Timestamps

00:00:00: Introduction
00:01:21: Some expert advice
00:02:20: Ideas for action…
00:02:22: ... 1: increase your in-role impact

00:04:13: ... 2: grow yourself by growing others

00:05:21: ... 3: practise your positioning
00:06:32: Final thoughts

Interview Transcription

Helen Tupper: In this short, we're talking about how staying in your role can be really good for your growth.  So, very often in careers, we're given this kind of narrative that up is the only way, success is about seniority, and we should all be thinking about our next step. And that can create quite a lot of pressure for you and your progression, particularly if you're thinking, "I quite like the job that I do and I don't really want to be forced to look at other things and always think about five years into my future, when actually, I just want to do more of what I enjoy".

Sarah Ellis: And it's a really ladderlike way of thinking about careers.  So, in some ways, you'd hope this wasn't a thing anymore, but we know that it is, because people get in touch with us and actually ask for advice on, "How do I talk to my manager about the fact that I really enjoy the job that I already do?"  So, I think this sometimes comes up because people have got maybe performance or career conversations.  So, often, I'll get an email and be like, "I've got to speak to my manager next week about my progression.  How do I frame the fact that I want to stay where I am today, in a positive way where I'm then not going to be overlooked for interesting opportunities?"  Also, I think sometimes it can be sparked by comparison.  Maybe other people are going off and doing different things, and maybe that somehow means you put pressure on yourself to feel like, "Well, am I making the wrong choice here, because that's not what I want to do?"

But growing in your role can be really good, because I think you convert what you've learnt in the first year, in the first couple of years, into impact.  And I really remember some excellent advice from Carolyn McCall, who's now the Chief Executive of ITV, that she passed on in a mentoring session that I was in, where she said she got that advice like, "Stay in your role for a bit longer than maybe you might imagine, because you'll get to this tipping point where actually, you can give a lot.  And actually, then that shows up in the quality of the work that you're doing".  And both Helen and I were reflecting on probably sometimes, we've moved on a bit too quickly, and perhaps staying in a role longer, we probably would have learnt more, could have given more; or sometimes, maybe felt a pressure to progress in a direction that wasn't right for us as well.

Helen Tupper: And you don't want to come across as passive, and you definitely don't want to look like you're operating on autopilot. So, it's not that, it's just about how to show that you are positive and proactive in the position that you're already in.  So, we've got three ideas for action to help you.  The first one is to increase your in-role impact.  And the first way that you can start doing this is by looking at the people that you work with, the processes that you're working through and the projects that you're working on.  And for each of those areas, think about, "How could I increase my impact?"  So, maybe for your manager, "How could I increase my impact for my manager in the meetings that we're in?"  Is there a process that you think, "That's not working as well as it could.  I could increase my impact by improving that process".  Maybe there's a project that you could start.  You might think, "How could I increase my impact by picking up that project that everyone's been talking about, but no one's done anything about?"  That's a good way to start increasing your in-role impact.

Sarah Ellis: And if you want to go a bit further, you could consider what's sometimes called job-crafting.  So, job-crafting is being really intentional about the responsibilities that are part of your role.  So, often, our roles change by accident, by default, and it sort of happens to us.  I bet your job today is not the same as your job was 12 months ago, but how much of that is down to you and how much is down to just what's going on around you?  So, this is a bit about taking control, involving your manager, so this is a bit more of a detailed process, because you are really thinking about, "I'd like to do maybe more of a certain activity or a task, maybe less of another one", there's usually a bit of a trade-off here.  And you might be thinking about, "Well, I want to stretch my strengths, I want to get involved in something that I'm not part of today".  And again, I think when you do job-crafting, there's something I've done a few times in my career, you don't need all of it to materialise straightaway, because you don't grow in your role and then it doesn't all happen in a month.  Probably, there'll be some easy things that you can make happen with the support of your manager, and then there might be some possibilities or opportunities that your manager can start to spot on your behalf.

Helen Tupper: The second idea for action is to grow yourself by growing other people.  And I find this one really motivating, I find it a really easy place to start, if I'm thinking about what other things can I do in a job that I'm already in.  So, you can grow yourself by helping other people by mentoring, for example, so sharing what you know to help somebody else grow.  Mentoring is a brilliant skill, so you get a win here for you, because you'll develop your listening skills, you'll develop your questioning skills, and you're going to learn how to give advice in a useful way. 

The second win for you in growing other people is when you start to teach other people what you know.  Teaching other people is one of the best ways for you to learn yourself.  So, maybe there's a skill you've got, or some experience you've got.  Teaching that to somebody else means that you have to reflect on, "What do I think?  How can I communicate this?"  Your brain has to work a bit harder, and that learning gets reinforced and lasts longer.  And then, the third way that you win by growing other people, and how it helps you to grow yourself, is you get the helper's high.  This is a positive boost for your brain that makes you feel better because you feel useful and you kind of feel like you've done a good thing for someone else.  So, a triple win in growing yourself by growing other people first. 

Sarah Ellis: And the final action for you is to practise your positioning probably out loud.  As awkward as it can feel, saying the words in a way that works for you, and saying them a few times, a bit of what's sometimes called self-explaining, will just help you to work out what this sounds like.  So, Helen and I were saying we often get asked about, "How do you want to progress Amazing If?"  And people might assume it's about how much you are growing your revenue or the number of people that you've got.  And actually, we are both practising at the moment saying, "Well, actually, we really like what we do today.  What we actually want to do is learn and grow in terms of our usefulness.  How can we be even more useful?  How can we share Squiggly Careers with people who perhaps haven't found it so far?" and being able to say that with confidence and clarity. 

Just remember, when you say this to your manager, for most managers, they need some people to stay in their teams.  If everybody says, "I want to move and I want to develop in a different direction", that's a really big problem for them.  So, every manager needs people to stay where they are, but continue to learn and grow at the same time.  So, you should get a positive reception from people when you have these conversations.

Helen Tupper: So, we hope this short has been useful and given you some ideas how you can grow in the role that you are already in.  If you have got feedback for us we would love to hear it.  We're just helenandsarah@squigglycareers.com. 

Sarah Ellis: See you all soon.