Your career is boarding from Gate 2 - the start of an adventure
G’day Adventurers,
Welcome to guide-blog of all things careers and leadership. Less of a lonely planet and more of a rough guide to our adventure through the world of work. What to see, what to do and where to go…
A few years ago, I boarded a flight from London to Asia – the first time I had ever had business class tickets (thanks Reuters!). I was leaving a surprisingly warm London (presumably THE hot day for that year in London) for a humid Bangkok and I’d chosen a comfortable travel attire of shorts, flip flops and t shirt. I made it onto the plane and was excited, and a little nervous, to step left into business class (like Derek Zoolander I had never been able to turn left before!). I was hesitantly pulling back the paisley curtain and peering at the flatbeds when a flight attendant stopped me. “Economy is that way, Sir”. Being oh-so-terribly-British I didn’t argue with his authority, instead I hunched my shoulders, looked at my toes and walked towards the economy seats. It took 5 minutes of embarrassed pleading at the front of the economy cabin before British Airways’ finest finally allowed me to pass through the posh curtains into the land of ambrosia & nectar (in this case a glass of sparking white wine and bag of mixed nuts).
Over the next, very comfortable and very pampered, twelve hours I realised two things that hold weight for careers: 1) Getting a seat on the plane doesn’t mean you’ve made it! 2) Look & act the part.
Firstly, having the tickets wasn’t enough to be welcomed into business class. Getting through the interview is a huge step but the journey doesn’t end there and acceptance is not guaranteed. Many external hires prepare heavily, research hard and devour books like ‘First 90 days’ (Michael Watkins) or ‘Right From the Start’ (Dan Ciampa; Michael Watkins). The preparation is just as important (if not more so) when you move internally into a new role. The real hard work starts once you land the job not before. Plan carefully and follow tip two:
Just as the business class steward didn’t accept me because of the way I looked and acted, so too any new business or team won’t accept someone who does look and act the part.
a) Dress for your next job. Look at what your boss or other managers wear (or indeed the specialists doing the job you want), what is the ‘uniform’ for this group? People will find it easier to see you in the role if you look like you’re in the role. Or simply, don’t dress for economy class if you want to be in business!
b) That said, we must embrace some diversity here - dressing in uniform doesn’t mean identical. in my time I’ve developed a reputation as a little ‘alternative’ on some of my sartorial choices. While i may ‘dress to fit-in’ at the very start of a role, I also dress to ‘stand-out’. Bring yourself and your personality to work, show up your brand and be you. The art is getting the balance right!
c) Act like you already have the job. No, I don’t mean start bossing around the team you want to be manager of! Think about the way you act and interact in your role. Look at the best role models in the positions you’re aiming to move into – what do they do, how do they behave? Use this to become a role model for the rest of your team - play to your strengths in terms of what you do and embody your organisation’s behaviours in how you do it! ‘Fake it til you make it’ because if you look uncertain, lost and nervous then you will be sent back to economy!
As the steward said apologetically, “You can usually tell who really has a seat in business class”.