Managing the Transition from the Current “You” to the “You” You Want To Be

Managing the Transition from the Current “You” to the “You” You Want To Be
JULY 11, 2011 By Jason Seiden

There is one question that comes up over and over again while I’m doing LinkedIn training, and it’s the same question I used to get all the time when I would coach execs. It goes like this:

“Should I describe the me that is today, or the me that I’m developing for tomorrow?”

This question is triggered by any one of a variety of issues:

I don’t like my job and want to project an image that matches the job I want
I feel underemployed or am in the running for a promotion and want to project the capacity for doing more
I have a side project/side business
I am actively involved in my community
I am aware of my career development and my progress
My job has a dual role (e.g., I am a consultant who manages consultants & also serves clients)
At the core of all of these issues is this simple reality: we are complex, and we struggle to communicate who we are within tight constraints of a job descriptions. This seems to be a fairly universal issue people struggle with. So what to do?

This is something that I have struggled with mightily. For those of you who have been following my career, you’ll have noticed there have been some significant inflection points! Here are the things I’ve kept in mind; they’ve helped me communicate who I am during my transitions; hopefully they’ll help you, too:

Talk to the people you serve. When you write for others, a lot of issues you worry about go away, because the only person who cares about them is you. How important is your transition to the people you’re talking to?
Ask, “Would you be interested in you?” Answer “What do you do?” in front of a mirror. Would you want to continue talking with that person if you just met him/her? Be honest! This is your bellweather exercise, by the way. You’ll know you’ve cracked the code here when the answer to this question becomes, “Yes, definitely!”
Speak/Write with conviction. Conviction is attractive. Uncertainty is not. Lose the phrase “it’s complicated” from your vocabularly. Your situation is not complicated, you just haven’t figured out how to communicate it clearly.
Tell a story. “I’m a sales guy stuck in a fincance job.” That says a lot, doesn’t it? It communicates what you do, what you’re good at, it implies your skills (both innate and learned), and further implies what you want (to get unstuck, presumably by moving into a sales position). All in 9 words. Or 10, depending on how you treat the contraction.
Set up a conversation. There’s no need to barf your whole life story at me all at once. Give me a piece. One, little, intriguing piece, and hook me in. Give me only enough information to get me interested. When I come back for more, give me another little bit. This is called “having a conversation,” and it requires a bit more practice than most people give it.
Use content to explain only what you do. A pipe broke in my house a couple of years ago. Did I look up “passionate, innovative problem solvers”? Did I look up, “professional and clean”? Did I look up “20 years experience”? No, no, and no. I looked up “plumber.” Too many professionals are in such a hurry to differentiate, they forget to say what they do! Don’t make this mistake.
Use context to explain how you’re better. There is no reason to waste your time writing that you are “a passionate, energetic problem solver” because almost no one will take your word for it. Demonstrate your skills instead of writing aobut them.  For an idea of what I’m talking about, watch the two commercials, below. The one from the ’50′s explains why Coke is the ideal beverage during a break; the 2nd one demonstrates it. Which is more likely to keep your attention?
Be a popstar. Focus on your current album. Don’t worry about the next album yet, and don’t confuse things by talking about the back catalog. When the new album’s out—that is, when you’re ready for what’s next—then you can push that content. Until then, be here now. Because if you can’t get people interested in what you’re doing today, how will you keep their interest when you’re doing your next thing, tomorrow?
I know, I haven’t directly answered the question. That’s because: your transition doesn’t matter. We’re all in transition. Every one of us. That change that’s got you all freaked out? We get it, because we’re dealing with the same thing ourselves. So really, all you need to communicate is who you serve and how. We’ll get to who you are and what you’re going through a little bit later in our relationship.

There’s another reason I’m not giving more specific examples in this post: the way in which people will implement these ideas will result in very different approaches, and the coach in me doesn’t want to get in the way of anyone’s journey by putting specific ideas in their heads.  I want people to sit with this and work through it for themsleves. It’s the only way to achieve lasting success!

Good luck with the change, I’ll see you on the other side.

Managing the Transition from the Current “You” to the “You” You Want To Be — Jason Seiden