Are you hindering your own career success?

I came across an interesting article in today's Globe & Mail written by Roy Osing. In the article, he spoke about what might be hindering you from reaching your career goals and why some people are more successful than others.

While he admits his conclusions were not based on science but rather his years of experience in industry, I agree wholeheartedly with them.

First and foremost on his list was not having enough contacts. I've always advocated for continuously building your network and growing your contacts. Like plants and trees, your contacts need to be nurtured to thrive. In terms of your contacts, it's not the 'go out to a networking event, collect business cards, add them to LinkedIn and forget about them' strategy. Rather, it's building meaningful contacts, staying in touch with people, offering and giving advice. At the end of the day it's not how many contacts you have in your network but rather how many are meaningful and 'bear fruit' for you -- whether that's through an exchange of knowledge or ideas, acting as sounding boards for each other or meaning knowing they are there for you (and you for them).

The second point he mentioned was relying too much on education. So many roles today focus on what education you have (and which schools in particular you attended and whether or not you graduated in the top of your class while participating in major-specific clubs plus sports plus running marathons plus playing concert-level piano, etc. etc.). I interview so many young people looking for investment roles who graduated top of their classes from the top schools and did all of the above yet sound like robots in the interviews. They are so scripted with canned responses that I could tell you how they will answer a question before it is asked. Throw them a curve ball and they crumble. Education is great -- don't get me wrong. But it's only one factor to consider. Sometimes you have enough education and need to continue to learn outside the classroom.

The next point Mr. Osing makes is the emphasis on copying others. Think differently and try something new or a new way of looking at something or solving a problem. Sure you might fail or it might not work initially as well as the 'tried and true method' but we all learn from our mistakes. Stand out from the crowd and be brave enough to be different.

Mentorship is another key component he cites in why some people are more successful than others. Don't look for the person with the highest profile or the most senior person you can find when looking for a mentor. Mentors comes in all shapes and sizes. Look for someone you admire. Look for someone who has been successful and who shares your ideals and your passion and who can help you navigate your way through your career.

Continued learning. Do you think you've learned all you can (see the fourth paragraph above)? Maybe you've been in school a long time and have a couple of designations under your belt so think you 'know it all.' News flash. You do not. Learning is a lifelong pursuit and you should strive to be learning something new all the time. And learning can come from the most unlikely places. Don't just look upwards within an organization to learn...look to your peers and those junior to you. Look inside and outside the company to broaden your horizons. And it doesn't hurt to learn something completely unrelated to your role. Being well-rounded is a great competency to have.

The last barrier Mr. Osing talked about was relying on what worked yesterday. Honestly, if you are paying attention to the first five points, you will realize that trying something new, looking at situations in a different way and 'thinking outside the box' (I hate that expression) will force you and others to see things differently. Just because something worked a certain way in the past doesn't mean that it is the only way or the right way for today. After all, rotary phones worked well....until something new made them obsolete!