Does being assertive and speaking your mind hurt your chances at work?

Well, the answer is NO, especially when you follow few simple rules.

In today’s dynamic, competitive market, one of the biggest challenges you will face at work is working with multicultural, multidisciplinary teams. These teams are designed to encompass different expertise required to face the global marketplace. YOU will be interacting with colleagues who have different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives.

Most companies will emphasize the positives of this diverse environment and the knowledge you can gain through your varied interactions. While this is a legitimate and a real advantage, most companies fail to train their employees (YOU) on how to react and handle disagreements and voice your own opinion.

How should you react when the data, evidence and conclusions you have do not support the majority decision? How do you respond when you have a concern with the team’s decision when you have a tangible concern that you can articulate and support? What do you do if you team lead or boss does not share your concern?

Imagine being in a situation similar to the one described above. It can be a major struggle to stand-up and speak your mind. Why?

1. If the majority or a senior person agrees, they must be right. Not true! There might be something that they have missed. Remember, each person has been exposed to different experiences shaping their perspective. Just because it is obvious to you does not mean it is obvious to others.
2. I am going to “look stupid”. Not true! If you have missed any facts or factors, you want to aware of that ASAP! This is a great learning experience for future projects where you might be the team lead with the entire team looking to you for direction.
3. You want to be a “team player”. Well, think about this: Being a team player means wanting the best outcome and success for your team. That is exactly what you will be doing by speaking your mind as long as the team’s best interest remains your focus.

Do you really want the team to end up down the wrong path when you have had reasons to foresee this outcome?

Even if you are not personally held at fault, who wants to be on a team that that does not meet their goals or misses their deadline? Today’s world is smaller than ever and overcoming negative history can be a serious challenge.

I absolutely believe that you can speak your mind and maintain positive relations within your team. Few simple rules:

1. Always remain calm and professional. Avoid being rude or arrogant. Do not ridicule other people’s suggestions or reasons.
2. Do not use accusatory language and especially do not point fingers at specific individuals.
3. Be open-minded to the fact that YOU might have missed something. Do not take any of the responses you receive personally.
4. Truly listen to the rebuttal offered to address your concerns.
5. Keep the best interest of the team priority and remain focused on the task at hand.

This is a formula that can allow you to assert yourself as a valuable, contributing team member and support the growth and success of your team, and ultimately the business.

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The sage is a leader is a leader who focuses on systems and whose main operating principal is creating order.

So what does that mean?

As described in “From Sage to Artisan”, as a sage leader, you need to be interested in the big picture. You need to examine the entire system, viewing everything within your sphere of knowledge as a piece in the puzzle, getting excited when you find new pieces that fit in the puzzle and add clarity to the big picture.

In order to locate all the pieces, you need to ask questions! You need to be inquisitive, observant, and continuously look for connections.

However, it is important to note that as a sage leader, you do not ask questions to increase uncertainty or procrastinate but rather to create a complete big picture. This allows you to make the best decision based on a complete set of information.

Think about this: It’s November and you have been performing above expectations in your job throughout the year.

However, this month, you missed a project deadline and had a conversation with your manager. Next month is your yearly evaluation.

How would you feel if your manager rated you as “Does Not Meet Expectations” referencing the deadline you missed in November without considering any of your other projects completed?

If your boss is a sage leader, then you have nothing to worry about. The sage leader will be able to evaluate you based on your entire career and not only the latest missed deadline.

If you don’t have a sage leader for a manager, then you have your work cut out for you.

The strengths of the sage emerge as he/she embraces challenges and utilizes them to generate ideas and identify best path forward. The sage leader is not intimidated with chaos or uncertainty and is able to create an environment where he/she can flourish, shine and be a leader.

If this sounds like a role you would enjoy, skills you will need to nourish, develop, or acquire include:

• Resourcefulness in utilizing past experiences and constantly “connecting the dots”
• Building a database of knowledge in fields related to your field of expertise
• Encouraging and sponsoring brain storming sessions to generate ideas and build a complete picture of the puzzle

However, the sage leader is not beyond mistakes and the role can be taken to an extreme where it can become a hindrance. To avoid that, always evaluate your skills and ensure that you don’t:

• Lose interest in important details while pursuing the big picture
• Use searching for puzzle pieces as an excuse to procrastinate
• Forget about the people – your colleagues and team members. The wheels of the best crafted system will reach a halt without the right people behind them

The sage is a dynamic leader, providing his/her organization with creative solutions and ultimately a competitive edge by being aware of the continuously evolving environment.

However, if the sage leader does not fit your personality or skills, stay tuned. There are other leadership styles to explore as they are defined in the book “From Sage to Artisan”. Remember though, developing skills for areas of low preference is important for being a well rounded leader.

Previous Article: Nine Leadership Styles, Which One is Yours?

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