Your Voice Matters. Here’s How to Act Like It.
How is it possible to feel you are “doing everything right” and still have the nagging sense you aren’t recognized for the value you know you bring to your work? Chances are, the way you have defined “doing everything right” is outdated and you are additionally in need of a better communications plan.
For years, decades really, we’ve read and heard about the value of being seen as a “thought leader” in our chosen space. Recognition as someone who knows more than pretty much anyone else in their niche area of expertise guaranteed being paid a level of homage; this also translated into perks such as inclusion in meetings on the subject, being invited for input on projects related to the subject, and requests for presenting or writing on the subject.
No more. Those “requirements” are now “table stakes” in a corporate role. Your management team is looking for leadership defined not by knowledge, but by insights. So while, yes, insights are based upon solid foundational knowledge in a given topic, forming them requires moving beyond your command of facts or even well-formed opinions.
The new bar to clear
requires assimilating all of the information related to what is happening at a strategic business level for your team’s, your group’s and your department’s area of responsibility, and offering a unique way of looking at things.
This translates to bringing not just knowledge to the table, but to connecting dots in a new way to share fresh insights on old problems.
So how do we do this?
The First Thing
we need to do is obvious, yet few appear to do it: Show up to meetings prepared.
Read the agenda that is sent out for each meeting. If there isn’t an agenda, ask the organizer for the topics to be covered. Think through the issues that will be discussed. How do these impact other things you know are happening both inside and outside your group? What challenges can you guess might hinder progress on any of these items?
The Second Thing
we need to do is prepare to take part in the discussion part of the meeting.
If we want to demonstrate an ability to connect the dots differently and bring fresh insights to a need or challenge, we would be ill-advised to show up to the meeting unprepared, expecting to “wing it” based on what unfolds during the meeting. Set yourself apart by thinking about the issues to be discussed before you show up. Then bring a definitive point of view with new perspectives.
The Third Thing
we need to do pulls everything together, and is the hardest to do:
Prepare a short list of insightful questions to ask during the meeting.
Ironically, it’s not the person who talks on and on and on about a subject that commands attention and respect in a meeting; it is the person who asks thoughtful questions that connect different ideas.
Good questions move beyond the old admonition to ask “open ended” questions. Instead, focus on developing questions that ask people to compare or contrast concepts, rank areas of concern and need, or require them to paint a picture based on a scenario you set up and ask them to complete.
Prepare thoughtful questions
The ones that make people pause before answering
Preparing for meetings with more than “a few thoughts” on a subject can do a lot to change the way we’re viewed—and valued—at work. We need to recognize that the team meetings we may have come to categorize as “predictable” and “boring” are actually a great place in which to do this.
Take the time to prepare and ask good, insightful questions for your next meeting. You’ll likely find it will give you a forum to showcase your value and offer proof positive that your voice matters.
Photo credits:
Kyle Johnson, Tim Mossholder, Alex McCarthy, Max Fuchs, Milkovi Uva, Matt Walsh, on Unsplash
Eadweard J. Muybridge courtesy Getty Museum Open Images