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How can you improve your career prospects whilst developing your own learning? Peter Drucker (1999) in his Harvard Business Review article Managing Oneself advocates a lengthy period of reflection on your actions and the resulting outcomes of it. Drucker suggests that through personal Feedback Analysis we can all understand where our strengths lie and work on improving them. We can also see what skill and knowledge gaps need to be improved on and take action to correct them. Overcoming our intellectual arrogance is a priority as it prevents learning from others and thinking more flexibly.

Drucker argues that it is increasingly important that knowledge workers learn to develop themselves so they can be more effective. Work on remedying your bad habits and develop good inter-personal skills to gain the cooperation of your work colleagues. Also, as Pareto’s Principle states, only work on what matters. Direct the 80% of your action towards the 20% that matters to your learning and development. There is no point wasting time on assignments and tasks that will only result in mediocrity and not star performance.

Another area to focus on is how you perform. How do you learn and work in your job? Are you a reader or listener or writer? Personally speaking, I see myself as a writer and talker. I make notes on paper and on my text books. Any book that I read I have to annotate with my own marks and diagrams. I find I remember more by writing things down and then discussing the ideas with others for alternative viewpoints. It is also important to work out whether you work best with others or alone; as a leader or deputy; or better in a large or small organisation. Knowing where you belong is extremely important.

Furthermore understanding your personal values system can help you perform much more effectively. Your personal values need to be compatible with those of the organisation you work for otherwise you will only become frustrated. Drucker believes that successful careers develop when people are prepared for opportunities because they know their strengths, their method of work, and their values. Only then can a person make a difference to themselves and the organisation they belong to.

In making a difference, the results need to be SMART and meaningful. The results should also be visible and measurable. From this standpoint, a course of action will develop. Another important consideration is the impact others may have on your objectives. Knowing your co-workers and their strengths and weaknesses can help you work more effectively with them. It is also important to communicate well. Tell people what you are doing and what you are hoping to achieve. Organisations are made up of people; it’s your responsibility and duty to gain the cooperation and trust of your co-workers through developing good working relationships.

Overall, I found Drucker’s advice actionable and I intend to audit my strengths and embark on more feedback analysis both on a personal level and with others. I also think it is important that I explore my value system so that I can understand where I fit into the world following the completion of my Masters. However, Drucker’s advice is based on anecdotal evidence in this article and not backed-up by hard statistical “facts”. This is slightly worrying for me as acting on someone’s own anecdotal evidence may not be appropriate for my needs or situation.

Obviously I accept that Drucker had an illustrious academic career, but most of what he says seems like common sense rather than “proved” by research. On one hand I believe that as individuals we have choices and responsibilities, but depending on your “professional” career, some people have more choice than others. For instance, I’m fortunate to be able to study full-time and spend time writing my blog and reflecting on my learning. Many people don’t have the luxury of being able to undertake postgraduate study, nor have enough autonomy in their role to direct what assignments they will take on.

I remember an interview situation with a prospective employer where I was asked for an example of a situation in which I turned something negative into a positive result through personal leadership. After I ran through my own anecdotal situation, I was then told that organisations can’t have too many leaders insinuating that too much personal autonomy would not work at that organisation! If Drucker is right that knowledge workers have to manage themselves and behave like their own Chief Executive Officer, personal goals are likely to conflict with the goals of the organisation and other work colleagues. How one balances this dichotomy is no doubt an art rather than a science in my view.

References:
Drucker, F. P. (1999). Managing Oneself Harvard Business Review (March)