Our workplaces have become progressively less rigid and structured over the past few decades, but particularly over the past several years. Our time is chopped up into smaller units, and the demands on our attention and energy grow exponentially. Self management becomes a progressively more important skill set in this type of environment, approaching your primary skill set.
One powerful and necessary practice is to read outside your immediate field, and allow the concepts of others to stimulate your imagination. One of my favorite resources for this is the Harvard Business Review. There are items that do not pertain much to a health care practice, but many of the conceptual things can easily be adapted to the things we spend out time doing. This article is a set of adapted concepts by Peter Drucker, who is one of the Godfathers of American business management systems.
What are my strengths?
Feedback analysis is the best way to ascertain this. One simple method is to write down what you think the effect of some event set will be and review it in 6-9 months. This could be the hire of a new billing manager, joining a new marketing group, purchasing pay-per-click online advertising, etc. The feedback over time will tell you what you’re good at predicting (or not!)
In a larger organization, the strategy is to position yourself only in areas of strength and do not attempt anything in areas of weakness. This is because it is easier to go from good to great than it is to go from terrible to mediocre. In a typical practice, however, this is not practical. You have to be at least mediocre in all critical areas of practice growth, or your weaknesses will determine the end point of growth. One simple goal is to grow to be large enough to successfully transfer or delegate areas of weakness to other members.
How do I work?
This area addresses your preferred learning and working styles. Do you learn through your eyes, via reading or video? Do you learn through your ears, by listening (or talking to yourself!)? Do you learn through your body, through physical practice and repetition? Do you do best with bottom-line decision making or better in a structured environment where decisions are already made? Do you do better with a deadline or an open-ended arrangement?
You probably have not thought about this, but it bears examination. Changes in workplace conditions that are better aligned with your preferred style will yield much richer results.
What are my values?
All clients in my consulting service go through a rigorous definition of guiding values they hold personally and also professionally. We start with some simple categories, such as clinical, human relations, logistical and physical plant. We work to narrow these down to 3-4, maximum seven. An individual or an organization with well-defined values can make tough decisions much more easily and with greater consistency. In organizations with well-defined values, employees know that decisions made and actions taken in concert with these values will be supported and rewarded, even if the situation is somewhat unique.
A different slant on values is that they define what you won’t do. This can be as defining as what you will do in many cases. Many of the spectacular corporate flame-outs of the past few years did not have a value system that included honesty/integrity. If they had, companies such as Washington Mutual, Lehman Brothers, Enron, Worldcom, and many others would still be in business and their former executives would not be in jail.
Where do I belong?
This question takes the characteristics identified in the first three questions and describes the ideal workplace, where your talents and strengths are put to best use. Sometimes this will match the existing workplace, but many times not. The question then becomes: how can I alter modify or evolve my present workplace to match where I belong? Ideally, this can be done through change of the existing structure, but many times it is just not feasible or there is too much resistance, both external and internal. Self-examination can sometimes lead to uncomfortable conclusions, unfortunately.
What can I contribute?
This question was nonsensical a generation ago in the workplace. But, with barriers and definitions becoming looser and less defined, the contribution question is valid and can make the entire working life much more satisfying. Asking what you can bring to the table to further the organization’s ultimate aims makes you more valuable and will give you greater satisfaction in the long run.
The source material was originally published in HBR 1999 by Peter Drucker. Reprint code: R0501K