Strategies to Turn Your Career Vision Into a Reality
NATIONAL REPORT — There's a common phrase that someone can't get out of their own way. This could describe many women in the workforce, who often sabotage their careers — mostly unintentionally. Convenience Store News recently sat down with author Tracey Newell to discuss this trend, what's driving it and what women can do to get of their own way.
Newell has spent her career breaking barriers as a woman in technology and previously served as president of Informatica, a California-based software development company.
She now holds board positions for several high-profile startups. Her latest book, "Hers For The Taking," examines strategies women can use to achieve their career goals faster.
CSN: Why are women sabotaging their careers?
NEWELL: When you're in the middle of your career, oftentimes it's challenging to think about what you'd want to be doing 10 or 15 years from now. And yet, if you're not thinking about that in your 30s, your early 40s, then you're probably not going to get the experiences that you need early in your career to be able to run a company. Playing the long game is a big focus of mine and encouraging women earlier in their career to think about goals like: Why can't you run engineering? Why can't you be the CFO [chief financial officer]? Why can't you be the president or CEO? These are all normal people that just set their sights on this big goal and then went after it.
[Read more: Kicking the Door Open]
I laughingly warn people, you can change your mind if you decide to be the CFO or CEO of a company. You can change your mind down the road, but when you start to emphatically state, "This is what I want to do," people will look at you differently. They will watch you differently, and they'll give you different opportunities than if you just quietly, head down, did your job.
CSN: How can women stop sabotaging their careers?
NEWELL: Advocating for yourself is one step, and some people confuse that with managing up. I actually don't see it that way. I advise the folks I mentor and coach that I want them to think of themselves as the CPS, the chief problem solver in their group. If you're the chief problem solver, you're noticing things that aren't working. Every company has something that's not working. So, why don't you be the one to take it on and fix it instead of doing what everyone does and telling their boss, "Hey, this is a problem."
Why not say, "Hey, this is a problem and I'd like to get a group cross-functionally together and solve this because it'll help me, but it'll help the whole company when we do." When you take steps like that, you're taking on more responsibility and showing people what you're capable of.
I do think as women get more intentional about this idea of playing the long game, that in and of itself is a huge step forward. If you say to your boss and your boss' boss, "Hey, I'd like to be you someday; help me to get the right experiences. I really want the coaching and the feedback about where I need to improve to be you," they will absolutely start to look at you differently and people around you will start to give you some opportunities that you wouldn't naturally get on your own.
CSN: You often hear about imposter syndrome. Can you please explain what this is?
NEWELL: It's simply that voice in your head telling you that you're not good enough and what makes you think you're capable of achieving this or ... if you try this, you're going to fail. It's this negative voice that really speaks of fear that's trying to protect you. It is not a bad thing, but it can really hold us back and talk us out of doing the things that deep inside, we really want to achieve. It's important to note that men and women both have imposter syndrome. Women just have more of it. There's so many studies showing women lack confidence and so, it's important that we own it, acknowledge it, but then work through it.
CSN: How can women work through imposter syndrome?
NEWELL: A friend of mine says, take your inside voice outside. I love this advice because the stories we tell ourselves are just that. We would never repeat the same feedback and advice to a friend or a coworker. Women especially are great at lifting others up; we're nurturers at heart. And yet, we often don't do that for ourselves. So, take that voice saying you can't get the next promotion, you're not capable of running a company, and talk to a mentor, a partner, a family member, a friend, a peer and say, "Hey, I really want to do this, but here are all the issues I'm worried about." I guarantee you they're going to start dismantling those imaginary issues one by one.
The second strategy I've persistently worked through with my inside voice — and my voice can be pretty loud as well — is I just move through it. I say, "That's nice. Thank you for the feedback." And then, I get going and start pushing forward. It's always interesting how my inside voice quiets down when it sees that I'm actually doing all the things I want to do. So, getting moving and ignoring that voice is a key component to working through these issues.
CSN: As you note, men struggle from these issues too, but the conversations always seem to be about women overcoming these struggles. Why aren't we having these same conversations about men?
NEWELL: I think it's a good question, and we should be having these conversations with all employees. All people should be encouraged to dream a bit and think a bit about what they want to be doing longer term, because we only get one go in this life. And yet the evidence shows that women, for certain, have more issues with imposter syndrome due to social conditioning. They avoid risks more often than their counterparts. There are definitely unconscious-bias issues in trying to find their style. Am I too tough or am I not tough enough? I get that a lot.
So, there are many challenges which are unique to women, [including] the lack of representation in senior roles. Many women will say, "Do I see anyone on the executive team that looks and sounds like me?" If the answer is no, then it's one more proof point regarding, "Who am I to try to aspire to go do that big job?" For many reasons, women need a bit more support.
CSN: What is your No. 1 piece of advice for women who come to you and say, "I just don't know if I'm good enough for this, or I just don't know if I can do this?"
Newell: I've been studying human potential for 25-plus years and I've come to appreciate that many people sell themselves short, especially women. My No. 1 piece of advice is to do your best to take fear away from the equation and ask yourself: What would you love to be doing 10 to 15 years from now? What's the art of the possible? Take your vision of who you'd like to be long-term and write it down on a piece of paper. Then, start to socialize it with people you know and you trust, as you build your plan to get there one step at a time.
About the Author
