1 00:00:04,800 --> 00:00:07,600 Welcome to the new manager podcast. 2 00:00:07,700 --> 00:00:16,400 I'm your host, Kim nickel. Hello and welcome. 3 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:19,300 I'm glad you're here. I hope you're doing well. 4 00:00:19,700 --> 00:00:24,700 And today, we're talking about how to advocate for yourself at 5 00:00:24,700 --> 00:00:29,100 work. This is an important skill that 6 00:00:29,200 --> 00:00:33,800 is sometimes quite difficult to learn how to do. 7 00:00:34,500 --> 00:00:41,800 Because early in your career, so much of the mindset is I have to 8 00:00:41,800 --> 00:00:44,700 figure this out on my own. I have to do this on my own. 9 00:00:45,100 --> 00:00:50,700 I can't ask for help because there isn't help or because I 10 00:00:50,700 --> 00:00:54,400 don't want to come across as not. 11 00:00:54,400 --> 00:00:57,600 Not being able to do this on my own. 12 00:00:58,100 --> 00:01:03,400 So, one of the very first hurdles to learning the skill is 13 00:01:03,400 --> 00:01:09,600 first simply recognizing it as a skill and as something that is 14 00:01:09,600 --> 00:01:14,400 useful, not just Just for you but in your role as a leader and 15 00:01:14,400 --> 00:01:20,200 a manager sometimes you will need to Advocate on behalf of 16 00:01:20,200 --> 00:01:25,000 your team of some you know someone to get promoted that is 17 00:01:25,000 --> 00:01:28,500 on your team that they need your support for there are different 18 00:01:28,500 --> 00:01:31,300 times in the course of your career when having the skill of 19 00:01:31,300 --> 00:01:36,000 advocacy is actually quite important, but we often don't 20 00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:40,200 acknowledge that or even think about it earlier in our career. 21 00:01:40,800 --> 00:01:46,700 So Let's start with just understanding what I mean. 22 00:01:46,700 --> 00:01:52,100 When I say to advocate. I think about it and its most 23 00:01:52,100 --> 00:01:57,800 simple terms like this to Advocate is to speak up for the 24 00:01:57,800 --> 00:02:03,900 benefit of someone. To speak up for the benefit of 25 00:02:03,900 --> 00:02:08,400 someone, that someone can be. You advocating for yourself, it 26 00:02:08,400 --> 00:02:11,100 can be advocating for the client. 27 00:02:11,100 --> 00:02:14,300 Sometimes, in a company, you'll hear this, as you know, what is 28 00:02:14,300 --> 00:02:17,500 the voice of the client? What is the client need? 29 00:02:17,500 --> 00:02:20,500 What is the, what is the? What is the clients perspective 30 00:02:20,500 --> 00:02:23,400 here? It can also be speaking up on 31 00:02:23,400 --> 00:02:28,200 behalf of your team and maybe you need more resources, maybe 32 00:02:28,200 --> 00:02:32,500 you need to hire more people, maybe you need to Advocate for a 33 00:02:32,500 --> 00:02:39,300 different timeline or you need to advocate for why, one project 34 00:02:39,300 --> 00:02:44,200 should be the priority as opposed to a different project. 35 00:02:44,400 --> 00:02:49,500 But you're speaking up for the benefit of someone sometimes, 36 00:02:49,500 --> 00:02:52,700 it's easier to speak up for the benefit of somebody else. 37 00:02:53,100 --> 00:02:58,700 Because you're less attached and you feel more committed to using 38 00:02:58,700 --> 00:03:03,400 your voice to speak up for them. It can be sometimes difficult to 39 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:08,100 speak up for yourself, especially if you have any kind 40 00:03:08,100 --> 00:03:13,500 of self value, hesitancy, anything call, you know, I 41 00:03:13,500 --> 00:03:16,000 don't, I don't know if I really deserve this. 42 00:03:16,300 --> 00:03:20,300 I don't know if I'm good enough. If you've got your imposter, you 43 00:03:20,300 --> 00:03:24,800 know, voice flaring up, it can be much more difficult because 44 00:03:24,800 --> 00:03:27,600 we didn't tend to be more attached and take things more 45 00:03:27,600 --> 00:03:32,100 personally when it's about us. So, you know, today we're 46 00:03:32,100 --> 00:03:35,400 talking specifically about you because that's where we want to 47 00:03:35,400 --> 00:03:39,000 start and then realizing that this has broader applications at 48 00:03:39,000 --> 00:03:43,500 work. First, I want us to get some 49 00:03:43,500 --> 00:03:49,300 clarity about why we don't advocate for ourselves. 50 00:03:49,800 --> 00:03:54,100 One of the first reasons why we don't advocate for ourselves is 51 00:03:54,100 --> 00:03:57,700 we have a voice inside our head. That says what's the point 52 00:03:59,200 --> 00:04:03,800 What's the point in speaking up? And that's the voice that says, 53 00:04:03,800 --> 00:04:05,900 you know, there's a part of you that just doesn't believe it's 54 00:04:05,900 --> 00:04:08,600 available. It doesn't believe that you'll 55 00:04:08,600 --> 00:04:11,800 get it. It's anticipating the 56 00:04:11,800 --> 00:04:15,500 uselessness of asking. It's almost a little bit of a 57 00:04:15,500 --> 00:04:17,800 learned helplessness. Like if you've learned in the 58 00:04:17,800 --> 00:04:22,400 past that you're not listened to that, you're not believed that 59 00:04:22,400 --> 00:04:25,500 others. Don't prioritize or value your 60 00:04:25,500 --> 00:04:29,300 perspectives or request. Then there's a good chance. 