"We do on stage things that are supposed to happen off. Which is a kind of integrity, if you look on every exit as being an entrance somewhere else."- Tom Stoppard
I am forever a fan of Shakespeare’s As You Like It, which features the line, "All the world’s a stage". We live with this concept that we can prevent people from seeing what goes on backstage, but as a former actor I can tell you that it’s very, very difficult to keep the backstage hidden for long. Eventually, someone trips up and lets a curtain get pulled to reveal a backstage full of set changes, props, and the cables that keep everything in place.
I think it’s an interesting analogy for our businesses. To run or business as one would put on a play that requires the backstage to be exposed. To allow the magic to be seen. If we allow ourselves to put the backstage on display like this, then we permit our clients to develop a closer relationship with us based on a terrifyingly naked trust.
Understandably, we don’t want to show off everything (even the most seasoned actor would hate doing a quick-change exposed to an audience), but perhaps dropping some of the curtains would allow for a more authentic relationship with our clients.
Posted by Rebecca as Skill building at 8:11 AM EST
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Monster recently shared an interesting idea in their Contract and Temporary Work newsletter for catching the attention of a potential employer:
Quick Tip: Get Noticed with a Unique Approach
Want to grab an employer’s attention? Prepare and send a special report that demonstrates how to solve a problem related to your job objective. For example, a secretary might create "Top 5 Tips for Improving Office Efficiency." Preface your report with a cover letter stating that the employer might find the enclosed information useful. Your unusual approach could land you an interview — even if there’s no advertised job opening. — Kim Isaacs
There’s nothing like adding a little value to your resume and cover letter!
Posted by Rebecca as Changing careers at 10:52 AM EST
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I have trust issues. Apparently, i came by them naturally. Despite this, I still try to give people the benefit of the doubt most of the time. As a manager, I think it’s important to be willing to give that to those working under me, or even to the students I’m working with. I’ve found that when I extend that small bit of trust, so hard to part with for me, then work ends up finished quickly and done well.
So I was interested to read this study of two different management styles. Personally, I don’t see how the second manager copes. I don’t think I’d want to work for him becasue he seems to not trust his own people. I’d be even more concerned if he hired even one of the people working for him. That’s just a bad situation.
I know that both management types eist out there, and I’m sure those who manage like the second manager have their reasons, but it must be awful tiring to lead like that.
Posted by Rebecca as Leadership and management at 11:27 AM EST
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I think my resume may actually be up-tp-date fora change, but it’s always a good practice to pull out the old resume at the end of the year and make sure it reflects what you have done over the past year and that it still is in line with your professional (and personal) goals.
If you’re in ned of some help working on your own resume, consider my recent posts and this one to see if any of the links match your situation!
The other thing you should take out and dust off, if you haven’t already, is your elevator speech. If you don’t have one (and don’t feel like you’re alone here), then now is the perfect time to figure out what you want out of 2006 and incorporate that into your speech as you’re developing it. Speaking of which, I really ought to finish preparing mine so I have it ready the next time someone asks me what I do.
Posted by Rebecca as Changing careers, Link Dump at 8:50 AM EST
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Making mistakes is a normal part of life. Many people don’t understand that mistakes are a part of how we learn and grow. Just look at any preschooler. They meet an unfamiliar situation. They attempt to solve it one way. If that doesn’t succeed (and if they haven’t been handed everything they want in their very young life), then they start looking for another way to conquer their situation. With each failed attempt, they learn.
It’s no different for us, but we can do things to help turn each of those mistakes into a directed learning opportunity. I’ve always thought documenting mistakes is a good idea so you can know what you’ve already tried, but I think the documentation approach described here can really go a long way toward innovating solutions.
I haven’t figured out yet how and where I’m going to set up my mistake journal, but I really think I’m going to use this structure to make the most of it!
Found via The Occupational Adventure
Posted by Rebecca as Creativity, inspiration, and motivation at 7:57 AM EST
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I was recently invited to submit one of my leadership posts to an upcoming carnival. It was recommended that it be a post that really showed who I am, my own beliefs on practicing leadership. I figured it would be a simple enough task. I’ve held two paid supervisory positions this year, a new experience for me. I’ve spent most of my life in various volunteer leadership positions. Theoretically, I had to have some good posts on leadership that show off who I am, right?
Sadly, I do not. Somehow or other, with everything that’s happened, I haven’t really taken the time to talk about this year.
