What Advice Would You Give?

What Advice Would You Give?

Recently I was asked what advice I’d give young people entering the workforce. In a flash, I stepped back into my early beginnings and relived my most painful professional lessons, which prompted this advice. Be humble. Don’t do it alone.

I have these painful memories from middle school (don’t we all), where when corrected about something, I dug my heels in and insisted I was right. The person who corrected me wanted me to be the best I could be, but I didn’t want to look bad or lose face, so I became belligerent about my being correct. As I’d learn later on, this, in turn, ensured I looked bad.

For me, it was a matter of pride and a lack of humility. As I matured, which took a while let me tell you, I learned that humility is one of the traits that will take you furthest in life. Once I let go of my pride, I was able to learn best practices from others and to not take criticism personally.

I’m so grateful for people who have spoken hard things into my life. Those difficult conversations all helped me to be a better person, but I had to accept the gift of what was being said with humility.

Humility Trumps All Else

Of all the things I’d want in an employee, humility is at the top of my list. Humility suggests teachability. It also means that person is willing to be part of the team and to learn from others and to give to others.

Learning and giving to others, that was the second piece of advice I’d share about what I learned the hard way. You don’t have to do it alone.

One of my first jobs was as a Chamber of Commerce President. Yep, my first professional job. I was so unprepared. Some of the fallout I experienced because I didn’t ask for help included:

• Nearby chamber presidents took advantage of my naivete, and I signed contracts I should have negotiated better.
• I didn’t lead my staff person well.
• My board and I didn’t collaborate as effectively as we should have.

All of these difficulties could have been resolved if I had reached and talked to other people in my position, but I didn’t. I thought I had to do it on my own. That may seem silly, but my upbringing didn’t teach me that I could be vulnerable and share my weaknesses. I thought I truly had to do it on my own.

I know now, that it’s impossible to get through work or life on my own. I need other people who have expertise and experience I don’t. We need each other. We need other people’s help to get our kids to school when we have early morning meetings. We need other people’s help to show us how to run Excel spreadsheets. We need experts in HR, accounting, banking, professional development. You name it, we probably need some help in it.

Thankfully I learned these lessons, even though they were painful lessons to learn. I’m better for the people in my life who help me and who teach me. I’m sure you are thinking you are better too because of other people in your life.

Be humble and understand we don’t have to go it alone. That’s my advice for this week.

Ask:

• Who can I support this week?
• Who can support me?
• Who do I need to thank today for making me a better person?

 

Keynote speaker, trainer, and consultant, Sarah Gibson, helps organizations leverage the power of communication, teamwork, and diversity to improve engagement and transform teams. To buy her book or inquire about her speaking programs, please visit www.sarahjgibson.com.