting things to say and debate.  Make the meetings less frequent but more powerful.

 

Follow-up on action points raised by your contact.  If they see you as someone who can get things done they’ll be more willing to meet up again.  But there is a balance.  Don’t become a gofer; that is where you end up with a list of action points after each meeting that suits their agenda but adds little to yours.   The relationship should be balanced.

 

Follow up and thank them for their time setting out why the catch-up was useful and what issues, ideas or points you are going to take on, along with what you believe they have agreed to think through or act upon.

 

Water cooler moments.  I’ve placed this under the section ‘Internal Networks’ but water cooler moments in reality serve a number of uses (beyond getting refreshed).  But let’s deal with the networking issue.  When you are grabbing that glass of water of coffee and there is someone else there (who you don’t directly work with) make the most of the opportunity by asking them what they do (if you don’t know), what major initiatives their department is up to and think through what else from a business perspective they can impart to you.  Most people enjoy being asked about the job they perform and are flattered to be asked about it in more detail.  This is of course a fairly quick conversation (don’t time steal) but it’s extremely simple to learn one or two important facts or facets which you can bring back to your team, peers or manager.  Of course, one should avoid rumor and gossip and as such discussion should be mature and focus on learning about their operation and thinking through how your department could help them in some way, if that is relevant, or allow you to better understand the inter-relationship between your two departments.  Having ‘fun’ Water Cooler moments remains essential in my mind (don’t become a bore) but do use these short passages of time to help you add value to the business and potentially impress those around you.  By showing interest in their work they form a more favorable impression of you, your team and your boss.

 

External network

 

The importance of an external network, and indeed its size and content, clearly depends upon how far up the career ladder you are.  The more senior you are, the more important such networks often become (but this is certainly not always the case).   However, there are some distinct benefits of having a well structured and effective external network.  These are as follows:

 

New job opportunities.  One of your contacts may be able to help you out with finding a new job opportunity if that proves necessary or desirable.  In fact, with a wide network, or at least one where you have stayed in contact with colleagues from prior employments, you may well benefit from the occasional cold-call (or email) asking whether you would consider jumping ship to join them.  For this to take place they would either be keen to have you on board as they value you skills and experience or they get some kick-back from their recruitment department for introducing new staff given that no agency fees apply.  Believe me when I say that the latter can be a very strong factor for someone contacting you.  But remember that it is almost certain that you will still have to go through the standard recruitment process so don’t count your chickens before they hatch (if you chose to go for the job) and certainly don’t resign until you have a written job offer.

 

Job references.  Staying in touch with your previous managers is certainly a smart thing to do as they may well be involved with one of your future jobs.  On a number of occasions my former boss has been asked to provide a reference to my potential new employer.  Many companies now only provide standard responses to reference requests but I assure you that verbal conversations could take place in the background or other communications could be made in the implied form which could affect your chances of grabbing that new role.  The golden rule is to ensure that you don’t burn your bridges.

 

Sharing ideas.  If you have kept in touch with colleagues that have had similar roles to you in the past then you should be able to benefit from the sharing of ideas and technical updates (not to the extent that you breach any of your company’s policies!).  In reality, some (particularly) senior people may rely more on a trusted ex-colleague than a professional or trade body or other type of network.  So, for instance, if you had a really great boss make sure you keep in touch when you leave.  If you valued your staff and trust their judgment then that’s a really good reason for staying in touch too.

 

Business opportunities.  Another great reason for building a solid network and staying in touch with former colleagues and contacts is that they may be more willing to work with you on future projects or tenders (as a partner) or more likely to take you on as a vendor.  I’ve certainly brought on vendors from previous companies I have worked with; focusing on those that provided great levels of service and demonstrated value for money.  You may be tempted to get into bed with a sub-standard or average vendor because they are a former colleague or contact (and/or perhaps a friend).  Clearly, this isn’t something I would recommend.  If you are going to engage with a company that you have used in the past make sure that any contract arrangements are at arm’s length and that you can demonstrate that there is commercial advantage to your business.

