A Respectful Climb Up the Corporate Ladder

ROAD TO CORNER OFFICE

A sense of purpose for many is driven by the title or position held within a company.  For others, it may be derived based on the ability to provide for others and afford the desired necessities and niceties. Either way the road to the next promotion or pay grade takes determination and requires the ability to make others notice.  However, demonstrating skills as the difference maker does not require power struggles, coercion and unsettling tactics to climb the corporate ladder.  It can be done respectfully when keeping two goals in mind.

Maintain relationships.  Everyone plays a part in the success of an organization.  No one knows it all and eventually help will be needed.   The persons you thought you would need the least may be the ones that can help you the most in your next position. Strengths resonate vividly.  Display your skills without directly exaggerating others' weaknesses.  

Demonstrate trustworthiness.   The work environment requires getting tasks done mostly with the assistance of others.   Trust fosters cooperation, teamwork and commitment to the excellence of the organization and others.  Just like in any personal relationship, trust broken cannot be rebuilt.  Underhanded schemes and secret initiatives focused on showing how inept others are will obliterate trust and cause people to not want to work with or for you.  Highlight key capabilities the old-fashioned honorable way by working hard, producing undeniable results, and making sound judgment on what battles should be fought.

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Posted in: climb corporate ladder,corporate communication,getting promotion,leadership,promotion

Keep Calm and Let Them Work

DOUBT PRODUCES LESS RESULTS...

Micromanagement is more of a sign of insecurity than the need to usurp control.  It's a sickness for anyone to feel the need to watch the minutia of what people are doing to complete their assigned task.  Qualified individuals or experts in their crafts do not require such tight supervision.  In fact, it is an insult.  Scratch that.  It is even an insult to someone who is learning on the job or in a junior position.  

However the pressure of looking over someone's shoulder or the demands of requesting a status every waking minute will eventually cause stellar performers to leave and good workers to resent the workplace and become complacent with doing the bare minimum. 

But here's how to delegate, keep calm, and let others give their best for your benefit:

1.  Once the work has been assigned, ask for a timely status on the progress.  Do not constantly send emails and request an update.  It is annoying and shows your lack of trust in either the competence or ability to meet communicated deadlines.  Agree to a time of the day (only if absolutely necessary) or week the update should be sent and send a friendly reminder only after it is not received.

2.  Build your employees up with others.  Talk about their strengths and expertise in specific areas to other managers and even their peers.  Let them know the confidence you have in them to produce great work in front of others at meetings - some of which they are attending.  This sends a subliminal message that they're on the hook because high standards have been set.

3.  Find other projects to keep yourself busy.  If you don't have enough work, emails to sift through, or calls to return, create a side project to show your worth that does not require delegating tasks to others.  This serves three purposes: a) provides a new focus area to keep your mind off the "workerbees", b) empowers you to prove value and increase self-esteem in the work world, and c) creates a safe distance for those who report to you to actually begin to like you and want to provide consistent status.

Cure the illness.  Just keep calm and let them work.

For more advice on managing in the ranks of entrepreneurship and corporate life, pick up my book Get A Clue - 10 Steps to an Executive IQ or watch the videos on my YouTube channel.

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Posted in: 10 Steps to an Executive IQ,corporate communication,corporate etiquette,Get A Clue,leadership,Leadership Skills,manager,program management,project management,Temeko Richardson

Not Everyone Will be Invited and That's Okay

INVITE-ONLY...

There are celebrity bashes, red carpet galas, Super Bowl parties, and special conferences and all have invitation lists which determine who gets in and who will be turned away before they get to the door.  The same should hold true for any meeting that an organizer has convened with a purpose.  There will be some people who will be invited and others who will not.  But it is not okay for someone who was invited to ask someone else to join without request to the organizer.  (Yes explain why that person should be invited and let the organizer decide the importance of that person's presence during the meeting.)

Experience has taught me that meetings are only effective if there are less than 7 people present.  Any more than that and the discussions go off-topic with increased likelihood of time-consuming recaps to get people up to speed. Eliminate the problem upfront by ensuring the right people are together at the right time to accomplish a goal.

And if what you need is an audience, pull yourself together.  Meetings should only be held to inform of a decision or action, coordinate a plan and assign tasks, or resolve an issue.  The more meetings you spare people from, the more they will like you and be a captive audience for you in the future. 

 If anyone's feelings are hurt because they were not invited, it's them not you.  After all, purpose goes a longer way than feeling important.

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Posted in: biting your tongue,corporate communication,corporate etiquette,Exec Get a Clue,Get A Clue,meeting invitations,meetings,Temeko Richardson

Email Distribution Gone Bad

EMAIL DISTRO...

There's always that one person who can't get enough of copying (cc'ing) the universe on what he/she feels is important.  The email is sent and anyone who knows the answer feels obligated to respond and cc the universe again.  But it never stops there because someone else on the email distribution list is asked a question or instructed to perform some task.  That person must respond or look lazy or incompetent. Just how do you end the cycle of an email distribution gone bad?

1)  Remove individuals from the email who will have little to no impact.  Erase people from the distribution list who can not take action, make a decision, or will not be affected by the looming action or decision.  This eliminates cluttered inboxes and decreases the likelihood of the email being overlooked or outright ignored because it is from the normal sender.  This also makes you look like the hero because you are perceived as valuing others' time.

2)  Invite relevant parties to a meeting to discuss the topic.  Alert everyone on the distribution list that there will be a formal discussion and an invite will be sent to a streamlined group of participants.

3)  Call the sender and ask politely for him to put an end to the email thread.  Yes, old fashion communication, pick up the phone and talk to the person who might be starting confusion with all the emails. 

And if all else fails, set a filter for the email topic and have it go to a folder called RIDICULOUS and read it at your leisure when you want a good laugh.

For more clues on how to deal with tough individuals in both corporate America and while owning a business, be sure to pick up a copy of my book, Get A Clue -10 Steps to an Executive IQ or check out the videos on my YouTube Channel.

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Posted in: communication,corporate communication,corporate etiquette,email distribution list,email etiquette,Get A Clue,Temeko Richardson