61 00:04:29,300 --> 00:04:35,400 You've internalized this belief and this thought was the point 62 00:04:35,500 --> 00:04:40,000 of asking for something, I'm probably not going to get it, 63 00:04:40,200 --> 00:04:42,900 it's not available. So that's a big one. 64 00:04:43,600 --> 00:04:46,900 Another one is this thought of hey I'm good. 65 00:04:46,900 --> 00:04:50,200 I can do it on my own and I've talked about this before. 66 00:04:50,200 --> 00:04:55,400 This is also that voice of I can do it that turns into over 67 00:04:55,400 --> 00:05:01,800 self-reliance. And one of the related thoughts 68 00:05:01,800 --> 00:05:04,000 to this 2. Can also be the thought of just 69 00:05:04,000 --> 00:05:07,100 be happy, just be happy with what you have. 70 00:05:07,100 --> 00:05:13,900 Don't ask for more, it would be ungrateful to ask for something 71 00:05:13,900 --> 00:05:16,000 else or to ask for something more. 72 00:05:16,400 --> 00:05:20,300 So when you believe that there are just there are no resources 73 00:05:20,300 --> 00:05:25,200 available for you or when you don't know what to ask for, 74 00:05:25,400 --> 00:05:27,600 because you've never really thought. 75 00:05:27,800 --> 00:05:29,900 Doubt what could make this easier? 76 00:05:29,900 --> 00:05:32,300 What could make this more effective? 77 00:05:32,300 --> 00:05:35,100 You haven't thought about what resources to even ask for. 78 00:05:35,400 --> 00:05:37,300 So the default thought is I'm good. 79 00:05:38,100 --> 00:05:40,800 I can do it on my own. And when I was teaching at 80 00:05:40,800 --> 00:05:46,000 General Assembly, this was probably the one I saw the most 81 00:05:46,000 --> 00:05:53,200 often I started teaching in 2017, and I saw, most of my 82 00:05:53,200 --> 00:05:57,500 students did, the research, found the clue. 83 00:05:57,700 --> 00:06:02,500 Class signed up for it in their own time paid for it with their 84 00:06:02,500 --> 00:06:05,400 own money and they would take this class. 85 00:06:05,400 --> 00:06:09,300 It was a 90-minute class at the time because they knew they 86 00:06:09,300 --> 00:06:14,900 wanted to get better at managing people or they knew that even 87 00:06:14,900 --> 00:06:16,400 though they didn't manage anyone. 88 00:06:16,400 --> 00:06:21,700 Now that was the next level that they were aiming for and they 89 00:06:21,700 --> 00:06:25,400 wanted to be prepared. They wanted to skill up in 90 00:06:25,400 --> 00:06:30,200 advance so they could Have more confidence in really promoting 91 00:06:30,200 --> 00:06:33,300 themselves and saying, yeah, here's why I'm ready for this 92 00:06:33,300 --> 00:06:37,600 next level job, their mindset was so in the space of 93 00:06:37,600 --> 00:06:41,200 self-reliance, I'll figure this out on my own that they were 94 00:06:41,200 --> 00:06:46,200 using their own time, and their own money and their own, you 95 00:06:46,200 --> 00:06:51,500 know, research to then, come to a workshop that was going to 96 00:06:51,500 --> 00:06:56,800 benefit their company their organization, and it never even 97 00:06:56,800 --> 00:07:00,900 occurred to them. Them that they could ask for the 98 00:07:00,900 --> 00:07:02,900 cost of the workshop to be reimbursed. 99 00:07:02,900 --> 00:07:06,900 And it was so interesting because, you know, I would, I 100 00:07:06,900 --> 00:07:11,100 would tell my students, I'd say if you're here kind of as a 101 00:07:11,108 --> 00:07:15,400 secret because you haven't told anyone because you're afraid of 102 00:07:15,400 --> 00:07:19,500 what people will think, if you can't do it on your own, let me 103 00:07:19,500 --> 00:07:20,700 offer you a different perspective. 104 00:07:20,700 --> 00:07:25,800 Like let me offer you. The perspective that the fact 105 00:07:25,800 --> 00:07:31,500 you're here means that You take initiative that you are stepping 106 00:07:31,500 --> 00:07:36,400 into a leadership role that you are taking personal and full 107 00:07:36,400 --> 00:07:38,500 responsibility for your professional development. 108 00:07:38,508 --> 00:07:43,000 These are good things you want to Signal this to your manager 109 00:07:43,000 --> 00:07:50,300 and tell them that you're doing this and you want to ask what's 110 00:07:50,300 --> 00:07:53,600 available for reimbursing. You for the cost of being here, 111 00:07:53,600 --> 00:07:57,300 we'll talk more about that later but it when I realized that so 112 00:07:57,300 --> 00:08:00,400 many of My students it was just a bit of a blind spot. 113 00:08:00,400 --> 00:08:07,100 They hadn't realized yet that it's okay to ask for a benefit 114 00:08:07,100 --> 00:08:12,000 on behalf of yourself. It just it was just like a room 115 00:08:12,000 --> 00:08:16,200 in the house of their mind that had not yet been illuminated, 116 00:08:16,200 --> 00:08:20,600 they didn't know it was there. Okay, so once you have a sense 117 00:08:20,600 --> 00:08:24,000 of I know that I can ask for something. 118 00:08:24,300 --> 00:08:28,000 The reason why we don't is because of the thought That I 119 00:08:28,000 --> 00:08:31,600 don't know how there's a fear of doing it wrong. 120 00:08:31,600 --> 00:08:35,900 If I asked in the wrong way there's a feeling of desire to 121 00:08:35,900 --> 00:08:39,600 avoid confrontation or discomfort. 122 00:08:40,000 --> 00:08:41,600 You might have a lack of confidence. 123 00:08:41,600 --> 00:08:47,600 You just don't have a mental map for how to make the ask and what 124 00:08:47,600 --> 00:08:50,000 all of these thoughts have in common. 