If you’ve been following the news (or my blog), you’ve no undoubtedly been seeing that leaders want workers who possess specific job skills, and that is what hiring is all about these days. But, I think the important skills get overlooked, particularly the soft – or people- skills; you can possess great technical skills but if you’re not interacting and being engaged, problems are going to arise.
It’s easy to forget that organizations are made up of people, who have differing personalities and ways of working. Often, these differences can lead to conflict of some kind, leaving either the worker unhappy or the boss, as work will suffer in some way. Ongoing conflict among workers disrupts workflow and makes the atmosphere uncomfortable for all.
The one skill that leaders really value today is the concept of collaboration, which essentially is ability to see an issue from all sides and meet with (an)other to work together. Collaborating goes along with negotiating; no one will ever get everything they want so it’s about a give and take on those wants. It’s about being open to hearing the other person’s side and then the give and take to come to a mutually beneficial outcome.
For example, a new project is on the table and you’ve been chosen to be on the team who will develop it; say you’ve had some past experience in this area, hence, your role. You come in to the meeting with a ton of ideas for how to take the project forward. But, when you get in, you’re met with resistance and you leave the meeting feeling dejected or angry (‘how could they not see how my ideas would be successful? I’ve done this before!’).
Essentially, you came in with your own agenda. In the spirit of collaboration, and replaying the scenario, you come into the meeting with the same ideas but you sit back and listen to everyone’s ideas before you present yours; you recognize other’s contributions and see how theirs, and your, ideas could blend and complement each other, also recognizing that the other person has experience with this type of project, also.
Collaborators don’t push their own agenda and are willing to work together for the good of the team and the outcomes they are charged with. This makes for more productivity, more good-will and respect among team members. People are more likely to then recognize your expertise and to work with you in the future; your boss would be more open to having you take on more responsibilities and challenging work, which could lead to promotional opportunities.
Collaborative leaders are able to engage people and get them working for the common cause, even outside of their department or control, motivating and inspiring them along the way. Being collaborative makes for calmer and happier workplaces; as people see that their ideas and strengths are being recognized, they take more responsibility for their own work and are more successful. Leaders can delegate tasks, thereby giving autonomy and empowerment to workers.
So, if you want to be more successful in your career, begin to adapt collaboration as part of your daily routine; you will then find it leads to better relationships overall.
Committed to Your Success Coaching & Consulting focuses on workplace happiness and organizational success. If you need help gaining clarity on your business or career goals, why not get some help – stop the struggle and call today to get started! https://www.cyscoaching.com or barbara@cyscoaching.com
The Top 10 Work Values
During self-assessment, which is a crucial step in one’s career management process, an area of importance to understand is one’s values. Values are “the beliefs about the qualities of human life or the types of behavior that an individual wants to attain” (Greenhaus & Callanan, 2006). Values usually develop early on and can be learned behaviors or patterns that one esteems in their life. In regards to a career, values include the preferences one has about the rewards, payoffs, policies, or leadership of their working life. Schwartz (1999) identified the 10 top values that are relevant to the world of work. It is important that you identify the value(s) that are important to you so that your job or profession will meet your value-orientation and help you be more engaged in your work and for higher job satisfaction. See which of these top 10 are important to you:
- Power
- Achievement
- Hedonism (pleasure)
- Stimulation
- Self-direction
- Universalism (applies to all)
- Benevolence (kindness for the good of others)
- Tradition
- Conformity
- Security
Not aligning your values with your work can cause you a lot of stress and distress in both your personal and work life. Are there any values that are not on the list that have high relevance to work?
7 Qualities that Help you Get Ahead in the Business World
Ever wonder what it takes to move ahead in your career? A study that was done by Business Week found that there are seven qualities that employers look for when promoting or moving employees into leadership roles. Findings of the study indicated that women need to have more confidence and be more self-promoting in order to develop move up the ladder; there are not many differences between men and women in the other desired qualities.
For men, the qualites that were valued the most by employers are, in order of importance: self-confidence (66%) , integrity (59%), self-discipline (51%), talent (49%), aggressiveness (30%), political saavy (24%), and self-promotion (11%)
For women, the qualities that were valued most by employers, in order of importance, are: self-confidence (72%), integrity (58%), self-discipline (52%), talent (41%), aggressiveness (31%), political saavy (22%), and self-promotion (16%).
Any thoughts or feedback? Which do you value or need improvement in?
Up Your Value: How to Be a Superstar Employee
In the workforce, there are several levels of employees: (1) those who survive, (2) those who thrive, and (3) superstars. The key to effective career management is to be that “superstar”. According to Zig Ziegler, superstar employees are more productive as they not only know and love their jobs, but they are also constantly growing both personally and professionally. Other traits of superstar employees:
- they are team players to the Nth degree, which increases productivity
- they get along well with their fellow employees
- they fully support the mission of the company
- they are excited about the work they do
- they make an effort to know and understand their roles and that of other workers and how they fit into the organizational structure
- they take time to develop and maintain relationships with both management and coworkers
- they are available to help fellow employees or to answer questions or to give assistance
- they are truly interested in helping others succeed
The last attribute will help you move up in the company faster and become more valuable, which increases your longevity and helps you to master your career. “You truly can have everything you want if you will just help enough other people to get what they want.”