Posts from — March 2008

Why business is about more than being organized

Building a business or building a career, your success will depend upon relationships. Much is written on the web about GTD - Getting Things Done, following To-Dos, avoiding distractions and so on. It is true, many a worker would be more effective if they could get on with it. But no matter how efficient or inefficient you are, your success will depend on relationship building.

Good business is not just about piece work as too-strict following of systems might leave you thinking. It’s not about being so tight with your systems that you never have to lift your head from the computer writing reports and building PowerPoint presentations. Not that David Allen and the GTD crowd believe this, but there are so many systems on the web that it is easy not to see the forest for the trees - to forget what good business is really all about because you are so focussed on efficiency.

“You can’t make a sale by being efficient. Your best clients will require your personal attention.”

No matter how efficient you may become, at the end of the day you will need strong relationships to succeed. If you managed to be the most streamlined person with a tight calendar, no email or any other distractions you would still be left with important work to be done. For that to be done well, you have to rely on relationship building.

You can’t make a sale by being efficient. Your best clients will require your personal attention. You need to understand them and what their needs are. You need to be prepared to help them at any time. You need to provide service that goes beyond what others provide. And yes, it’s a cutthroat world out there, but if you build a relationship with your clients, if you get to know them as people and are appreciated for who you are, you will have a leg up. You will be turned to when they need more. You will be recommended to new customers. You will have contacts to help develop new business.

In the end your business will grow - and you’ll need some great systems to stay organized so that you can keep building relationships!

Coming Soon: Part II - Tips for Building Lasting Business Relationships

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It seems like a simple piece of advice. Don’t burn bridges. You never know whose support you will need one day or how life’s circle may bring you back to someone. IT really can be more important than you think. In fact a bridge burnt often multiplies into bad feelings that last for many years and even with people you have never met.

Nobody would advocate leaving a job with bad feelings. The oft dreamt departure where you tell your employer exactly how you feel is never a good idea. As you well know building a career and a reputation is all about personal relationships and connections with others. Don’t care to preserve this particular relationship? Fine. But chances are your employer has built up a strong network and you are part of an industry that is smaller than you think. The “it’s a small world” experience comes up often for a reason. So if you hate your employer as you move on, or if you hate a client you ended badly with, they will probably have similar feelings about you and spread the word in your industry. Harming one relationship can have devastating results as your career progresses.

“…you want to be remembered as a person of character, someone who in difficult circumstances takes the high road.”

Think about people who have left your company on good terms. They may well have been quietly let go, but did so with dignity. Chances are no matter what happened they are remembered as a decent person. The talk of their departure fades.

Those that leave with difficulty, on the other hand, are remembered poorly. Their character flaws are often magnified - after all people gossip far more about the bad things. New people join your company and learn of the difficult history. The person who left takes on a bad reputation with people who have never even met them. The talk lingers for a long time.

No matter why you leave a job, or stop dealing with a client or customer end with grace. Your paths may well cross again one day. You may want to use that person as a reference or their work in a portfolio. More importantly you want to be remembered as a person of character, someone who in difficult circumstances takes the high road.

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Corporate branding is all the rage these days. High priced consultants are brought in to help companies establish and publicize their brands. Logos are redrawn, slogans developed. Policies are put in place so that everyone toes the brand line in all things that go out the door.

Have you ever stopped to consider your personal brand? I’m not talking about the fluff that goes with branding. I don’t mean go out and get your own logo and hang it on your cubicle or getting a personal business card to share around the office. I don’t mean to introduce yourself with a slogan - “Hello, David Hutchison, Quality Leadership for Your Organization.”

But consider what the substance of what branding is. When you aren’t around, how would people think of you? How would they describe you in a few short terms? In your company, what do you stand for?

This is a very useful exercise. Sit down and think to yourself with absolute honesty - what do people think of me? Creative? Hardworking? Intelligent? A Leader? An Analyst? Positive? Energetic?

Of course there will be some negatives on the list as well.

“Like a strong company that stays ‘on brand’ you should do so in the workplace as well. Doing so will ensure that you focus your career on the things that you do best.”

Now add in where you want to go in your career. What is your career goal? What do you want to achieve 5 or 10 years from now?

Here’s where it gets interesting. Do the lists fit? Are your positive traits as people see you in line with your career goals? If leadership is one of your traits and you want to be a CEO, then good for you. If you are seen as Creative and you want to be an art director, then great! If they don’t line up well…you are a role player who wants to lead, you are an analyst who wants to design, then you have some thinking to do.

Assuming all is as it should be and you are on the right track then you need to look at the one or two key traits that are on your side, and a few of the negatives as well and then get to managing your brand!

