Last week, I enjoyed a Fistful of Talent post by Steve Boese titled The LeBron Effect. The post discussed how LaBron James’ decision to move to the Miami Heat created a domino effect which resulted in 30 Miami Heat ticket sale employees losing their job.
One thing stuck with me after reading the post. It was not the news about LaBron James or the news of the 30 sales staff losing their jobs. It was this comment:
“if you only bring one thing to the table, even if that one thing is today critical to the success of the organization, that does not mean it will always be a critical skill.”
Early in my career, I was given similar advice and told to continually reinvent myself. What does this mean and how can I do this? This term was used often from people who were looking to change careers, but can we reinvent ourselves in our current roles? Yes! The idea is to go above and beyond your current job duties, expand your skill set and offer more than is required. By reinventing yourself, your skill set becomes more diverse and eventually you will become a subject matter expert in many areas. Here are some ideas on how to continually reinvent yourself:
- Continual learning and teaching - Stay up to date on latest trends by reading news, books, trade magazines, online publications and blogs. As you learn, share it with others. Have a mentor and be a mentor. Also consider reverse mentoring, learn from everyone around you. Don’t let a title or age prevent you from learning. You can learn from people at every level.
- Technological trends- Be a geek, it is fun! One of the best ways to reinvent yourself today is with social media. Learn and use social media. Write a blog. If you don’t want to start a blog, be a guest writer on other blogs. Join Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and start a RSS feed.
- Get out of the box – Don’t be afraid to step outside of the box and try something new. Be open to opportunities that are out of your comfort zone. This new opportunity will give you the chance to learn and be proficient at another skill.
- Communication and managerial skills – These skills are necessary as your career progresses. Continually look to improve your verbal and written communication skills. Even the best managers can improve. If you are not a manager, learn from the managers around you. You can learn from the traits they have that you like and those you dislike.
- Get involved - Be involved with activities and functions at work. Network with other professionals online and offline. Meet others in your field via Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. Join local organizations and attend functions.
Reinventing your career is not only fun, but will make you more marketable within your company. What have you done to reinvent your career lately?
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Chris – great advice and definitely very, very true. Complacency, aside from being very boring, can also put you in serious risk these days. Thanks for the mention and thanks for improving on the idea!
Really good post Chris…and so often overlooked. You can always learn and offer more, businesses have to continually develop and evolve so will need people who can do the same.
Reverse mentoring is a cool idea, yet so many people seem afraid, as if it’s a sign of weakness…truth is you can learn a lot form someone who is interpreting things in a different way.
You are right, Social Media makes a great starting point…how else would I have got to Chicago and talked about HR going mobile with you!!
@Steve – thanks again for the inspiration, I really enjoy reading your posts.
@Mervyn – thank you for the nice comment and so great to have met and spoken with you in Chicago. Hope to catch up again soon. Take care.
Good advice and I heartily agree that it makes your job much more interesting
Hey Chris,
This is great advice. Definitely something that I need to constantly think about because it is easy for me to slip up on my learning and teaching. Just recently I realized that I had stopped reading and researching new current trends and events and it reflected in my work.
Social media is an amazing thing. Reading the newspaper every day and surfing the internet for a few minutes and I am up to date on everything I need to know.
There have been times when someone suggests a good book for me to read to learn more about something and I say I am too busy to read it now. I really should be making time to read it because learning is such an important part to furthering my education and knowledge which in turn makes my work better. I am also trying to add new things to my repertoire (which is my interpretation of reinventing your career). Thanks for this post! It was just the boost I needed today to take another step towards reinventing my career.
Thank you for your kind words Alanah. I cannot agree more about reading. I too struggle with finding time, but when I do I am happy I did.
Have a good day. Chris