Many people would tell you I’m a natural leader. I don’t know that I completely agree with that because I know how much leadership training I’ve been through. (I also know that, like my teaching experience, some of my leadership experiences took place before I ever started going through leadership development classes, but we don’t talk about either of those facts.)
As a result of doing this for a long time, I’ve kind of developed my own approach to herding projects and people. It seems to work for me. People seem to like my style and often look to me to lead when I’m not jumping and taking over leadership roles for myself. (It’s only fair to note that my Myers-Briggs indicator is dead-on at INFJ. I’m really not an aggressive or extroverted person by any stretch of the imagination.)
Anyway, I sat down over the weekend and jotted down some notes on what has worked for me when I find myself in charge of anything, and came up with this list:
- The most important tool I have to is to acknowledge when I don’t know something. There is nothing shameful in saying "I don’t know", but I always follow it up by pointing the person asking to someone who has a better chance of knowing the answer. The nice thing about being able to do this is it makes the person you’ve just redirected the asker to look good. It also has the nice side effect of making you look smart for knowing exactly where to send them, and for keeping brilliant people around. If I don’t have someone I can direct the asker to, then I let them know I’ll find out the answer and get back to them. This is usually followed by me tracking down the answer and then finding the person to relay the answer.
- The second most important tool is to make sure people working with me understand that I appreciate the work they are doing. I’ve found several different ways of accomplishing this. I’m somewhat liberal with my thank yous. I keep an open door policy so people can come to me when they need to vent, have an idea they’d like to share or try and implement, or just want to talk. I also try to make sure that people have the resources and instructions necessary to do what’s been asked of them, and/or the autonomy to make decisions in the absence of me or any other resources and instructions. I also like to show trust in my people by granting that decision-making capability and then checking on them periodically to see how things are going. I hate being micro-managed, and I personally refuse to do it to people working with me.
- The last tool that I don’t think I could live without is the ability to know when to delegate. My rule for delegation is pretty simple: If it’s something I’m not willing to do myself, then I’m not allowed to dump it on any of my people. They are welcome to come ask to take the task off my hands of their own free will, but I do everything in my power to not needle someone into doing the task. It’s actually pretty hard to get me delegate anything because I don’t want to overburden my people, and I like working alongside everybody, but I’ve been getting better at it over the past year.
It’s often amazed me how well people respond to little things like trust and autonomy and respect. In the end, we all want to be treated like human beings, and I always try to make the people working with me feel like they matter.
Posted by Rebecca as Leadership and management at 10:47 AM EST
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This looks to be the first in a series of useful posts on starting your business. It will definitely be one to keep an eye on.
Found via Lifehacker.
Posted by Rebecca as Entrepreneurship at 8:00 AM EST
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It’s getting on toward the end of the year, and I’m sure more than one of us is considering a change in career or job. Some of us, like me, are even considering taking on a second or third job. There’s no time like the present to make a New Year’s resolution to update and shine up the old resume!
Good luck with your search!
Posted by Rebecca as Link Dump at 7:02 AM EST
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Last week, it snowed very heavily on the northern region of the Seattle metroplex. So heavily in fact, that many business, including the one I work for, closed for the day to try to keep employees safe. Not all businesses were quite so forward thinking, thankfully, and my roommate and I went down to the bank at the bottom of our hill so I could make some deposits.
Apparently, there were others who decided not to let themselves be deterred by the inclement weather, and the entire time I was in the bank there was a line of five to seven people waiting in line. There were three tellers on duty, not counting the drive-through teller, when I walked in. By the time I had completed my slip and joined the line, the manager was sending one teller home and then trying to leave herself.
So there we were, probably a grand total of twelve or thirteen people by the time the whole thing was said and done, and two tellers. One was the merchant teller, and therefore held up by a merchant with high needs. The other was doing the best she could, even in the face of overwhelming odds. The drive-through teller came over to help out every chance she got. The manager just stood there or walked around and filled baskets with miniature candy canes (when she wasn’t walking the line handing them out to people). She made no attempt to alleviate the bad situation she had created.
Finally, one of the account managers had to come over and help because the manager wouldn’t, and the manager left smiling and waving.
If it weren’t for the years of good servie I’ve experienced with this bank, I might consider leaving. As it is, I really wish I had taken that manger’s name and complained. I’m sure her coworkers aren’t saying anything nice about her.
Posted by Rebecca as Work skills at 7:56 AM EST
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