125 00:08:50,100 --> 00:08:51,800 What's the point? I'm good. 126 00:08:51,800 --> 00:08:56,100 I don't, I don't need help or I don't know how to advocate for 127 00:08:56,100 --> 00:09:01,400 myself. When we use those as reasons to 128 00:09:01,400 --> 00:09:06,800 not speak up, we're really doing is we're playing it safe. 129 00:09:08,200 --> 00:09:14,400 And the internal logic of that sounds kind of like, you know, 130 00:09:14,400 --> 00:09:19,400 if I don't ask then they won't say no, I won't feel bad, I 131 00:09:19,400 --> 00:09:23,500 won't feel disappointed, I won't feel awkward, I won't have to 132 00:09:23,500 --> 00:09:28,400 risk the relationship. You know, if I make an ask and 133 00:09:28,400 --> 00:09:32,300 they think that I'm somehow not good enough, because I need the 134 00:09:32,300 --> 00:09:38,100 extra help, like it's just a way of wanting to be safe, but What 135 00:09:38,100 --> 00:09:43,200 ends up happening is that you cut yourself off from growth 136 00:09:43,200 --> 00:09:47,700 because it requires growth to develop the thinking and the 137 00:09:47,700 --> 00:09:53,200 skill of making the ask and it cuts you off from all of these 138 00:09:53,200 --> 00:09:57,300 other resources, that could be available to you. 139 00:09:58,000 --> 00:10:06,100 If only you spoke up on behalf of yourself, The other place I 140 00:10:06,100 --> 00:10:10,000 see this play out at work is that when you are a people 141 00:10:10,000 --> 00:10:13,800 manager and you have someone on your team who is ready for 142 00:10:13,800 --> 00:10:20,000 promotion, you will need to advocate for that person to be 143 00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:23,600 promoted and sometimes it becomes a bit competitive. 144 00:10:23,600 --> 00:10:29,400 Because other people managers may also be advocating for their 145 00:10:29,400 --> 00:10:33,500 person to be promoted into that spot. 146 00:10:33,800 --> 00:10:37,100 So you might have Have 10 people who are up for promotion. 147 00:10:37,100 --> 00:10:42,500 There may only be three spots available or seven spots 148 00:10:42,500 --> 00:10:45,100 available. So every manager will have to 149 00:10:45,100 --> 00:10:49,700 make the case to advocate for the benefit of this person for 150 00:10:49,700 --> 00:10:53,100 why they are the ones who should Advance forward. 151 00:10:53,100 --> 00:10:58,700 Now, the good news about all of this is that it really is the 152 00:10:58,700 --> 00:11:02,800 way that you're thinking that holds you back from advocacy 153 00:11:02,800 --> 00:11:06,700 from advocating. For yourself for advocating for 154 00:11:06,700 --> 00:11:08,700 others. It's really just the way that 155 00:11:08,700 --> 00:11:11,900 you're seeing the landscape and the way that you're thinking 156 00:11:11,900 --> 00:11:16,200 about it. So I want to offer you now, some 157 00:11:16,200 --> 00:11:23,000 other ways to think about this, to make it easier to step up and 158 00:11:23,000 --> 00:11:26,100 use your voice for the benefit of yourself or for somebody 159 00:11:26,100 --> 00:11:27,600 else. Here are some ways to think 160 00:11:27,600 --> 00:11:30,300 about it. Remember that you're not a 161 00:11:30,308 --> 00:11:33,700 little kid asking for something from a grown-up. 162 00:11:35,100 --> 00:11:38,400 What you're actually doing is, you're showing up as a partner, 163 00:11:38,700 --> 00:11:43,000 you're taking initiative to improve and you're coming with a 164 00:11:43,008 --> 00:11:46,800 solution. So, especially in the context of 165 00:11:46,800 --> 00:11:50,900 professional development. When you go to your manager and 166 00:11:50,900 --> 00:11:54,800 say, hey I found a coach, I want to work with they're going to 167 00:11:54,808 --> 00:11:59,700 help me with these things. What you're doing is you're not 168 00:11:59,700 --> 00:12:03,500 a little kid saying hey you know, is it okay if I have this 169 00:12:04,900 --> 00:12:08,000 What you're doing is you're saying, hey, I'm taking control 170 00:12:08,000 --> 00:12:11,100 of my professional development. I found a solution. 171 00:12:11,200 --> 00:12:14,800 How do we make this happen? How can we do this? 172 00:12:14,900 --> 00:12:18,000 What's available? And this is kind of tricky, 173 00:12:18,000 --> 00:12:22,200 because for most of our life, especially, you know, when we 174 00:12:22,200 --> 00:12:25,400 arrive on the planet and where these tiny infants and we grow 175 00:12:25,400 --> 00:12:31,600 into children, and for all of that child, living years, most 176 00:12:31,600 --> 00:12:36,400 of our experience in making a request, Next is from a position 177 00:12:36,400 --> 00:12:39,400 where it feels like we have much less power. 178 00:12:40,300 --> 00:12:44,100 And we're trying to learn like, how do I ask for things in the 179 00:12:44,100 --> 00:12:47,000 way that I am most likely to get them? 180 00:12:47,300 --> 00:12:53,500 So that pattern and that pattern of thinking, you have a lot more 181 00:12:53,500 --> 00:12:57,000 experience with that. So it makes a lot of sense. 182 00:12:57,000 --> 00:13:02,600 If you feel that little kid part of you activate, whenever you 183 00:13:02,600 --> 00:13:05,400 start thinking about, how am I going to Advocate for myself. 184 00:13:05,500 --> 00:13:09,900 So just remember you're not asking in the role of being a 185 00:13:09,900 --> 00:13:13,600 child or a little kid. You're really showing up as a 186 00:13:13,600 --> 00:13:17,300 partner. You're demonstrating initiative 187 00:13:17,500 --> 00:13:21,700 and you're bringing a solution. These are good things. 