The stage where people need help the most is not in the early stages of their careers, but in the middle of their careers.
Editor’s note: This article is from WeChat public account “Harvard Business Review” (ID: Hbrchinese), author Lawrence Minsky, Julia Don Peters, compiling Pu Jiaqi, proofreading Zhou Qiang.
This may sound strange. The stage where people need help most is not in the early stages of their careers, but in the middle of their careers, especially when you need to make important decisions. This is the key conclusion of Julia’s research. The study asked 500 college-educated professional adults (representing 16% of American adults) to demonstrate their level of recognition of their behavior when making important work decisions in their careers. The questionnaire also asked them to assess the success of each decision.
The results are surprising: less than 50% of decisions made in the middle of a career are considered successful. According to the respondents’ responses, between the ages of 40 and 48, people are most likely to make decisions that lead to unsuccessful results. Those who said that their decision was not successful in the questionnaire strongly agreed with the point:
“When I made this decision, I was busy with my daily work, so I didn’t have enough time to think strategically.”
“At that time, I kept wondering myself and trying to convince myself not to make changes.”
“I found the whole process of making decisions full of stress and uneasiness.”
In other words, when people rise to management and need to make decisions that improve business decisions and promote their career development, many people are caught up in the status quo. Managers focus on day-to-day management and stay in their comfort zone instead of setting new directions.
At the beginning of a career, people often understand that their lack of experience means they need to learn how to be an effective contributor by learning the company’s processes, practices, and culture. However, as they gain experience and skills, they will take on more and more complex responsibilities related to improving corporate income, profitability or brand reputation. In other words, professionals in the middle of a career are assessed not only to work in the status quo, but to expect them to create and promote purposeful change. The danger is that many people are not aware of this shift.
We found that one reason for not adapting to this major shift in expectations is that as individual and family responsibilities increase, as well as higher positions and incomes, most managers in mid-career think that if they Made a mistake, they will lose more. They persuaded themselves to make safe decisions and feel that they were in control. When they should considerWhen they needed to change, they postponed the decision. At the time of decision making, they overestimated the risks of change and underestimated the risk of maintaining the status quo.
But this is not to say that these managers are not performing well. They often work hard for many years in the management process and in producing results. But when they don’t make purposeful changes to avoid new solutions and ideas, they miss opportunities, promotions, and bonuses. When they were stagnant in their careers, they began to feel that they were undervalued and overworked.
There are many ways to break this dilemma. If you find yourself in this situation, the first step is to seek help from a trusted tutor who has made difficult decisions, took risks, and managed these risks. He is self-aware and able to Give good advice. Many companies train managers as coaches and mentors, so start with them. Find someone you trust and respect in your company, but don’t feel that you only need a mentor. We have found that finding new mentors in your career is normal and healthy, and people inside and outside your company can achieve the goals you are eager to achieve, enriching your learning.
Then think of ways to have more contact with that person. Invite him to meet to discuss a particularly challenging or exciting work issue, or to understand how a mentor makes a tough decision and helps a plan succeed. Or invite a mentor to attend your planned meeting. Or, you can take an indirect approach, look at the instructor from a distance, learn about his career, or participate in his speech.
Whether it’s a phone call, lunch or a face-to-face meeting, you should have an important reason every time you ask to contact a tutor. Respect their time, no more than six times a year, and prepare your conversation points and questions in advance. Focus on what they do, what challenges they face, and how they overcome them. The best way to get a busy person to be a mentor is to have real curiosity and curiosity.
Besides the mentor, consider getting help from executive coaches on a regular basis. An insightful coach can help you understand the factors that hinder you from moving forward, while also bringing a better value proposition to your organization. They can help you understand the difference between reactive problem management and proactive change. Finally, coaches can help you explore options, assess risks, and understand how to manage them.
Give a John example. Like many people, John focuses on today’s goals and issues, and believes that evidence-based performance results can lead to promotion. John achieved the team’s goals for 20 consecutive quarters, but after missing three more important jobs, he finally found a mentor and wondered why his career had stagnated. The feedback from John’s boss to the mentor is that he would rather see John take more risks and make more mistakes than he always takes care of.
The instructor helped John understand that when he delivers results, his decisions around strategic issues require more work. His company is looking for leaders who can drive new ideas for sustainable growth in an increasingly competitive market, while also contributing to quarterly results. Once John understands that the leadership’s work includes, but not just, managing the work of his team, he can connect his skills to the way leadership strategy changes.
If you are a mid-career professional, honestly see what you have done at work. Ask yourself:
1. Do you focus on completing the tasks on the schedule and on the list every day, regardless of whether your participation has changed the issue?
2. Do you have a negative attitude towards change without really considering the possible consequences of maintaining the status quo or changing the possible return?
3. Do you avoid or delay making decisions that you think will bring you more work or take on the risks you want to avoid?
4. Are you looking for help to understand how leadership and management work differ?
5. Do you clearly express what kind of leader you are and what kind of leader do you want to be?
If you answer “yes” to any of the first three questions, or answer “no” to the last two questions, you may need to seek support to ensure that your career does not deviate. If you would rather avoid this topic than seek help, then you will give up the ability to lead a career. Responsible for this matter. After all, if you are too busy to care about the future, you are actually not doing your job.
Author introduction
Lawrence Minsky is an associate professor at Columbia University in Chicago. His recent books include “Global Brand Management,” “Activation is Imperative,” and “Audio Brand.”
Julia Don Peters is a lead consultant for C-level executives, with the fulcrum: Five decisions that every successful leader must make.