Play to Your Strengths

You may recall the television commercial of a few years ago for Nikon cameras. In it, tennis star, Andre Agassi, scurries around a tennis court while being photographed. He then points the camera at the audience and says, "Image is everything." In business and in life, others immediately pick up on the image that we project.

Our image is conveyed by our personal attributes. Attributes describe our way of being, and how we come across to others. Some individuals are 'steady and reliable.' others are 'inspiring and creative'. Attributes are what others experience when they connect with us. For leaders, personal attributes create a perception that they are either ‘easy' or ‘difficult' to work with.

Some employees, while having an abundance of talent, often have attributes that can make them hard to manage or rub teammates the wrong way. Employees must learn to recognize personal attributes and actively manage them so they become an asset - not a liability.

How well employees manage personal attributes often has more bearing on their success than education, talent, or technical expertise. The following story illustrates how even positive attributes can cause trouble if not managed effectively.

Understated Style Hinders Her Career

A project manager named Marta worked for a chemical company in Pennsylvania. She had fifteen people directly reporting to her. Others described Marta as "calm," "pleasant," and "low-key." Marta recruited talented people for her team. She hired well and trained her employees to take charge. She continually coached and offered her staff on-going support to help them succeed in their jobs. As a result, her department ran smoothly.

Largely through her efforts, Marta's group implemented their projects successfully. Yet, when it came time to promote someone to the manager position, Marta was overlooked. Her boss assumed she just lucked out and got all the good people in her department. Her employees were also taken for granted and expected to excel.

Being passed over was a huge wake-up call for Marta. She took time to reflect on what was happening to her career and learned about talents and attributes. Though incredibly capable, Marta realized her efforts were invisible. No one saw or appreciated all the work she had put into developing her staff. Her naturally calm nature was becoming a disadvantage.

Marta did not want to change her natural style - nor should she. But she did need to manage the impact of her easy going attributes. So she went to see her boss and said, "Because I'm naturally low-key, it's easy to overlook my part in the success of this department. I want you to know that even though I swim like a duck on the surface below water I'm paddling like crazy. I've turned five projects around in three years. We've gone from a 45% response rate to 95%. In other words, the success we're having is a direct result of the people I've hired and the development they received. I'm confident I can work wonders like this anywhere I go. I don't want to be underestimated or overlooked because of my calm, relaxed style."

For the first time, her boss took notice. Within three months, Marta received a big promotion. But first she had to take charge and let others know that her natural style was what made all the difference in her department. She had to take charge and communicate her value to others. Her attributes, or "way of being", turned out to be the secret ingredient that enabled her team and projects to succeed.

Attributes can be tremendous enhancers or, for that matter, inhibitors of career success. Notice employee's positive attributes and also help them recognize the strength and weakness of this attribute. Include attributes in performance review conversations and talk explicitly about behaviors that are helpful and those that are not. Help team members recognize their attributes and manage them wisely.

Topics

• Building Trust