What Got You Here Won’t Get You There

by Ircel Harrison, Mission Advancement Coordinator

For many of us, an indicator that we are doing a good job is the offer of a promotion. In religious circles, it may be a call to a larger church (although we don’t call it a promotion). For those in organizations or companies, it may be moving to a position with more responsibility and compensation.

The catch here is that you are hired for certain skills, and you may be using those skills effectively, but when you are “promoted,” a different set of skills are needed. In a church, it may mean leading a multi-person staff. In a company, it may mean leading a team. You are not being moved to a more responsible role just to do what you are already doing well, but you are being asked to take on more responsibility—especially with people.

A person may be a gifted preacher and pastor but does not know how to work with othe professional ministers. She may be a wonderful surgeon but has problems leading a surgical team. He may be a great engineer, computer programmer, or salesperson, but doesn’t like working with people.

This is not only a personal challenge. Organizations—including churches—do not understand that when they give a person more responsibility, they are asking them to exercise a different skill set—one a person may not possess. We are asking them to be leaders of people.

So, what do we do about this? To maximize the effectiveness of a leader, a combination of training, mentoring, and coaching may be needed to help someone develop these skills. In the PeoplemapTM training that Pinnacle offers, we talk about “hard people skills” and “soft people skills.” Everyone already possesses some of these skills, but those with these skills can cultivate them and other skills can be learned.

Hard People Skills include:

• Taking risks and being assertive

• Giving honest, constructive criticism

• Making the “right” decision vs. the “popular” decision

• Dealing with conflict rather than avoiding it

• Taking criticism and feedback

Soft People Skills include:

• Being a good listener

• Offering authentic praise and compliments

• Making decisions democratically

• Seeking a win-win solution

• Mentoring and coaching

• Providing support and reassurance

If you want to learn more about your own strengths and areas for development, contact me about a personal development plan from one of our Pinnacle coaches.