188 00:13:22,700 --> 00:13:26,200 Here's another thought, I'm taking responsibility for my 189 00:13:26,200 --> 00:13:30,900 professional development. So my manager doesn't have to 190 00:13:31,700 --> 00:13:35,200 think about it from the perspective of your manager. 191 00:13:36,200 --> 00:13:40,800 When you come to a conversation with them and you say, hey I 192 00:13:40,800 --> 00:13:43,800 have identified some professional development that I 193 00:13:43,800 --> 00:13:48,600 want your manager does not have to think about what professional 194 00:13:48,600 --> 00:13:51,500 development does. This person need, they don't 195 00:13:51,500 --> 00:13:56,300 necessarily have the time and they mate might not know, 196 00:13:56,400 --> 00:14:00,000 because part of what drives your professional development is what 197 00:14:00,000 --> 00:14:05,600 you want, where you want to improve, what your particular. 198 00:14:05,800 --> 00:14:11,000 Ambition and desire is. So if you have a desire to do 199 00:14:11,000 --> 00:14:14,300 more presenting, if you want to be a thought leader on stage at 200 00:14:14,300 --> 00:14:17,600 your industry events. If you want to step into higher 201 00:14:17,600 --> 00:14:22,400 levels of mentoring and Leadership, you might want for 202 00:14:22,400 --> 00:14:25,900 example to improve your public speaking skills. 203 00:14:25,900 --> 00:14:30,100 Your manager may not understand that that's something that you 204 00:14:30,100 --> 00:14:33,000 want, or that? That's something you feel 205 00:14:33,000 --> 00:14:37,300 insecure about you. Ask for that. 206 00:14:37,700 --> 00:14:40,300 You can initiate that conversation when you're 207 00:14:40,300 --> 00:14:43,800 thinking about your professional development, that means that 208 00:14:43,800 --> 00:14:48,300 your manager does not have to do all of that work to figure out 209 00:14:48,300 --> 00:14:52,200 what is the next step for you. They probably don't know. 210 00:14:52,200 --> 00:14:55,300 They might not have the time, I know that when I was a people 211 00:14:55,300 --> 00:14:58,600 manager I had over a dozen people on my team. 212 00:14:58,700 --> 00:15:00,800 I did not know what they all wanted. 213 00:15:01,200 --> 00:15:04,300 So, if someone came to me and said, hey, there's a conference, 214 00:15:04,300 --> 00:15:06,000 I want to go to there's a A workshop. 215 00:15:06,000 --> 00:15:11,100 I want to take that was a much easier conversation to have been 216 00:15:11,100 --> 00:15:13,500 if I could support them, I was happy to do. 217 00:15:13,500 --> 00:15:18,100 So I would add especially in a pandemic time. 218 00:15:18,100 --> 00:15:24,200 A lot of organizations are understanding that people want 219 00:15:24,200 --> 00:15:29,400 and need more support in professional development and how 220 00:15:29,400 --> 00:15:34,900 to handle change and how to manage remote teams simply and 221 00:15:34,900 --> 00:15:39,200 how You know how to confront and deal with all of the challenges 222 00:15:39,200 --> 00:15:44,000 that we're facing as people and if it makes you happy and keeps 223 00:15:44,000 --> 00:15:49,700 you effective, then that is a great deal for them and if you 224 00:15:49,700 --> 00:15:53,800 initiate that conversation even better, okay. 225 00:15:53,800 --> 00:15:57,900 Here's another thought that I want to offer you about how to 226 00:15:58,600 --> 00:16:01,400 get yourself to a place where you're comfortable advocating 227 00:16:01,400 --> 00:16:04,700 for yourself. Think of it like this, here's 228 00:16:04,700 --> 00:16:06,400 why. This is a great Good idea. 229 00:16:06,700 --> 00:16:09,700 And I thought through how this will benefit, the team, the 230 00:16:09,708 --> 00:16:13,000 organization, how it will benefit the client when you 231 00:16:13,000 --> 00:16:16,200 think through what are the benefits to other people. 232 00:16:16,400 --> 00:16:22,000 Not just you, then you tap into the part of your brain, that is 233 00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:24,400 more comfortable advocating for others. 234 00:16:24,700 --> 00:16:26,700 Because you realize, I'm not doing this. 235 00:16:26,700 --> 00:16:32,500 Just for me when I get better at this skill, when I develop in 236 00:16:32,500 --> 00:16:36,300 this way, this will be beneficial to the The people I 237 00:16:36,300 --> 00:16:39,700 work with to the clients. We serve to the goals of the 238 00:16:39,700 --> 00:16:43,600 organization. I'm thinking of a client. 239 00:16:43,800 --> 00:16:48,300 I recently spoke with, and she took my workshop at general 240 00:16:48,300 --> 00:16:53,500 assembly in 2017 or 2018. At the time, she was a new 241 00:16:53,500 --> 00:16:57,800 manager in a new organization. And she just wanted to get 242 00:16:58,000 --> 00:17:01,100 established in the fundamentals and really prepare herself for 243 00:17:01,100 --> 00:17:05,900 this new, this new role. During the workshop, she took 244 00:17:05,900 --> 00:17:09,200 photos of the Whiteboard work that we did. 245 00:17:09,300 --> 00:17:12,400 I do a lot of back in the day when we were doing all these 246 00:17:12,400 --> 00:17:16,900 workshops in person, we would do a lot of ideation and a lot of 247 00:17:16,900 --> 00:17:19,800 our work on the whiteboard in the room. 248 00:17:19,900 --> 00:17:21,800 And she took photos of those notes. 