 

Perks.  This certainly should not be a prime reason for staying in touch with someone, but you may find that a fringe benefit of a strong working relationship is the existence of certain perks and benefits.  Where possible make sure that this is a two-way process.  Perhaps one has a holiday cottage that they are happy for you to use or you can offer some advice for a charity that they are involved with.  Mutual benefits could also include sharing investment advice and tips (but not insider trading!), recommending places to travel etc.  Sure, you have you own friends and family, but a good network (perhaps without the emotional ties) can sometimes offer you something a little different.

 

Politics

This is certainly the hardest topic to provide guidance on, partly because people often don’t want to hear about or understand the nature of politics and how to play the game.  I have learnt the following over the course of my career:

 

Those that don’t want to play politics lose out.  It’s very noble to say, I don’t want to play those games, but at the end of the day if you want to get on you have to be prepared to play the politics game.  However, there should also be a health warning which states that ‘playing politics can seriously damage your career’.  You should tread very carefully.

 

Competence versus confidence.  Asa very rough guide I would say that where you get top in your career depends upon equal measures of competence and confidence.  If you are really competent but not confident you will under-achieve but be damn good at your job.  If you are confident but not competent you will be over-promoted and eventually found out.  Sales figures will be low, IT developments badly managed, research poor and so on. On a number of occasions I have seen people shoot through the ranks on the back of confidence, with many others around them seduced by the confident air shown at meetings, presentations and the like.   However, once it becomes apparent that they are not actually competent their world starts to fall apart.  The thing to learn from this is that you should ensure that you are both competent and confident.  Pick up the tools of the trade outlined in this book to build up your levels of confidence.  Work on and be honest in your self-analysis to ensure that you remain competent throughout your career.  One great year can seemingly make you, but one bad year will certainly hurt you.

 

Getting your way.  To be successful in business it is essential to get your way a lot of the time.  Certainly not all the time but for the majority of it.  So, with this in mind, ensure that you work hard on your persuasive and negotiation skills to maximize the chance of decisions going the way that works for you.

 

Know which battles to fight.  A very wise boss of mine once taught me to only fight the battles that I can win.  This sounds so obvious when laid out before you but we all know how easy it is to take on someone or something and get beaten up in the process.  If it’s likely that you will lose the fight pick another battle.  Don’t feel shy about asking other people what they believe your chances are.  [Tip: think about where the ultimate responsibility lies.  You may beat your opponent, but then their boss or boss’s boss may beat you.]

 

When you disagree say you agree.  This is an amazing facet of the politically aware that astounds me, but it really does work.  When someone comes up with an idea or recommendation that is in conflict with your own agenda or idea, rather than at the outset say “I whole heartedly disagree” try saying “That’s an excellent point.”  Then, little by little run through the argument the other party has put forward and explain in a clear but tactful manner why it is not correct.  I know that it sounds counter-intuitive to do this (and remember that internal politics is not the same as public (party political) politics.  Did you want an example?  Well, here’s how it works.  You have said “I think that we should build a square”.  I want to build a circle as firstly I have already been lobbying for it and secondly I feel it is a battle I can win (see above).  So my retort is “Yes, I think the idea of a square is an excellent one.  Then I go on to explain that I would add extra value to the square by cutting away the sharp corners and smoothing around the edges.  A square was such an excellent platform to start off with.  The trouble for the competition is that you have been really positive about their idea, and they are nodding away happily, and before they know it you have turned everything around to get your own way.  Now I’m not suggesting that this will always be a successful tool but I would wager a bet that it will win some arguments that you would otherwise have lost.

 

The overlay.  This is a subtle point where someone has performed some excellent work and even communicated that fact.  Your job (and you are not specifically taking the credit for what they have done here) is to “reply all” to their communication and overlay it with a message that takes a broader perspective.  Again, don’t be seen to be taking the credit for what others have done but rather add an “Executive” overlay that reads well, makes sense and invites people to respond saying “exactly” or “my thoughts exactly”.  This is one of the most common tools in the armory of a modern internal politician.  Try it and benefit from it.

 

Act like their boss.  If you want to be