Strong communication is an essential career development habit.
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Throughout your career, you will encounter various situations that will contribute to your overall development. Whether you are a rising contributor, an aspiring leader, or a seasoned steward, your success will likely result from the habits you build and the risks you take. The habits you build can come from the many valuable lessons you learn along the way, and these lessons extend beyond just the moment in which they occur. They require constant reinforcement and staying focused on always being at the top of your game. When it comes to risks, the best outcomes often emerge when you are prudent, calculated, and guided by thoughtful analysis of the implications with an understanding of what the opportunity can potentially unlock.
Obviously, the habits you establish can be both good and bad. For your career, it is essential to adopt constructive habits, especially now in this age of what I call industrial disruption driven by artificial intelligence (AI). Constructive habits such as leading with curiosity, exercising judgment based on context, truth, and what matters, and engaging in continuous learning to remain relevant and competitive. Additionally, there are three best practices I have found worth committing to:
- Knowing when to work and when to play
- Mastering situational leadership
- Lifting as you rise, not when you arrive
Knowing when to work and when to play is a key part of work-life integration, because sometimes you must prioritize work demands over a healthy personal life, and vice versa. Often, you must find ways to satisfy both simultaneously. The more successful people practice this, the more it becomes a habit. When and where appropriate, they will take advantage of opportunities that blend work and play. I recall some of my best meals with my family were when I had to work overtime or on the weekends. They would join me for takeout in my office. Sometimes, I would extend business trips so the family could join me before or after business to enjoy what a new location had to offer.
Mastering situational leadership is about adjusting your engagement style to the environment and the people you are dealing with for greater effectiveness and better outcomes. In other words, a particular approach, or your preferred engagement style, may not be the most effective given the specific demands of the task or the person’s maturity and current skill level. Mastering situational leadership takes practice and a concerted effort to hone your skills and abilities, and to be more conscious of the environment and the personalities of the people involved before you act.
Lifting as you rise, not when you arrive, can be the most gratifying experience for anyone. We often talk about building a talent pipeline for the future, and there is a way to do this by recognizing and rewarding top contributors and deserving colleagues with demonstrated potential, those who have been a part of your success. As you advance in your career, whether vertically through a promotion or horizontally with new responsibilities, it is a great practice to bring others along, making them a forethought rather than an afterthought.
When it comes to the risks you take, you must factor in whether the return will be worth it. In other words, do you clearly understand the potential benefits, which can be life- or career-changing, such as a new opportunity, new skills, a promotion, etc.? The best outcomes emerge when we take prudent, calculated risks, guided by thoughtful analysis of the implications and an understanding of what the opportunity can potentially unlock. Over the course of my career, I have found there are three risks worth taking:
- Being comfortable with being uncomfortable
- Playing bigger than your current role
- Knowing when to ask for help
Being comfortable with being uncomfortable may be a risk worth taking for growth. When you perform outside of your comfort zone, it can be a life or career-defining opportunity. We sometimes find ourselves in comfortable job roles and situations, and the reward can usually be a safe zone—no recognition, no advancement, and no drama. This may be appropriate at times in your life and career; however, when your focus is on development, meaning acquiring new skills or enhancing existing skills, or advancement, meaning promotional opportunities with added responsibilities, this is not the optimal position to be in. The curiosity advantage suggests that you need to adapt to unfamiliar situations to grow. Since new challenges will expose where your abilities lag, you will likely be more focused and dialed in on closing the capability gap.
Playing bigger than your current role requires a mindset focused on first executing and delivering on your assigned responsibilities well and, second, consistently pursuing growth opportunities. As part of your growth focus, the risk you want to take is being proactive in assuming more responsibilities and seeking opportunities to be more engaged in other areas of your organization, company, and industry. Playing bigger is not always internal; it can come from roles within external professional organizations and societies. You want to establish a brand that is viewed as willing and able to take on more. This is more about horizontal growth, with a primary focus on acquiring new skills and experiences to be seen as capable of taking on bigger roles.
Knowing when to ask for help can be a balancing act, but in the end, it is always best to identify and communicate the need for assistance before it is too late. Some perceive asking for help as a sign of poor leadership or performance, implying one cannot get the job done. It becomes a risk or a weakness if you fail to communicate the challenges ahead. I believe it is a sign of responsible leadership when you face performance realities with strong communication. It is never a good idea to surprise stakeholders by failing to meet a commitment or deliver without clear, thoughtful communication that includes identified remedies. There will be times when the commitment may be overly ambitious, when things do not go as planned, or when the resources and tools are insufficient to complete the task to a high standard. Ask for help!
During your career cycle, your ability to explore new ideas, adapt to unknown situations, and productively challenge the status quo will be the ingredients for navigating success. Your career can be defined by the “habits you build, risks you take.” It is not exercised in a moment; it requires practice.