So a couple of weeks ago I held – what I call – a pizza–dinner party with a bunch of my colleagues.
What that translates to is that I bought some pizza and booze and invited some guys from different departments in the agency to ‘have a chat’.
The things I’ll do to be liked eh!
OK, that’s not why I did it – which is handy, because let’s face it, if I did, we all know it wouldn’t make the slightest bit of difference – however while we were chatting, I asked them all what the highest job title they would like to attain in their career.
There were 2 things that I found especially interesting.
1/ Quite a few of the guys said “Founder” … which indicates their desire to one day start their own company, something I’d recommend to anyone.
2/ One person gave a title that – in all honesty – would be no stretch for them to achieve within a few years at all.
This second point fascinated me.
Here was a person who is very smart … conscientious … diligent … eager to learn … and yet they were aspiring to a job and title that they could probably achieve in a few years without any additional effort whatsoever.
It didn’t make sense.
However, with a bit of probing, I realised this ‘goal’ wasn’t because I’d completely misread them or they were lacking in ambition and drive, it was because of uber-practicality and a total lack of awareness of just how good they could be.
In some ways it was quite refreshing – especially when I meet so many people who seem to have a ridiculously out of proportion evaluation of their own capabilities and brilliance – however their answer bothered me, because whilst I have no right to dictate what a person should – or shouldn’t – be aspiring to, I didn’t want them to set their goals so low simply because they failed to grasp how good they could be.
I remember a few years ago being in a similar situation with another colleague.
They mentioned to me that they’d be interested in one day working overseas.
When I asked where they’d like to go … rather than giving me a place, they responded with, “You mean I have a choice?”
Sure in both cases they were young and relatively new to both the working life and the advertising industry … but also, in both cases, they were/are fiercely bright and passionate about doing things that interested them and had real meaning which is why I hope they end up in a far more interesting, exciting and challenging place than they originally thought they were capable of reaching.
But here’s the thing, they needed to hear it.
They needed to know they were clever and capable of taking control of their own destiny … not in terms of moving higher up the advertising ladder, but in terms of wherever they ended up wanting to go … even if that ambition keeps evolving or changing.
This isn’t about being Paula Abdul and giving false hope or copious amounts of overpraise to all and sundry … it’s about letting people you feel have something special, understand that with hard work, good guidance and a bit of luck, you believe they could end up wherever they want to be – even places they never thought about.
I’ve written previously how I’d received this sort of support from both my parents and people I genuinely looked [and look] up to, so I can tell you first hand how much of a difference it can make [especially given a careers advice officer once said I should focus on a career in catering management!] so next time you spot someone who you think has that special something – especially if they don’t realise it themselves – make sure you tell them they have the right to dream bigger because you just might just find you can make more of a difference to how their life turns out than you could ever imagine.