Very recently, I participated in a webinar as one of the panelists, talking about career development. The event was organized by two NGOs in the US, Chinese Coffee Club and TechStart, on “How to Become a Leader Within and Beyond Corporate World as Minority Professional”.
Throughout the panel discussion, there’s one voice persisting in my mind - “Sorry, there’s no easy path!”
We can all view ourselves as minority in someway. We can be Asian Americans working in the US; or returnees seeking opportunities in local Chinese companies which seem to have a very different culture; or females in a male dominated business world; or someone over 50 years old in a business environment that favors young people, or junior professionals trying to advance our careers among people who value experiences and maturity. The list goes on …
It’s never easy, and there’s no silver bullet.
But before we try to break the so called glass ceilings and bamboo ceilings, we need to break the ceilings in our mind. Instead of looking for easy paths, we need to make an extra efforts.
Be aware, but not overly self-aware
Be aware of the stereotyping and bias, but avoid being its victim. It is helpful to be aware of the differences in our behavior, which might be perceived as weakness by others. Unfortunately, people’s perception becomes reality, which we need to deal with. Be aware means we can focus on the gaps and find ways to close them.
But, don’t be overly self-aware. It does no good if we maintain the victim’s mindset. “I didn’t get the promotion because I am Chinese.” “Someone took credit of what I’ve done because I am too shy to speak up.” “My boss only favors male colleagues and that’s why I am not chosen this time”. “What am I going to do now that I’m over 40?”
Instead, focus on things we can work on. We can’t change our race, gender, or age, but we can work on our language, our assertiveness, and our learning agility.
Improve, not prove
To improve is fun, rewarding, and allows us to grow. To prove is painful, frustrating, and leaves us with self-doubt. It is true that a lot of times our bosses may need us to prove our worth. But we can choose a different attitude, and focus on improving. The results will show, and they will get what they are looking for, just not what we are working for.
Having a growth mindset will change how we view things. Instead of feeling being criticized, we find areas that we can do better. Instead of feeling be discredited, we seek how to get noticed the next time. Instead of validating ourself, we actively stretch ourselves to fulfill our potential.
To improve also means deliberate practice, in the areas that are important to our success. When I think about extra effort, it is not only hard working, but smart working as well. Not only do we have to put in time, but most importantly, we need to put in our hearts and brains to work.
Be comfortable with being uncomfortable
To stretch ourselves means that we need to leave our comfort zone. We feel uncomfortable of not speaking our mother tone. We feel uncomfortable of knowing little of what others are talking about. We feel uncomfortable of being the quiet person in a meeting that needs to cut people off to speak.
The bad news is that it never gets easier. The good news is that it’s the way that can make us better.
So let’s accept the uneasiness, and work on things which make us uncomfortable. We can take an accent reduction course; we can read more and learn how to start a conversation with an interesting topic that we are familiar with; we can watch how others seize the moment to chime in and try it ourselves.
Let our stomaches churn and our palms wet. Take a deep breath and enjoy the progress we are making each time we feel uncomfortable.
During the panel discussion, I recommended four books that I have benefited from:
“Mindset - The New Psychology of Success”, by Carol Dweck
“Quite: the power of introverts in a world that can’t stop talking”, by Susan Cain
“Give and Take: A Revolutionary Approach to Success”, by Adam Grant
“The Alliance – Managing Talent in the Networked Age”, by Reid Hoffman
