So my last plea for some advice didn’t yeild much 
But I found this amazing Harvard Business Review article penned by management guru Peter Drucker. The article is called, Managing oneself. I read it at a bookstore but upon googling, I found a pdf online.
Drucker essentially laid out the framework in my head very simply on paper, giving my head a little structure to think through. I very strongly recommend that you read this article, but if not – atleast think through this brief outline of his framework that I am about to provide. I suppose this is more so for me than for the benefit of my readers, as I have realized that I learn and I perform better from doing any given task once.
Framework:
What are my strengths? Drucker suggests a simple method called, The Feedback Analysis” – as the surefire way to understand one’s strengths. The feedback analysis tool essentially asks me to write down what I expect will happen nine or 12 months since whenever I am about to make a key decision. ( Since I am not in a managerial role yet, most of my projects have shorter life-spans. So I have adapted this method for myself.) And once you do this, compare the actual results with the expectations you set for yourself prior to starting the task. I haven’t tried it long enough to swear by it, but it seems a logical enough tool that will be helpful for sure.
How do I perform? This was a really strong insight for me. “Like one’s strengths, how one performs is unique.” And the first step to understanding how you perform is to understand whether you are a reader or a listener or how do I learn? This is an area I have been thinking about for some time.. the idea of how I learn. Drucker gives great examples of how some people learn from reading, listening, talking to self, talking it out to others etc. I learn by asking questons and filling in the blanks in my head. When I hear a problem – it immediately forms itself as a fill-in-the-blanks equation in my head and I need to ask questions until all those blanks are fulfilled. Once I feel equipped with that information, I try to figure out how to solve it. But also when it comes to solving, I learn by doing it and talking out loud to myself.
Once I figured this out, it has been easy for me to watch other people and try to figure out how they learn which in turn, determines how they perform. Again, its too early for me to say that I’ve seen a difference in the way I perform, but having this framework is immensely helpful and it makes me a better performer.
What are my values? This is a really important tool. My values dictate that I do not bullshit my client and I tell them what I think and not what is in the interest of the agency. Prior to my current job, I was freelancing at a place where my values did not align with the agency’s. And I was unhappy. My current place holds similar values as I do and I find myself much happier here. I think this is will bear more importance further down my career as I move up the ladder.
Where do I belong? Now, this answer is in two parts or rather a different post by itself. Over the last few months, I’ve been deeply immersed in understanding “creativity” and “creative people.” My exposure to creative people and companies centered around creative people sparked off this interest. So this question will be better answered in the next post, but for the sake of this article, I cannot stress the importance of this particular question. I’ve worked at start-ups, large companies, small ones, publicly traded ones etc. And it took me some 3.5 years to realize where I feel belonged. And thank god, Drucker agrees. “Most people, especially highly gifted people, do not really know where they belong until they are well past their mid-twenties.” I’m still learning as I go but for a 25-year old working professional like me, it was very very important that I find a mentor at my job. And part of my search for the right job was fueled by this search for a mentor, who would take a strong interest in me and my career and be instrumental in molding me, while giving me the freedom and the flexibility to make mistakes, but expect me to learn from them. That aspect is incredibly important to me right now. Will it be important five years down the road? Maybe not. Maybe my thirst for mentorship will be satisfied, but for now, I know I want that.
What should I contribute: This particular question is perhaps the one which will continue to push me to get better at my job. Drucker essentially says that some people are better as subordinates, some as decision-makers, some as team-mates and some as loners.
I am a little confused about this right now because in certain areas of work and life, I find that I am better as a decision-maker and in certain other areas I find that I am better as a team-mate/ subordinate. And yet again, in certain other areas, I perform the best as a loner. So I am not sure I think people fit within any of those categories because I certainly don’t. But what I would like to be able to do is transfer some of my faith and confidence from one area of my life and work to another and vice versa. But this is good food for thought.
Bottom line: Once you understand this framework, you should be able to evaluate each project with this type of thinking, “Given my strengths, my way of performing and my values, how can I make the greatest contribution to what needs to be done? And finally, what results have to be achieved to make a difference.”
These were perhaps the most important take-aways for twenty-something people like me. If you are mid-career, I suggest you read the entire article as I am sure you will find more relevant learnings.
What do you think? Do you think this framework helps you?