If you have a choice of opportunities - roles on a team, projects that you take on - stick to your brand. Go for the option that fits your strong traits - and the ones that you want to be recognized for. Like a strong company that stays “on brand” you should do so in the workplace as well. Doing so will ensure that you focus your career on the things that you do best. You will make more powerful use of your time and you are more likely to be noticed for the things that you are trying to leverage in your career development.

This extends to all areas of your life in the office. Do you want to be in a role that demands an outgoing personality? If so, then you had better be that way with everyone - be the person that enters the office in the morning with a smile on your face and a good word for everyone you meet. Are you wantign to be seen as a strong manager? Be the logistical queen of the company - if there is organizing to do in the smallest of ways, step up to the plate and take it on.

Now if your brand is creativity then maybe go home and make up that personal logo and business card. You might come across a little strange if you pass them out at an ofice party - but on a wall at home they might be great reminders to motivate and stick to your brand!

More on personal branding from Gill Corkindale’s Letters from London Harvard Business Blog

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Everyone has to tip the scales of work-life balance away from their family on occasion. But for career success and a healthy life you should control when that balance is tipped. Pick your spots and your career might even advance faster than the company work horse.

I am the first person who will preach work-life balance to you. Family comes first in my life and I would never have it any other way. Or to use the old adage - nobody ever laid on their death bed and said “I wish I had worked more.”

True enough, but many people have regrets about opportunities lost, paths not taken, careers not explored. Don’t forget that there is work in work-life balance. Without it you cannot live in every sense of the word. You cannot provide the life for your family that you want. You cannot share the things that you want with them. You cannot be the person that you want to be who feels satisfied with their personal growth and accomplishments.

So, how do you keep them in balance? That is not for me to answer - it is a personal thing without doubt. I will give you one “hack” though that will help tip the balance in the direction of life - helping you achieve in your career without spending your life at work.

Assuming that you are a strong worker who can handle the day to day pressures of your job, if you want to advance your career you need to show that you can handle more, or that you can handle greater challenges. There is more than one way to be seen as a key member of the team.

“…like the power hitter, every once in a while you have to step up to the plate and hit it out of the park. Preferably when it counts most.”

Some baseball players make careers out of being incredibly dependable. They hit .270 year in and year out with lots of singles and get on base by any means possible. They make all the routine plays in the field and very few errors. Nothing spectacular hitting or fielding, but they are always there - they might be called “workhorses.” It takes a long time, but they are eventually seen as indispensable.

Are you planning on being a workhorse to build your career? Are you in the office first and out last? Do you take on every task you possibly can without ever suggesting your plate might be full? Are you working so hard that you can’t possibly do your best on everything, but find yourself getting lots of walks and singles?

This works for sure. You will be noticed and as the dependable person you will be given more and more responsibility. It takes time. You aren’t seen as a star, but your stock rises. You invest heavily in your career and chances are you pay for it in your personal life feeling the pressure and living your job.

I’d like to suggest becoming a home run hitter. They’re the kind of player who can be forgiven the occasional fielding error or strikeout because their impact on the team is so great with one swing of the bat. Now, please don’t take this too literally. I’m not suggesting that you create a reputation as a person that will screw up on occasion but is quite valuable - far from it. I would equate the errors and strikeouts more with moderation in what you take on. Develop the ability to say no - that’s a whole different skill and blog post. You should do every bit of the work that is reasonable to expect of an effective employee - but don’t try to be the workhorse doing the jobs of two or three people.

Then, like the power hitter, every once in a while you have to step up to the plate and hit it out of the park. Preferably when it counts most - in the late innings with men on base - or in business sense, on a key project that a superior has given you responsibility for. You can even choose the right time to step up and say “pick me”, give me the chance now to help. That’s the time you sacrifice. You stay late or all night. You do everything it takes to accomplish the task beyond anyone’s expectations.

Every project counts you say? They are all key? You can look at it that way, but surely a few times a year a special situation arises where you are going after the dream account, or your bosses boss needs your help, or the results of your project will be especially public. Everyone must have the chance to pick their spots and really go for it. When that time arises you need to tip the balance hard in the work direction and be sure that you don’t miss. Pull out every trick you have, every favor available and every minute of your time to deliver perfection.

The power hitter will be noticed and given the big opportunity. The singles hitter in the office won’t even be able to step up to the plate because they are already working way beyond capacity. Even if they go for it on the special project, they will drop a few balls elsewhere. But you will be seen as a clutch performer who hits a home run with two out in the bottom of the ninth. And guess who gets the big contract?

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