There is a cliché phrase “don’t bring me a problem, bring me a solution”, which taken literally, sends the wrong message: “if you’re struggling, figure it out on your own”.* This concept is often celebrated. As a result, particularly with new leaders or folks who are in a new role, there tends to be a desire to try and always present an air of confidence – “fake it until you make it” – and mask the extent of overwhelm or struggle that might initially be experienced. It’s silly, since every professional has experienced some degree of insecurity or imposter syndrome throughout their career and especially when taking on a new role, challenge, or learning a new skill set.
(more…)June 2023
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Asking for help demonstrates confidence and self-awareness (1/2)
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Start with the most important item
The meeting starts. You have one hour and 8 topics on the agenda. You look at the list and say… “let’s start with what T-shirt colour we want for our new swag order, that should be really quick”. 45 minutes later you decide black is a safe choice and move on to item #2. 10 minutes later you open your outlook to see when everyone has time for a follow-up meeting to cover items #3 through 8, including such topics as “how do we save client X?” and “next year’s fiscal budget”.
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What will your best people think?
Within every organization, and team… and sometimes a group of friends or family… there tend to be one or two folks who are prone to drama. These folks would never admit it, but they relish in the ‘water cooler’ talk. Of course, it’s a spectrum and ideally if it’s within an organization, you work towards creating a culture where this behavior is recognized as trivial; however, it always exists to a certain extent. There’s a reason many people love reality TV – it’s entertaining!
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