As you assume higher levels of leadership, there is always a lot to learn and not enough time to figure everything out perfectly. You rarely ask for the help you need. Instead you spend a lot of time trying to figure out what you should be doing, how you should be achieving results and hope you get it right the first time.
There is an inherent assumption that if you are in the position, you should possess all the necessary skills. Many of the leaders with whom I have worked say they do not ask for help because they do not want their manager to think they are incompetent. I have coached many senior executives who spent a lot of time worrying about what their boss would think if they asked for help. One coachee said, “I do not want to give my boss any reason to think he made a bad decision by putting me in this position. I will figure it out even if it kills me!”
Whenever you are given a promotion, take on new responsibilities or go through an organizational change, you are excited, enthused, optimistic and a little nervous. But that optimism can quickly turn to pessimism as you learn how much there is to know and do. No one really explained just how challenging this new opportunity would be. You are not sure who to go to for help, but you definitely leave your boss out of the equation.
By not asking for help you compromise your ability to deliver the spectacular results that the organization and your boss are expecting. One of the most important first steps in accelerating your development is to acknowledge you don’t know everything.
Here are some tips that will help you speed up your learning curve and start delivering promised results:
- Create a learning plan that shares what you need to learn and how you will go about learning it
- Identify resources that can accelerate your learning
- Ask for feedback on the plan
- Don’t be afraid to say “I don’t know”
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