Progress report MAC008-MAC013

As with any career, it's important to periodically check your progress.  Since this podcast started you should have held at least two career development discussions with your leader.  Hopefully you're making the most of these session and have worked with your leader to put together an action plan.  Recent episodes should have given you some things to talk about with your leader.

Episode 008 covered recognition and how letting your manager know what forms of recognition motivate you will ensure that when your work is valued, you know.  The five types of recognition were Monetary, Tokens of Appreciation, Words of Acknowledgement, Visibility, and Prestige.

Next, in episode 009, we talked about deciding whether you should stay in a technical role or start transitioning to management.  There is no "perfect" answer and it will ultimately depend on the career roadmap you've documented in your individual development plan.

If you do decide to transition to management, episode 010 talks about different types of leaders on a mediaeval battlefield.  Leading from the front like the melee fighters works well in critical times.  Leading from the side as in the calvary is where most new managers start because they understand the day-to-day having grown through those ranks.  Leading from behind like the archers is where leaders who focus on enabling their team and staying out of their way operate.  Leading from above like the nobles and generals allows one to focus on strategic thinking.

In episode 011, we  covered a structure for your one-on-ones.  This structure had four main agenda items.

• Performance against annual company goals
• Performance against IDP action plan
• Feedback from peers and business partners
• Actions until next session

Speaking of feedback, episode 012 discussed techniques for receiving effective feedback.

• Get in the right mindset
• Ask open-ended questions
• Close your mouth and open your ears
• Resist the urge to be defensive
• Take lots of notes
• Offer thanks, not promises
• Scheduled a follow-up

And lastly, episode 013 covers how sometimes your success is the result of luck.  But that luck is really a result of the preparation and opportunities that you have made for yourself.

So, in these past six weeks, have you made any progress on your career goals?  Go to the Managing A Career community that's accessible from the ManagaingACareer.com website and let me know which of these past six episodes have helped you the most!

Are you looking for a career coach? If you reach out to me via the contact form, I will arrange an introductory session where we can talk about your career goals and how I can help. If we're a good fit, we can schedule regular coaching sessions.