Quick Tool: Assess Your Intellectual Value in 4 Easy Steps

'Self-reflection' is one of the most underrated skills in the world of human potential.

Becoming more consciously aware of your areas for growth means you gain choice over how things turn out in your life and career. Without self-awareness, things continue as they have always done: situations that you don’t especially like - such as being overlooked, or feeling undervalued - just repeat. Nothing changes; nothing new to celebrate.

Knowing your value is vital to success and fulfilment in your career because if you don’t know it, how can you expect anyone else to?

I’m sure at least once in your lifetime you’ve completed a ‘SWOT Analysis’. Perhaps it was with your team. Maybe you were assessing a competitor or their product.

Think about the professional /technical knowledge and skills you have that you could leverage. Think of what a 4-quadrant SWOT analysis looks like if it was applied to you. Now let’s assess the intellectual value you offer!

Here’s how to do it:

1.     Divide a page into 4 equal squares and label each square as follows below: Have, Lacking, Plug The Gaps, One Action. Leave space beneath each header for your brainstorm:

HAVE LACKING

PLUG THE GAPS ONE ACTION

2.      Top left quadrant: List all of the skills and expertise you already HAVE that have got you to where you are today.

• List the qualifications you have; the trainings you have undertaken; the expert knowledge you have (that might also differentiate you from other people).
• How else do you add value? Do you have a great retention record or an ability to identify fresh talent? Do you make it a priority to develop others? Anything you can think of that you already have in your toolbox is good to go in this quadrant.

3.      Top right quadrant: List all the areas in your current job - or a job you’re aspiring to attain - where your knowledge or skills are currently LACKING.

• What’s missing that you need? Is there a training you should take? Is there further learning or a new experience that you need to make happen? What skills must you acquire?
• Don’t just think here about vocational skills and qualifications. Become more creative! Assess your Emotional Intelligence skills – are you engaging and influencing others or are you divisive? What is missing from your EI arsenal? How about your leadership skills; presenting skills; ability to build a network?

4.      Bottom left quadrant: Make a list of all the ways in which you could PLUG THE GAPS from your top right quadrant. In other words, how could you start to fix the gaps in your knowledge, skills or experience?

• Do you need to get an experienced mentor on your 'team'? Or a career sponsor to enable more of the career opportunities you're looking for?
• Do you need some specific training? Or some fresh experiences? Are there courses you could enrol in or do you need to take on a new role for the next 12 months? Could you work in a different silo within your company? There are loads of options here, so reflect deeply and get creative!

5.      Bottom right quadrant: Now because we are all about taking forwards-action, right now pick a single action step from your ‘Plug The Gaps’ brainstorm.

• Decide on the one action you will take TODAY and use the space in this final quadrant to write it down. Something like this: “Within this next hour I am going to take step X to plug knowledge/ skill gap Y.”

Keep editing this tool every few months; you’ll find it will become invaluable for a variety of reasons. The next time you are considering a potential career move or salary negotiation, get this brainstorm out and review it. Use this tool to make your CV or Linkedin profile even more impressive.

Continually working on yourself is, in itself, a skill and reflective activities like this will inevitably help you promote your value and make much better decisions for your career.

Rebecca Allen is an Executive Coach and Trainer and is hosting "The BEST YOU Breakthrough", a free 1-day course this Saturday 22 February 2020 in Sydney. Check it out and reserve your seat!

https://illuminategrowth.com.au/free-courses