Author: 
As I reflect upon what to write for this blog entry, I am
reminded about the immense amount of advice that I have received along the road
towards completing my doctoral degree this August. Upon that journey, one of my main areas of
professional growth was learning how to find my own voice within groups and
finding out where I fit when working together with various professionals to
serve the medical and social challenges of families in need. Through being mindful of my own area of
growth, I have been able to incorporate several new skills that have assisted
me in becoming more valuable to the families I serve when partnering with other
professionals and more excited about these opportunities for collaboration and
professional growth.
Charisma is
Queen/King. My father gave me great
advice before I attended my first ever job interview for a position with a
nonprofit focused on character enrichment for children. When asking him what I should do at the
interview, he reminded me that my resume/qualifications made me attractive for
the position but that the true test of my worth to the company was my
personality. During that conversation,
he spoke about how important it was for me to be that guy who they could count
on to not only be able to handle that “3am-worst-case-scenario” because of my
professional knowledge, but that my personality and disposition could actually
make the “3am-worst-case-scenario” less of a crazy ordeal for the staff as a
whole. The ability of a team member to
provide serenity during times of chaos or the ability of that person to
galvanize others into action is paramount.
In the social service field this is particularly important given the
many crises that organizations often face, whether it is in the lives of our
individual patients/clients or with the actual structure or daily operations of
the company itself. Being known as the
organization’s anchor, you will become indispensible and someone who will
be exposed to various opportunities for professional
growth. Being able to provide calm
during the storm also allows people to work more productively and that could
assist in the goal being reached quickly and with less unnecessary strife and
conflict.
High-Five and
High-Five Often. Be a cheerleader,
everyone likes a high-five. When you see
someone doing something positive at the organization, whether it is personal or
related to work, make sure you let that person know that you recognize his or
her awesome accomplishment. Although we
are all adults and would like to say that we have given up childish things like
consistent praise, I will be the first to admit that I feel fantastic after
someone gives me even the slightest bit of credit for a job well done. This demonstrates to me that a) this person
is interested/invested in my success, b) that successful behavior gets noticed
by her/him or the organization as a whole, and c) that I will be more aware of
what that person does in the future so that I can return the high-five to them
when they accomplish a goal.
The ability to be a cheerleader on your team helps foster
camaraderie and an appreciation of success.
This positive atmosphere not only helps the organization but it also can
translate to creating an improved environment for the patients/clients
served. If the population served is able
to tell that those within the organization are a cohesive group and are excited
about coming into work then that may encourage clients/patients to join in the
positive atmosphere and become more involved in their own care. This type of camaraderie also helps the
organization gain more access to the community as a whole. With patients/clients seeing the members of
the organization as approachable, fun-loving, and warm they may be more willing
to have the organization gain access to particularly “shy” areas of the
community that maybe were previously nervous about seeking medical or social
services from the organization.
Work with the People
Whom Posses Talents You Don’t. The
best way to learn skills to progress professionally is to diversify your skill
set and that cannot be accomplished by working only with likeminded
people. By limiting yourself to working
only with similarly talented people, there is little opportunity to be inspired
to dream differently about how to accomplish tasks and to creatively
problem-solve. Additionally, working
with the same people and solving the same tasks may become overly repetitive
and could lead to boredom or burnout, both outcomes being ones that can
diminish your productivity and your ability to serve the community with a high
degree of energy. Through branching out
and allowing ourselves to be humbled by others’ skills, we present ourselves with
the opportunity to be spurred into growing in new and different ways by
igniting our own competitive juices.
Again, as high-achieving individuals, we also recognize and appreciate
how Darwin spoke about failure being a catalyst for evolution in animals and
this is no different when speaking about one’s professional growth.
These situations also provide great networking opportunities
where new connections can be forged and further collaboration can occur for
later projects. While working with this new
partner you may discover that her/his talents greatly dwarf anything you could
accomplish in this particular area. That
realization is not a sign of defeat or surrender but recognition that to
successfully accomplish the task it might be beneficial for you to step to the
side and let this individual’s given talents shine. Not only will that then allow the task to be
accomplished correctly, but also you have just provided someone the opportunity
to show their worth, which will pay dividends later when they may encounter a
problem where you could be seen as a resource.
Know the Bounds of
Your Competence. There are a lot
more things that I cannot do then that I can do and I am okay with that because
I can do some things pretty darn well.
Just as one should have confidence in what they can do, they similarly
need confidence in what they cannot do.
In my own life, it has often been those times when I took on a task way
above my competence that I failed and failed miserably. This is not to say that people should not
challenge themselves, but that they should make sure that they are qualified to
partake in each particular challenge.
Not being mindful of the potential skills necessary for particular tasks
could have devastating consequences for the individual, the organization, and
the community served. As high-achievers,
we must all remember that it is okay to not be all things for all people. Through knowing how to do several things
really well, we are providing a great gift to our communities while still
allowing for professional challenge and growth.
It is Okay to say
“No.” “No.” Now you say it…
I of all people have trouble saying “no” so I sympathize
with others like me who have trouble with this simple two-letter word. When I say “no,” I am worried about two
things: disappointing the person who asked for my help and missing out on an
awesome experience. Where saying “yes”
too much gets me into trouble is when I become overworked and have my hands in
too many projects to be able to do any of these projects successfully. I am doing nobody any favors by just being
present if I cannot utilize my talents to the extent necessary to accomplish
the task. What has been helpful for me
in this arena is to provide a thoughtful explanation as for why I cannot
participate in the project. This
releases me from the guilt of declining their invitation or call for help while
also giving them the opportunity to develop other ways in which I can be
helpful. There is no harm in being both
strategic and realistic about your involvement in particular tasks because your
success not only impacts your own professional identity but also the service
delivery of the organization.
The 19th century American poet Ralph Waldo
Emerson once said “nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm,” and
this is no different in our field. By
approaching opportunities for collaboration with tenacity and excitement, we
can enliven our professional communities and spark both tremendous change in
society and great professional growth in our lives.
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