Unveiling the Value of Your Expertise
All of us have knowledge, expertise, and experience that others can benefit from. This is one of the reasons we play some of the roles in life that we play: leader, trainer, teacher, coach, mentor, and more. We all can contribute to other's success with our expertise. Unfortunately, some things keep us from doing this as successfully as we could. This article will outline several of the things that get in our way and suggest ways to improve our ability to succeed in having our expertise used successfully by others. Ignorance Here is a fundamental truth - most of us don't recognize how much we know. When we've done something for a long time, or read about an idea in 21 places, we assume everyone knows that information. This just isn't true! Our familiarity and deep understanding gets in our way, because we assume others know what we believe to be obvious. The first key to getting your expertise used is to proclaim it to yourself. Recognize that what you know is significant and valuable. Without this recognition you won't know what to share if asked. Attitude Before you go too far down this "Man, I'm smart" mental path though, recognize that arrogance is the next stumbling block. Certainly, we need to recognize our expertise. Of course we need to value what we know. But none of this makes us better than the other person. My advice? Lose any budding arrogance. When we are arrogant about what we know, our advice is more about an opportunity to show what we know, than it is about genuinely helping others. When we are confident we can focus on the other person's needs. Be confident in what you know and always be willing to learn more. Focus on being generous but helpful in your knowledge sharing. By remaining confident in your knowledge and keeping your focus on the other person's needs, you will have your attitude in the right place. Memory Often the challenge we have in sharing our knowledge and expertise is that we don't really remember what it is like to be a beginner in this area. Even once we recognize the value of what we know, we take shortcuts in explaining it to someone else. How? By using jargon or skipping what seem to be obvious steps. In order for us to successfully transfer our knowledge, or teach someone what we know, we must break the steps down. We must share each piece of information one step at a time. We have learned this information and so can others. But we must teach them from their perspective, not ours ? remembering what it felt like to be a beginner. Connect the Dots My daughter loves to color and has many coloring and activity books. One of the activities found in many of these books is something I used to call a "Dot to dot." In a dot to dot puzzle, you draw straight lines from point 1 to point 2 to point 3, etc. By looking at the page before you start to connect the dots, you can't really tell what is going to be drawn. You may have some clues based on how many other lines and related pictures exist on the page, but until you complete the puzzle, you don't really know what you have. Our expertise is like that. We are asked to share what we know with others for their benefit. What our job really is is to set a context and provide a bigger picture for them. Telling them the steps or the procedure or the technical components of something isn't enough. They need to know the situation the environment, the surroundings. They need to understand the relative priority and importance of the various things you are teaching them. As the "expert" you help them complete their own mental puzzle by guiding them in connecting their own dots. Making these connections is how we will be most successful in having our expertise valued and used by others. And you can only connect these dots when you have the other three barriers reduced or eliminated for yourself. Your success will expand as you expand the success and capabilities of others and the lessons of this article can help make that happen. Kevin is Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group (http://KevinEikenberry.com), a learning consulting company that helps Clients reach their potential through a variety of training, consulting and speaking services. To receive your free special report on "Unleashing Your Potential" go to http://www.kevineikenberry.com/uypw/index.asp or call us at (317) 387-1424 or 888.LEARNER.
Related News
|
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Experiences of Management Coaching (Part 2)
In our experience, we have found that there are several reasons managers fail to get employees to see and acknowledge that they have a problem.
Finding the Right Way to Motivate Your Employees
Fear, Incentives and Growth
Your Appraisal System Can Be Better ? Overcome These Nine Serious Failings
This article is directed at senior managers. As a senior colleague you have the authority to make tremendous improvements. You can have maximum effect in improving your existing appraisal system or starting one that contributes to profits or other targets.
Learning To Let Go
If you have the entrepreneurial spirit (which clearly you have!), you probably have a tendency toward being a control freak. I know the feeling well -- "No one can do it as well as me, so I'll just do it all!" While this may seem to be more efficient than trying to bring someone else in to help out, it's actually more time-consuming in the long run.
