Tag Archive for: Career Tip of the Week

thought-leadershipLast week we talked about making lists of the tasks that you do everyday. By now, if you did that exercise, you might have spotted that there are a few things on that list that you do not enjoy doing or that you feel you are not so strong at doing. The trick is to understand how important they are to your growth and to your overall success. Rank them as a priority in your success and then nominate a time in your calendar (daily, weekly, monthly * however appropriate) and really stick to plowing through those tasks. Make them a priority, and think about ways to enjoy them ( ranging from doing them with a team member to treating yourself to a nice coffee or something while undertaking it).

By Nicki Gilmour, Executive Coach and Organizational Psychologist

Contact nicki@glasshammer2.wpengine.com if you would like to hire an executive coach to help you navigate the path to optimal personal success at work

Women-working-on-tabletIs what you do everyday, close to what you want to do? It can be an overwhelming question. Make a list of the tasks that you would like to do all day, literally a blow by blow look at what you actually do task by task. Make sure you spell out what it is you would do to fill the hours, for example: find sales prospects by mining linkedin or review documents regarding the team deal. Be careful to understand that titles or one sentence strategy can be misleading, for example: being responsible for the group’s compliance may be your remit for sure but not helpful at letting you know what you like doing.

Step two. Make a list of tasks that you would like to do.

How do those lists compare?

By Nicki Gilmour, Executive Coach and Organizational Psychologist

Contact nicki@theglasshammer.com if you would like to hire an executive coach to help you navigate the path to optimal personal success at work

working from homeChanging companies? Do benefits and company policy matter in this decision?

Yes. Due to the USA having the same maternity support as Papua New Guinea ( i.e. very little), it is essential that you choose an employer in the USA who offers maternity leave if you are planning in the short, medium or long term to have kids. Check leave for adoption, spousal leave etc and remember that there are companies who operate with excellent leave and offer support around re-entry and flexible work. For any country in the world- check for additional perks and cultural norms around time off.

Welcome to Career Tip of the Week. In this column we aim to provide you with a useful snippet of advice to carry with you all week as you navigate the day to day path in your career.

By Nicki Gilmour, Executive Coach and Organizational Psychologist

Contact nicki@glasshammer2.wpengine.com if you would like to hire an executive coach to help you navigate the path to optimal personal success at work

People around a laptopThis Week’s Tip Is….

Know the difference between a stretch assignment or an opportunity to develop your skills and over-promising work that you don’t have time, support or perhaps the skillset to do since this affect your reputation.

Work with your boss and sponsors to secure useful projects or tasks that are supported. Ask yourself about time, skills and institutional support as a checklist before you say yes.

Welcome to Career Tip of the Week. In this column we aim to provide you with a useful snippet of advice to carry with you all week as you navigate the day to day path in your career.

By Nicki Gilmour, Executive Coach and Organizational Psychologist

Contact nicki@theglasshammer.com is you would like to hire an executive coach to help you navigate the path to optimal personal success at work

thought-leadershipThis Week’s Tip Is…..

Beware of job myopia. Do you know the bigger picture?

Becoming a Leader or a senior executive usually requires having a holistic and bigger picture view of the business and the industry that you are working in.

When meeting with someone in your firm or a client, remember to ask broader questions that can advance your knowledge in this area as well as talking about the direct issue at hand.

Welcome to Career Tip of the Week. In this column we aim to provide you with a useful snippet of advice to carry with you all week as you navigate the day to day path in your career.

By Nicki Gilmour, Executive Coach and Organizational Psychologist

Contact nicki@glasshammer2.wpengine.com if you would like to hire an executive coach to help you navigate the path to optimal personal success at work.

Women workingThis Week’s Tip Is….

Addressing your skill blindspots.

Many people who I coach talk to me about gaps in their professional development ( either their firm doesn’t provide it or there is something specific that they want to develop that isn’t necessarily easy to learn in a course).

Make a list of the tasks or areas that you feel you need to be better at. Writing it down ( identifying it) is the first step to making a plan.

By Nicki Gilmour, Executive Coach and Organizational Psychologist

Contact nicki@theglasshammer.com is you would like to hire an executive coach to help you navigate the path to optimal personal success at work.

women salesThis Week’s Tip Is…..

All jobs have tasks that we prefer over other tasks. Be honest with yourself, how strategically important are the tasks that you are avoiding? If they rank highly either for your current role or as a development skill, then consider setting time aside formally in your calendar to undertake them on a regular basis as habit can be a great way to embrace them.

By Nicki Gilmour, Executive Coach and Organizational Psychologist

Women workingThis Week’s Tip Is…

Do you have so many meetings in your calendar that you don’t have the time to do the actual work?

In a world of constant contact of live and virtual meetings and a flurry of emails to answer, it is hard to find time to do uninterrupted work sometimes.

Schedule time in your calendar every day to not be disturbed and resist the temptation to check your email during that time. Let people such as team members or managers know that you are working on a project and will get back to them later that day. Manage expectations and stay focused on productivity in this time.

Welcome to Career Tip of the Week. In this column we aim to provide you with a useful snippet of advice to carry with you all week as you navigate the day to day path in your career.

By Nicki Gilmour, Executive Coach and Organizational Psychologist

Contact nicki@theglasshammer.com if you would like to hire an executive coach to help you navigate the path to optimal personal success at work.

women salesHow much of your time should be spent managing others?

The answer to this question depends on how you are rewarded at your firm and in your role. Look back at your job description and see if what you are doing lines up with what you are supposed to be doing!

If you are tasked with an individual contributor role yet find yourself heavily involved with managing others so that you can do your job well, then it is worth examining the barriers that are stopping you from having a clear path at work to succeed. Are the barriers systemic and part of the culture of ‘how we do things around here?’

Welcome to Career Tip of the Week. In this column we aim to provide you with a useful snippet of advice to carry with you all week as you navigate the day to day path in your career.

By Nicki Gilmour, Executive Coach and Organizational Psychologist

Contact nicki@theglasshammer.com if you would like to hire an executive coach to help you navigate the path to optimal personal success at work.

Women workingThis Weeks Tip is….

What are you recognized and rewarded for? Are you experiencing task creep?

Have a look ( or make a list) of what you do every day for a period of a week to see what is officially within your remit and what creeps in there. It might be illuminating to see how you are paid for driving the train but also at times asked to lay the track, clean the engine etc which is time consuming and often not conducive to your time management or skill set.

Welcome to Career Tip of the Week. In this column we aim to provide you with a useful snippet of advice to carry with you all week as you navigate the day to day path in your career.

By Nicki Gilmour, Executive Coach and Organizational Psychologist

Contact nicki@glasshammer2.wpengine.com if you would like to hire an executive coach to help you navigate the path to optimal personal success at work.