249 00:17:22,599 --> 00:17:26,700 And I talked to her, this is now four or five years later, she is 250 00:17:26,700 --> 00:17:33,500 now a VP in her organization. And she told me that she still 251 00:17:33,600 --> 00:17:38,500 All goes back from time to time and references those notes. 252 00:17:39,600 --> 00:17:43,200 And it blew my mind and I thought the professional 253 00:17:43,200 --> 00:17:49,200 development that she did four or five years ago has continued to 254 00:17:49,200 --> 00:17:54,200 benefit her company and her team and the clients they serve all 255 00:17:54,200 --> 00:18:00,400 of this time because she is made such good use of that resource. 256 00:18:01,600 --> 00:18:05,400 So when you think about, why am I going to advocate for myself? 257 00:18:05,800 --> 00:18:10,900 It's because it's good, not just for you, but the benefit extends 258 00:18:11,400 --> 00:18:16,000 to your manager, to your team, to the organization as a whole 259 00:18:16,000 --> 00:18:19,200 to the clients that you serve to the goals and objectives. 260 00:18:20,400 --> 00:18:23,200 Think about it in those terms as well. 261 00:18:23,300 --> 00:18:25,600 Makes the conversation a lot easier. 262 00:18:27,500 --> 00:18:31,400 One more idea, there may already be a budget allocated for 263 00:18:31,400 --> 00:18:37,400 professional development, and if it's not used, that's a problem. 264 00:18:37,900 --> 00:18:42,100 When budget is allocated, for a particular use, it needs to be 265 00:18:42,100 --> 00:18:46,100 used for that use. If you come to your manager, or 266 00:18:46,100 --> 00:18:50,900 if you come to your people operations partner, Or like 267 00:18:50,900 --> 00:18:54,600 however it's called in your organization and you say hey 268 00:18:54,600 --> 00:18:56,500 what is our professional development budget? 269 00:18:56,500 --> 00:19:00,800 Look like right now I have found a coach I want to work with, I 270 00:19:00,808 --> 00:19:03,600 have found a workshop. I want to take I have found a 271 00:19:03,600 --> 00:19:05,300 course. I would like to take. 272 00:19:05,700 --> 00:19:10,200 Do we have budget for that? You might be helping this person 273 00:19:10,200 --> 00:19:13,700 out. They might be thrilled that you 274 00:19:13,700 --> 00:19:19,900 have brought them the perfect way to direct that budget. 275 00:19:20,500 --> 00:19:23,600 You don't know that they might just be thrilled that you're 276 00:19:23,600 --> 00:19:27,700 coming to them with this asked to think about it in those terms 277 00:19:27,700 --> 00:19:30,700 as well. Okay, we talked about this a 278 00:19:30,700 --> 00:19:33,500 little bit, but I'm going to say it in a slightly different way. 279 00:19:33,800 --> 00:19:38,900 So when you develop your skills and your mindset, when you 280 00:19:38,900 --> 00:19:43,800 become better because you've been taking time for your own 281 00:19:43,800 --> 00:19:48,900 professional development, The benefit extends, not just to you 282 00:19:48,900 --> 00:19:51,300 to your manager, your team, your organization. 283 00:19:51,400 --> 00:19:54,700 Think about it this way, your organization pays you a certain 284 00:19:54,700 --> 00:19:58,500 amount of money to do the work that you do when you get more 285 00:19:58,500 --> 00:20:02,700 skilled, when you level up your thinking and become more 286 00:20:02,700 --> 00:20:07,200 effective, they're paying you the same salary but they're 287 00:20:07,200 --> 00:20:15,700 getting a more skilled. You like, you are becoming a 288 00:20:15,700 --> 00:20:21,400 more or effective. More highly skilled person for 289 00:20:21,400 --> 00:20:23,300 the same amount of money that they're paying you. 290 00:20:23,700 --> 00:20:28,200 So, it plays out in their favor when you think of it in those 291 00:20:28,200 --> 00:20:31,200 terms as well. And then, the last thought I 292 00:20:31,208 --> 00:20:38,100 want to offer is the point of growing into leadership is not 293 00:20:38,100 --> 00:20:42,900 about being perfect. It's about self-awareness and 294 00:20:42,900 --> 00:20:46,600 continuous growth. So this is for you. 295 00:20:46,600 --> 00:20:51,500 If you are a perfectionist, if you feel guarded about how you 296 00:20:51,500 --> 00:20:58,100 are perceived, and your thought is, if I asked for this, it will 297 00:20:58,100 --> 00:21:00,200 mean. I am not good enough. 298 00:21:00,800 --> 00:21:03,200 It will mean, there is something wrong with me. 299 00:21:03,800 --> 00:21:10,100 That is an incorrect thought that is not a helpful thought 300 00:21:10,100 --> 00:21:14,700 and I That I argue that is that is not the perspective that you 301 00:21:14,700 --> 00:21:17,900 want to take on. You can take off that 302 00:21:17,900 --> 00:21:21,600 perspective like you're taking off a coat and instead put on 303 00:21:21,600 --> 00:21:25,900 this perspective, which is as you grow in your career and in 304 00:21:25,900 --> 00:21:30,400 your responsibility, it is all about the self. 305 00:21:30,400 --> 00:21:33,400 Awareness of, where do you need to grow? 306 00:21:33,400 --> 00:21:39,000 And what skills do you need now, remembering to that your 307 00:21:39,000 --> 00:21:45,200 awareness of the skills. You need may change as the stage 308 00:21:45,200 --> 00:21:49,900 of your company changes as the situation and circumstances. 