On the last day of class, I have career day. Double meaning – students do their course evaluations (impacting my career), and I dole out what career advice I have from the last 25 years. Caveat: 90% are blog posts that I have written since 2013. As a summary of the points: There are three kinds of power: relational, expertise, and positional. As a newbie, you have no positional power.  That’s okay, it’s the most superficial, least fun, and back-up source of power. For those of us going into professional services (read: consulting, law, tax, audit, marketing), you better get used to the pyramid structure. Leverage is how companies make money. They pay you X, and bill you out at 2-3x. Yes, this is basic math. No, this is not a STEM blog. This means that you should be great working in teams, and become an uber-apprentice. Building useful, win-win, professional relationships. Some call it networking, but it’s just being a knowledgeable, helpful, curious, available and fun person. Blog about this a good bit, because honestly, people buy from people.

Build relationships

• Build rapport by finding similarities, going first, being less awkward
• Be yourself and be likable (yes, you can do both)
• Would you pass the airport test? Are you the kind of person that people like to be around? If not. . . . uh. . . . client service might not be the best choice. (fact)
• Remember how managers think. They want you solving problems, not complaining. Want a list of things that drive managers crazy? Here you go.
• Be the John Stockton of your company. Make other people successful. Be the one who consistently passes the ball, so other people can score.
• Like your boss. Get your boss promoted and take her job. That’s the sure-fire path.

Maybe the best way to emphasize the importance of relational power / influence is this quote from Thomas Friedman, “We used to work with our hands for many centuries; then we worked with our heads, and now we’re going to have to work with our hearts, because there’s one thing machines can not, do not, and never will have, and that’s a heart.” He coined the expression STEMpathy, which is a combination of STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) and Empathy.  Basically, don’t be a business robot.

Put in 10,000 hours (Gladwell)

Currently, unemployment is at a 17 year low in the US. Times are good, VERY GOOD. That doesn’t mean it is easy.  As Seth Godin says, “If your job is easy, you should be worried.”  Strong managers should be greedy for work; find difficult problems that aren’t being solve. Find the white space between the functions and be the glue. Put in the 10,000 hours to be great. The Beatles toiled in German night clubs for years before they appear on the Ed Sullivan show.  Here’s another way to think about it.  Think: Cal Newport. Be So Good They Cannot Ignore You (affiliate link). Work on your craft.

In the end, it’s all about value. At your bill rate, are you delivering $10,000 of value a day?  My math is simple: $ tuition / # classes per semester / # of sessions per course / 1.25 hours per course x # of students x value multiplier.  There is a $ dollar of value I am looking to create in these classrooms.  Do I achieve that every day (no way), but that’s the goal. It’s like golf – a game against yourself.

Forever is made up of nows (Dickinson)

Valuing our own time.  This is easier said that done.  Professional services folks (read: me and you), don’t value our time enough.  Peter Drucker wrote about time a lot. Heck, even Bain complains about how corporations spend so much $$ and effort recruiting talent, then wasting their time. For me, I don’t hate a lot of things, but I do hate FOMO.  It makes use uniquely unhappy. Perhaps we should follow Gary Keller (founder of Keller Williams realty) advice, and focus on 1 thing. What is the 1 thing that will be the first domino in your day. The first domino in your life?

Life is not a straight line

For students, life has been a metronome of spring – fall – spring – fall learning. Difficult, but also predictable. When they graduate, they need to write their own syllabus. What’s the topic? Who do I team with? What’s success look like? When is it due? Do I even need to do this? (Netflix might be more entertaining). Maybe this is why feedback is so important – we all need a Board of Directors to keep us honest, and doing what’s best for our long-term self. Yikes. Embrace the S curves, and variability; that’s what probably makes life fun.

We’re all wired differently, in different circumstances, so how do you evaluate where you are, and whether you need a change or not? A consulting partner (hat tip: BR) once suggested that I ask these 3 questions to evaluate any situation:

• Strategy: What am I doing? Is this what I want to be doing, getting better at?
• Efficiency: How well am I doing it? Am I crushing it, or do I suck?
• Learning: Am I learning, growing, exploring?

Collect great stories

Yes, I want you to be successful in what you (want to) do.  Yes, I want you to be healthy.  But what I really want, is for you to be the kind of person that people want to invite to a dinner party, who people want to get advice from, who has great stories. Everything is story-telling. Want you to have a story-worthy life. The great thing about consulting, travel, high-powered MBA jobs, reading, listening, learning, is that you are on the path to collecting good stories.

Invest in (stuff that lasts) assets

In the US, we are a consumption-based economy. We buy too much stuff, put it in storage, throw things away, fiddle away time with TV, and generally don’t invest enough. As far as I can tell, there are four great things to invest in: relationships, memories, passive income, and content. Whether it’s blogging or taking someone to lunch, do stuff that lasts. Invest in relationships and expertise.

Be grateful

This is the main point (yes, pyramid principle says put the main point first, sorry). For the folks reading this blog – you got friends, families, income, education, health, discernment, and grit. Basically, no reason for discontent. Finally, I believe firmly that gratefulness = happiness.