Five Problem-Solving Success Tips
The ability to solve complicated problems quickly is more important than ever in today's tough economy.
Lower the Bar
"Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm." Ralph Waldo Emerson
Communicating Effectively In The Workplace: Four Vital Steps
Ineffective communication is a major, yet avoidable, obstacle to business productivity. And yes, it
can be avoided. Given the will, the bleakest of situations can be turned around for the better.
Running Successful Meetings - The Key Steps To Getting It Right
We all complain about meetings which are a waste of our time and the truth of the matter is that so many are exactly that. We've also seen the "corridor" meeting that takes place afterwards where it seems the real decisions are taken, or the agreed decisions are overturned.
Creativity and Innovation Management ? Idea Progression
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation whilst innovation can be defined as idea selection, development and commercialisation.
The Narcissist in the Workplace
To a narcissist-employer, the members of his "staff" are Secondary Sources of Narcissistic Supply. Their role is to accumulate the supply (in human speak, remember events that support the grandiose self-image of the narcissist) and to regulate the Narcissistic Supply of the narcissist during dry spells (simply put, to adulate, adore, admire, agree, provide attention and approval and so on or, in other words, be an audience). The staff (or should we say "stuff"?) is supposed to remain passive. The narcissist is not interested in anything but the simplest function of mirroring. When the mirror acquires a personality and a life of its own, the narcissist is incensed. When independent minded, an employee might be in danger of being sacked by his employer (an act which demonstrates the employer's omnipotence).
Innovation Management: The Quality and Quantity of the Idea Pool
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation whilst innovation can be defined as idea selection, development and commercialisation.
How Bad Communication Can Hold You Back and How to Break Free of It
The reason jobs are often not done right and employees are fired is because of lack of skill. Right? Wrong! Poor communication and ineffective human relations are the major causes. Remember: Communication is a "meeting of meanings." It's getting through to the other person what you mean in a way that they understand. In fact, you want them to do more than understand, you want them to act on the information in the correct way. Effective communication is talking and listening to create that understanding. The end result is to get things done in a way so that you, the organization, and the employee will all be satisfied.
The Punitive Approach to Marginal Performers
MANAGING A MARGINAL PERFORMER: Often a marginal performer, even after therapeutic counseling, may not understand that his or her work is seen as substandard. The manager will have to ask the employee directly how the performance could be improved. If the manager still meets with resistance or avoidance, as a last resort he or she will have to give suggestions.
Planning For Growth
If you are like many high-performing business people, you have an annual ritual to set your plans for the coming twelve months. Some people do it in December, others at weird, miscellaneous times of the year, but most -- me included -- tend to do it the beginning part of the New Year.
Few Things Are More Destructive Than An Insecure Boss
Few things are more destructive to a career than a boss who is insecure.
Unfortunately, it is a near certainty that most people will encounter one or more such persons along the way.
Leadership Styles - the Ten Top Qualities the Best Leaders Show
Top leaders...
Boost Your Leadership Skills Simply By Answering The Question, What Does Our Organization Really...
The difference between leaders is ears. Good leaders not only ask good questions, but they actually listen to the answers.
Managing Employees Is A Little Like Herding Cats
Q: I started my small business about a year ago and it's grown steadily. I like having my own business, but I'm having a tough time managing people. I have 5 employees now and it seems like I spend half my time making sure they are doing what they're supposed to be doing and the other half of my time doing things they didn't get done. Things were much easier when I was a one man shop. Any suggestions?
-- Paul C.
How to Enhance Quality in Your Business
Every business must strive to provide quality products and services to customers. To achieve that objective the company must draw well thought out policies and procedures to ensure 100% achievement of the targets.
The Ivory Tower Syndrome
"His cardinal mistake is that he isolates himself, and allows nobody to see him; and by which he does not know what is going on in the very matter he is dealing with. - Abraham Lincoln on his reason for relieving Gen. John C Fremont of his Missouri command. (September 1861)
|