309 00:21:49,900 --> 00:21:53,400 Change. For example, I had a student who 310 00:21:53,400 --> 00:21:57,400 was working in a high-growth startup, and she was just 311 00:21:57,400 --> 00:22:00,800 stepping into a role as a people manager because the company was 312 00:22:00,800 --> 00:22:04,200 growing. They were hiring a lot of people 313 00:22:04,500 --> 00:22:08,400 and now she had a team of three, and they were anticipating 314 00:22:08,400 --> 00:22:11,900 hiring four or five more. In the course of the year. 315 00:22:12,500 --> 00:22:15,900 She realized, hey I've never managed people before. 316 00:22:16,300 --> 00:22:19,400 This is something I want to learn to get good at and if I 317 00:22:19,400 --> 00:22:24,000 learn how to get good at it, now when I have three people that 318 00:22:24,000 --> 00:22:29,000 will set me up to be better and more effective as we're bringing 319 00:22:29,000 --> 00:22:31,200 more and more people on this year. 320 00:22:31,600 --> 00:22:34,700 But up until this point in her career, she didn't need that 321 00:22:34,700 --> 00:22:41,400 skill, set, like she did now. So when you think about About 322 00:22:41,400 --> 00:22:46,500 advocating for yourself around professional development and 323 00:22:46,500 --> 00:22:50,100 budget, or resources for that. Remember that? 324 00:22:50,100 --> 00:22:54,500 This is a positive signal. That's pointing to your 325 00:22:54,800 --> 00:22:59,000 self-awareness, you're taking responsibility and the 326 00:22:59,000 --> 00:23:03,100 continuous growth of yourself within the organization. 327 00:23:03,600 --> 00:23:07,900 So once you get into a mindset where you start to think, oh 328 00:23:07,900 --> 00:23:12,100 yeah I can see why it makes a lot of Sense to advocate for 329 00:23:12,100 --> 00:23:17,000 myself and I want to there's now something I do want to ask for 330 00:23:17,200 --> 00:23:21,800 then I want us to think a little bit about how you're going to 331 00:23:21,800 --> 00:23:25,600 communicate this. And there are really just three 332 00:23:25,600 --> 00:23:29,900 things to think about. Number one, make it easy for 333 00:23:29,900 --> 00:23:34,000 them to say yes. And that means do the research 334 00:23:34,000 --> 00:23:37,400 ahead of time and do the thinking about why this is going 335 00:23:37,400 --> 00:23:41,300 to be beneficial also think through what the Questions or 336 00:23:41,300 --> 00:23:45,800 concerns are that your boss or that the person you're asking 337 00:23:46,000 --> 00:23:50,200 the approval of what are the questions that they might have? 338 00:23:50,300 --> 00:23:52,800 So, if it's your manager, they might be concerned about. 339 00:23:52,900 --> 00:23:54,800 Well, how much time will this take? 340 00:23:55,600 --> 00:23:58,800 Will you still be able to handle your current workload? 341 00:23:59,100 --> 00:24:01,600 Or will it be too much? Because I don't want you to burn 342 00:24:01,600 --> 00:24:04,800 out or to get overwhelmed so they might have questions about 343 00:24:04,800 --> 00:24:07,000 time. They might have questions about 344 00:24:07,000 --> 00:24:09,300 the money. If this is a person who is in 345 00:24:09,300 --> 00:24:12,700 charge of budget, who In charge of finances, they're going to 346 00:24:12,700 --> 00:24:16,700 want to know how much is this going to cost and is it worth 347 00:24:16,700 --> 00:24:18,500 it? This is where it's really 348 00:24:18,500 --> 00:24:21,200 helpful to have thought through and explain. 349 00:24:21,600 --> 00:24:24,200 This is what it costs. And yeah, it's definitely worth 350 00:24:24,200 --> 00:24:26,700 it in. Here's why or here's why? 351 00:24:26,700 --> 00:24:31,300 Out of all of the other options. This is the most cost-effective 352 00:24:31,300 --> 00:24:35,900 one and being able to explain that clearly or how when I get 353 00:24:35,900 --> 00:24:39,900 better at this, this will make it a lot more likely. 354 00:24:40,100 --> 00:24:43,300 That is soon as people get on-boarded, I can help get them 355 00:24:43,300 --> 00:24:48,400 up to speed quickly which saves US money and get them active and 356 00:24:48,400 --> 00:24:51,500 contributing in a much faster way. 357 00:24:52,200 --> 00:24:55,700 So thinking through the questions and concerns they have 358 00:24:56,000 --> 00:25:01,600 make it easy for them to say yes to the second thing you can 359 00:25:01,600 --> 00:25:03,200 think about around communicating. 360 00:25:03,200 --> 00:25:07,100 This is make it part of your professional development plan. 361 00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:12,700 So, whenever your review cycle is in the course of Year include 362 00:25:12,700 --> 00:25:16,800 your professional development as part of that conversation. 363 00:25:16,800 --> 00:25:20,700 You can also do this seasonally anytime we move through a 364 00:25:20,708 --> 00:25:25,000 quarter or through a season, you can re-evaluate. 365 00:25:25,100 --> 00:25:28,400 What are the skills? I'm noticing, I really want to 366 00:25:28,400 --> 00:25:30,900 develop. What do I want to level up in? 367 00:25:31,200 --> 00:25:34,100 Where do I need to improve again? 368 00:25:34,100 --> 00:25:37,100 Not because you're being hard on yourself but because you're 369 00:25:37,100 --> 00:25:38,400 realizing. Okay. 370 00:25:38,400 --> 00:25:40,500 I have some new awareness. I want to get better. 