Achieving Competence

By Sherry Knight

So, you’ve been in an industry for five to 10 years! Suddenly one morning you wake up knowing it’s time to move on. That’s the easy part! The tough part is deciding whether or not you have acquired skills to move on – either laterally or by moving up. The time to be thinking about moving on is in the beginning, when you first take the job. On the first day, ask yourself, “What do I need to learn so I’m ready when a new opportunity arises?” This puts the responsibility of your career in a whole new perspective. You are responsible for yourself – Mom isn’t, Dad isn’t, your spouse isn’t, your boss isn’t. You are responsible to ensure you have the competencies in place so you can move ahead.

You are Responsible

What competencies do you need? Well, that depends! I know…you’ve probably heard that before. However, it is a reality; it does depend on what you are doing and where you want to go. Let’s take an example from a rather common position. Assume you are beginning in sales. There are certain things which you are expected to learn. You will need to know:

• How to network
• How to build relationships
• How to cold call
• How to soft call
• How to make a sales presentation
• How to add value
• How to up-sell
• How to file reports

Now you know what skills you need to acquire. But, how do you acquire them? Initially, you will want to see what you can learn through experience. Do you know someone who is already excelling in one of these areas? If you do, perhaps you can “shadow” this person for a while to pick up his or her approach to that competency. Shadow simply means to follow in someone’s footsteps (in their shadow) watching what they do and how they do it so you can learn from their expertise. This kind of experience is valuable. It shows you how a successful person accomplishes the job. There is a downside though – you might also learn their bad habits. Remember when Mom or Dad taught you to drive? Not only did you learn all the good stuff, you probably picked up some of their bad habits too! Oops! And you didn’t realize it until later when someone brought your errors to your attention. Perhaps your first thought was, “But that’s how Mom/Dad did it!” Maybe so…but they did it wrong. The same thing applies here.

Classroom Learning

Another way to improve your competence is to take a course. Usually these are led by SME’s (subject matter experts) who have used this skill so often they’ve become experts and are willing to share their knowledge with others. Experts have usually put in the time to learn. Today of course that means you could be 25 or 44 – length of service or learning are not necessarily what makes one an expert, it’s a mix of experience, knowledge and skill. Regardless, there is usually at least one thing you can learn from just about anyone. Be open to learning and watch for the one tidbit of information you can add to your own growing toolkit of skills.

There are many varieties of courses. You can learn via correspondence, e-learning, teleseminars, classroom seminars, workshops, one-on-one job training, reading books, watching videos/CDs and listening to audio tapes. There are myriads of opportunities to learn any subject you wish.

Action Plan

Whatever you learn, you need to create an Action Plan to ensure you put your new skills/knowledge into practice. The learning will be of no value, and the time and money spent will be wasted, if you don’t bother to implement what you’ve learned. Your Action Plan should include:

• A list of up to three things you want to implement
• The things you already know how to do well
• What might hinder you in your implementation
• When you plan to begin this implementation

With this plan in place you will move forward quickly.

Don’t put your future in the hands of your employer. Take responsibility yourself and devise your own plan to move forward with your skills. When you begin a new job, take time to design a plan outlining what you want to do. Then, create a time line that seems feasible. After that, include the type of learning to best give you the skills you need. Your five year time line (see the example below) might help you to sort out what you need. You can then figure out whether you are prepared to cover the costs and the time or whether you need assistance from your employer on at least one of the resources.

You are responsible for your future. Your employer is simply a stepping stone to getting there. Decide what you need and how to get it in order to meet your plan.

Once you have this information at your fingertips, you have a plan for achievement. Now, you may be spending your own money or that of your employer. Remember, you are responsible, not your boss. So, once you know what you need, take your plan to your boss and see what kind of support you might get. It’s always a good idea to show how you plan to increase your value to the organization by describing what you are prepared to do for yourself before you ask for more assistance from the employer.

Becoming Competent

At about 25, you are just beginning to get into the “Establishment” level of the work place. You are probably no longer a new comer to the workplace and you’re on the road to becoming a force to be reckoned with in your industry or firm. Now, others are beginning to come to you for answers and guidance. Generally, between the ages of 25 and 44, you are steadily learning more and more, and are becoming more valuable to the organization.

At this point you are still a learner, but you are also a coach (and maybe even a mentor) to others, sharing your learning with them. It’s a fun time. Each day you are probably learning something new and then sharing it with others. Helping others increase their skills / knowledge will make you more valuable to the organization, too. Does this seem logical, to share your knowledge with others? Won’t that make you less valuable, more easily replaced? Less valuable, definitely not! More easily replaced, yes! And that’s the whole point! Remember, in order to move up or laterally within your present organization, you must have someone groomed to take over your job. Employers are smart – there is no way they will move someone up or over if there is no one competent to take their place. You are just too valuable to move out of your position. Where is the onus to ensure someone is groomed to take your place? On you – that’s right, you are the only one who can make sure someone is ready to step into your shoes when you walk into someone else’s shoes!

Surprisingly, many people fail to get promoted because they are doing a fabulous job and there is no one else with the required skills, abilities and competencies to take over. If you put yourself in this situation, you’ve just bought yourself a ticket to no where!

So, build your skills and knowledge. Achieve excellence in your job. And share the wealth of knowledge and experience you acquire.

Sherry Knight is a convention speaker, author and corporate trainer who helps individuals achieve their full potential. To bring Sherry’s learning experiences to your management and staff, call 1-800-303-2315, email sherry@dimension11.com or visit our website at www.dimension11.com.