Breaking Free: How Old Academic Habits Hold Us Back at Work

Before entering the workforce, we spend much of our lives at school. In these environments, we are conditioned to operate in specific ways and, in return, we become accustomed to specific rewards. So, when we leave school and enter the workplace, we have certain expectations about how our behaviors will serve us in our professional settings. As high achievers, it’s easy to assume that our academic habits will naturally propel us to professional success.

Unfortunately, while school may offer other important lessons, it woefully underprepares us for the workplace. Here are three ways that our experiences at school hold us back:

1.???? Perfection is the standard.

You may or may not have been a 4.0 student but you always knew that was the standard against which you were measured. If you worked hard enough, knew the material and had the right supports in place, you could get a perfect score. If you didn’t, your grade was calculated based on how far you deviated from perfect. You can see how perfectionism is not only encouraged but highly rewarded in these settings.

The challenge with this model is that it doesn’t translate to the workplace. Too many high achievers enter the workforce assuming that, if they just keep their heads down and do A-level work, they will be recognized and rewarded accordingly. But, as we tend to find out the hard way, the game has changed.

There is no such thing as perfection in the workplace. Work doesn’t come packaged in handy learning modules that you can study and memorize. New information is generated constantly and we need to be able to integrate that new information on the fly. Whereas, in the past, we might have pulled an all-nighter to prepare for an important exam, “cramming” for a meeting will not prevent you from being asked a question you’re not prepared for.

To adjust our expectations, we need to recognize that doing great work does not mean knowing everything. It means showing curiosity when you don’t have the answers, prioritizing being of service over being an expert and leveraging your resources when something falls outside your area of expertise.

2.???? Conformity is the norm.

When you’re a student, your job is not just to learn the material, it’s also to learn how to regurgitate that material back to your teacher. You are typically given precise instructions for how to write an essay, solve a math problem or approach a science experiment. There is limited opportunity for creativity and innovation. If you do decide to customize your work, you’ll oftentimes be penalized for not adhering to the established structure. (Have you ever lost points for solving a math problem your way, even if you ultimately got the right answer?)

While this system might have meaningful value when we’re learning something for the first time, this is not how the workplace is designed. Unless you work in an environment that discourages challenging the status quo (and I’m not discounting that possibility), your best opportunity to contribute comes from bringing your unique perspective and approach to the problems you’re trying to solve, not waiting for your manager to prescribe the solution. Innovation is the lifeblood of most businesses and that doesn’t happen when our work is simply a carbon copy of those around us.

For those of us who have been taught to respect the hierarchy, are obedient by nature or are prone to people pleasing, thinking outside the box can be challenging. Trust that, while you won’t have all the answers, you are closest to your own work. If you have thoughts on how to improve the quality of your work, share them with your manager. Your idea might be the key to unlocking greater results or efficiencies.

3.???? External feedback is abundant.

In school, everything you do is graded. At any given time, you know exactly where you stand. ?You don’t have to guess how you’re performing or awkwardly seek feedback from people who are uncomfortable or inexperienced at sharing it.?

Because all of our school activity is graded, it’s easy to become addicted to external validation. As a high achiever, I couldn’t wait to get my report cards so that I could see my grades. This system conditions us to expect and rely on feedback rather than build an internal sense of confidence in our own performance.

In the workplace, many professionals are lucky if they get feedback a couple of times a year at performance review time. And the feedback, if provided, typically doesn’t offer the clarity and direction provided by teachers. This can leave many of us feeling uncertain or doubtful about our performance.

Most of my clients receive insufficient or unproductive feedback. Their managers offer vague generalities, such as, “You’re doing great,” or, “You need to work on your leadership presence.” There is nothing clear or actionable in either of those statements. Rather than wait for unsolicited feedback, share your goals with your manager and ask them for guidance on your performance in specific areas. For example, instead of asking broadly, “How am I doing?,” ask, “What advice do you have to help me best communicate this message in our upcoming meeting?”

Even if you’ve been out of school for years, there are likely ways in which you haven’t made the mental or behavioral shift from academia to the workplace. Old habits die hard, particularly if you haven’t stopped to reflect on how they might be holding you back. Consider where you might be trapped in an old paradigm and use these insights to make important updates.

Kim Meninger is a leadership coach, consultant and TEDx speaker who is on a mission to make it easier to be human at work. She recognizes that the greatest challenges we face in the workplace are not related to our competence but to our confidence levels. She strives to reveal the messy human side of the workplace and provide actionable strategies to help us more confidently navigate our work environments. Because when we are more confident, we are more innovative, collaborative and inclusive -- and that's better for everyone!