371 00:25:40,600 --> 00:25:43,900 At having difficult conversations, I'm going to find 372 00:25:43,900 --> 00:25:46,500 a way to get better at that because I know that will help 373 00:25:46,500 --> 00:25:48,900 me. Oh, I need to get better at 374 00:25:48,900 --> 00:25:53,200 having confidence when I'm presenting to high level folks 375 00:25:53,200 --> 00:25:57,300 on the team, right? Like thinking through what is it 376 00:25:57,300 --> 00:26:00,100 that you want to develop and start making that? 377 00:26:00,100 --> 00:26:02,000 A regular part of your conversation? 378 00:26:02,300 --> 00:26:04,300 It signals your desire for growth. 379 00:26:04,600 --> 00:26:07,700 It demonstrates self-awareness, and Leadership. 380 00:26:07,700 --> 00:26:11,100 It shows that you're thinking strategically Are all good 381 00:26:11,100 --> 00:26:13,500 things. And the third way you can think 382 00:26:13,500 --> 00:26:17,700 about this, is to choose an area of development for yourself at 383 00:26:17,700 --> 00:26:21,800 each stage. So if you think about what stage 384 00:26:21,800 --> 00:26:26,100 you're at, in your career, you can start thinking in terms of 385 00:26:26,100 --> 00:26:31,500 what is the area of development that you want to improve. 386 00:26:31,600 --> 00:26:34,600 It might be technical, it might be relational. 387 00:26:34,900 --> 00:26:37,400 That might be around communication. 388 00:26:37,800 --> 00:26:44,100 But thinking in those terms, Keeps that the the relevance of 389 00:26:44,100 --> 00:26:49,800 what you want and why? And I will tell you also that 390 00:26:49,800 --> 00:26:52,900 the students that I've coached on this who have successfully 391 00:26:52,900 --> 00:26:56,300 had their companies pay for their either pay for their 392 00:26:56,300 --> 00:26:59,700 coaching with me or paid for the workshop. 393 00:26:59,700 --> 00:27:05,700 They took those years ago, this was true of clients and students 394 00:27:05,900 --> 00:27:10,400 who worked in small companies that did not yet have formal. 395 00:27:10,600 --> 00:27:13,800 Policies around professional development budget. 396 00:27:14,100 --> 00:27:19,200 And also, for companies that did have allocated learning stipends 397 00:27:19,200 --> 00:27:21,600 for the year. So I'm saying this, because if 398 00:27:21,600 --> 00:27:24,900 you're thinking to yourself, well that must be nice for big 399 00:27:24,900 --> 00:27:28,900 companies with big budgets, but I work for a small company and 400 00:27:28,900 --> 00:27:32,200 we don't even have an HR person. Alright, you might be in a 401 00:27:32,200 --> 00:27:37,000 really early stage organization and what is so cool is that when 402 00:27:37,000 --> 00:27:41,800 you are the person who initiates this conversation That is also 403 00:27:41,800 --> 00:27:44,200 not good for you. That is good for your whole 404 00:27:44,200 --> 00:27:48,600 company with one of my students, she said yeah, I work for this. 405 00:27:48,600 --> 00:27:52,900 It's, you know, high-growth startup and we don't even have a 406 00:27:52,900 --> 00:27:57,600 policy on professional development and I said, well, it 407 00:27:57,600 --> 00:27:59,600 sounds like you're the one who's going to initiate that 408 00:27:59,600 --> 00:28:03,700 conversation and she thought, oh, I guess I am. 409 00:28:03,900 --> 00:28:06,700 And what's amazing is that she did she brought this up to the 410 00:28:06,700 --> 00:28:09,400 CEO. She said, okay, look, we're now 411 00:28:09,400 --> 00:28:12,400 at the stage of growth I'm seeing this opportunity. 412 00:28:12,500 --> 00:28:16,300 Here's how I propose. We go about addressing it and 413 00:28:16,300 --> 00:28:23,400 that conversation not only did the CEO agree to pay for the 414 00:28:23,400 --> 00:28:28,000 cost of this program that she wanted to do but it also opened 415 00:28:28,000 --> 00:28:35,600 the conversation to its time. Now in our company's growth to 416 00:28:35,600 --> 00:28:39,600 think about what is our policy on professional development. 417 00:28:39,800 --> 00:28:43,800 And as a Result. They ended up deciding to Grant 418 00:28:43,800 --> 00:28:48,500 a learning stipend of $1000 to every employee. 419 00:28:49,400 --> 00:28:54,100 So in that case, her advocating for herself, turned into a 420 00:28:54,100 --> 00:29:00,300 benefit that ended up affecting everyone in the company and that 421 00:29:00,300 --> 00:29:04,700 also initiated a conversation of higher-level thinking around. 422 00:29:04,700 --> 00:29:07,400 We're at the stage now. Arts time for us to put 423 00:29:07,400 --> 00:29:12,600 something like this into place. So be not discouraged if you 424 00:29:12,600 --> 00:29:16,200 think it's doesn't apply to you, I don't care what organization 425 00:29:16,200 --> 00:29:20,200 you're in but this is a conversation that you can bring 426 00:29:20,300 --> 00:29:24,600 and you can initiate positive outcomes in ways you might not 427 00:29:24,600 --> 00:29:30,300 even realize. So here's a structure for what 428 00:29:30,300 --> 00:29:34,500 it might sound like to ask. I'll read it through once and 429 00:29:34,500 --> 00:29:39,000 then I'll point out the three key elements within this 430 00:29:39,000 --> 00:29:41,800 framework. So the conversation might sound 431 00:29:41,800 --> 00:29:46,100 like this, I found a coach, I want to work on with my 432 00:29:46,100 --> 00:29:48,400 leadership and people management skills. 433 00:29:48,900 --> 00:29:53,300 I think it will help me to give more specific and timely 434 00:29:53,300 --> 00:29:57,000 feedback and lead the team through the stage of growth, 435 00:29:57,400 --> 00:30:01,000 especially given the hiring that we're anticipating, and all of 436 00:30:01,000 --> 00:30:03,000 the change that's happening with the team. 437 00:30:03,700 --> 00:30:05,600 What's a professional budget development? 