My performance has, more than ever before, been at the forefront of my mind recently.
I have just started a new role...same company...new role though. When first approached about the job, I thought "Wow, what a great opportunity; a new challenge without the usual upheaval and culture refamiliarisation required with a move to a new organisation."
I couldn't have been more wrong.
It seems I had underestimated the impact of my identity loss...I was Head of Blah, now I am Head of a Different Blah. All of a sudden I went from a position of clarity, focus, confidence and control to...well...not clarity, not focus, not confidence and not control!
All this and the credit crunch! Oh woe is me.
Woe is me, until I reflected upon some of the stuff I was discussing with a colleague recently in a coaching session (well, there is nothing quite like taking your own medicine is there?). In this reflective moment I recalled some self talk of recent times...in fact it might not just have been self-talk, more like blatant-open-talking-to-anyone-who-would-listen...
I can recall saying, thinking and affirming..."I need a new challenge!", "I'm getting a bit bored", "I learn best when I am out of my comfort zone", "I feel like I want to get my teeth stuck into something different", "I need to move on"...you know what I mean, don't you?
And I am reminded of the saying "Be careful what you wish for because you might just get it". I have wished for and manifested this situation...so why on earth am I spending my time in woe? Why aren't I doing what I do best - learning when out of my comfort zone?
So, I make the choice now. I am getting on with it, enjoying the ride and learning...and being careful what I wish for!
Happy Friday!
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4 comments:
Hi Dan, really interesting to hear your reflections. I learn best when I am outside of my comfort zone is so true for so many people. One question from me is are you being adequately supported through this learning in your new role or do you need to go and get that support?
Great to hear from you...
Though the context might have changed, the qualities that have brought you success still live in you. What are the key differences in context and which of your strengths do you need to exploit to perform just as brilliantly in a new arena?
I think it's just like running - you train, feel tired and then rest and recover so your performance muscles can adapt. Just recovering (or staying in your comfort zone) means they'll wither. Permanently outside your comfort zone and you probably get too tired. Put them together in the right proportions and magic happens...
Dan, people I've coached who've chosen similar transitions in their career have found it particularly useful to ensure they have proper time for regular reflection. As well as the usual general reflection on what went well and what you'd like to improve, they find it useful to reflect on the 3 'C's...
- what can I put in my confidence bank to tell me that I am improving in the new role?
- how have I improved my connections with other people who are important in my new role?
- what were the key monents of choices in terms of my attitude, thoughts and behaviours? What worked well? What would I like to improve if faced with a similar situation in the future?
I know it's a tough choice to park the time to do this stuff when in the thick of a demanding new role, but people who do make this choice of how to use their time seem to accelerate their learning, be conscious of their changing recipe for performance in the new context and therefore, get better at what they're now doing even faster.
Same goes for how to deliver effectively in any more challenging situation (erm... a bit like the current financial climate). The quicker we can learn about how to work at our best in the new context, the more likely we are to succeed. See if making this learning explicit and structured helps you.
I, m taking time to refind a comfort zone within my new context so that I can recuperate, and yet flex and train new muscles at the same time.
I've decided to look at this as exciting instead of daunting, and (you wont be surprised at this) my experience seems to have changed overnight!
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