438 00:30:05,600 --> 00:30:08,000 Look like right. Now what it covers summer, all 439 00:30:08,000 --> 00:30:11,200 of the cost? So here's what was included in 440 00:30:11,200 --> 00:30:13,700 that. I found a coach. 441 00:30:13,800 --> 00:30:18,300 I want to work with work with on this specific skill. 442 00:30:18,600 --> 00:30:23,400 So identify the skill. The thing it is that you want to 443 00:30:23,400 --> 00:30:27,400 get better at, whether its leadership, skills, speaking 444 00:30:27,400 --> 00:30:31,700 skills, communication skills, delegation skills. 445 00:30:32,300 --> 00:30:36,000 I found someone or I found a resource that I want to work 446 00:30:36,000 --> 00:30:40,300 with on this skill. I think it will help me get this 447 00:30:40,300 --> 00:30:42,300 result. What is that? 448 00:30:42,500 --> 00:30:48,200 Outcome that you want to gain from this professional 449 00:30:48,200 --> 00:30:53,800 development especially given the situational relevance. 450 00:30:54,000 --> 00:31:01,400 If you can connect your request with situational relevance, in 451 00:31:01,400 --> 00:31:07,500 other words, why? Now, how come now is why you're 452 00:31:07,500 --> 00:31:09,500 looking for this? How does this help the 453 00:31:09,500 --> 00:31:12,300 organization? Now, how does this help? 454 00:31:12,400 --> 00:31:16,600 Up, you be more effective. Now, identify the situational 455 00:31:16,600 --> 00:31:22,000 relevance and when you pray, like come to the conversation 456 00:31:22,000 --> 00:31:26,900 with that, this is the skill, I want, this is the result or the 457 00:31:26,900 --> 00:31:30,000 outcome, it will get me. This is the situational 458 00:31:30,000 --> 00:31:34,000 relevance for y. Now, this is important. 459 00:31:34,600 --> 00:31:41,300 That makes it a lot easier for your manager to say, yes, They 460 00:31:41,300 --> 00:31:44,500 also want you to succeed, they want your organization to 461 00:31:44,500 --> 00:31:47,000 succeed. They want things to happen in a 462 00:31:47,000 --> 00:31:51,100 more effective and easy way. So when you lead with that and 463 00:31:51,100 --> 00:31:54,300 then you ask what is our professional development budget? 464 00:31:54,300 --> 00:31:59,500 Look like and then asking like what our budget cover some or 465 00:31:59,500 --> 00:32:04,600 all of the cost because remember you can make the ask and even if 466 00:32:04,600 --> 00:32:09,000 they say, well, we can't cover all of that, but we can cover 467 00:32:09,300 --> 00:32:14,600 half of that, or we can Cover some of that that is still a 468 00:32:14,600 --> 00:32:17,500 win. So, the final thoughts on this 469 00:32:17,500 --> 00:32:20,800 topic, I want to share with you our, as you're thinking about 470 00:32:20,800 --> 00:32:24,800 advocacy, and how to use your voice to speak up on behalf of 471 00:32:24,800 --> 00:32:29,800 yourself and others, let it be easy. 472 00:32:30,600 --> 00:32:32,800 Identify? What is the thought that's 473 00:32:32,800 --> 00:32:37,900 holding you back and see if you can find an alternative thought 474 00:32:37,900 --> 00:32:42,700 that you can connect with, that makes it Easier for you to move 475 00:32:42,700 --> 00:32:44,700 forward. Remember that? 476 00:32:44,700 --> 00:32:49,800 This is a skill advocacy. Speaking up making a request, 477 00:32:49,900 --> 00:32:55,000 this is a skill and that means that you will improve with 478 00:32:55,000 --> 00:32:57,900 practice. You will get more comfortable, 479 00:32:57,900 --> 00:33:00,300 and confident, and this is a good thing. 480 00:33:00,300 --> 00:33:02,400 So it's okay, if it feels awkward at first. 481 00:33:03,900 --> 00:33:08,300 It's worth it to learn the skill of advocacy because the lifetime 482 00:33:08,300 --> 00:33:14,600 value of advocating for yourself and others is beyond measure. 483 00:33:15,500 --> 00:33:22,100 And when you are willing to speak up for the benefit of 484 00:33:22,100 --> 00:33:26,200 yourself and for others, you become a role model. 485 00:33:27,100 --> 00:33:34,200 And that's what leaders do, lead the way when you speak up, For 486 00:33:34,200 --> 00:33:39,700 yourself and others and others. See you do this, you become a 487 00:33:39,700 --> 00:33:43,300 role model who inspires them to do this as well. 488 00:33:43,300 --> 00:33:47,700 So those are the thoughts I wanted to share with you today. 489 00:33:47,700 --> 00:33:55,700 Do find something that you want to advocate for on behalf of 490 00:33:55,700 --> 00:33:59,100 yourself or somebody else especially professional 491 00:33:59,100 --> 00:34:02,500 development. There's never been a better time 492 00:34:02,500 --> 00:34:06,100 and there is no I've never been a greater need. 493 00:34:06,300 --> 00:34:08,800 You don't have to do this alone. All right. 494 00:34:08,800 --> 00:34:12,300 That's what I have for you. I will talk to you again next 495 00:34:12,300 --> 00:34:19,900 time when you're more effective at work, you're happier in your 496 00:34:19,900 --> 00:34:23,699 life and when you're happier in your life you're more effective 497 00:34:23,699 --> 00:34:26,900 at work. I can help go to my website. 498 00:34:26,900 --> 00:34:32,000 Kim nickel.com and sign up for a coaching consult, it can get 499 00:34:32,000 --> 00:34:32,500 better.