Earn It

What’s your value-add? Three ways to develop and demonstrate it.

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I had an interesting conversation with a long-time acquaintance today during the lunch break of an all-day meeting with our professional association. I had made an apparently insightful comment in the meeting, given his remark about my “doctoral education.” The conversation that followed was intriguing to me and gave absolutely no regard to political correctness, which I prefer, since it provides a window into what others are truly thinking and feeling.

The conversation went like this: He proclaimed he also wanted a Ph.D. at one point in his career. He was in the military and had requested the opportunity to complete a doctoral degree, citing all the reasons he deserved approval for the program. However, he wasn’t approved, and according to his story, it was due to hormone level and skin color. He lamented the “good old days” when he had at least one superior who was an advocate and would help him advance. The reasons he stated: They either drank the same spirit, listened to the same music or shared some other male-bonding experience like hunting or fishing.

My thought (which for better or for worse I clearly stated) was “Yes, those are much better reasons than gender or race.” My point: Gender, race or any other individual characteristic or interest is not what should determine the breaks we do or don’t get. Our contributions should.

With that said, what is your contribution? Stated a little differently, what’s your value? And, by the way, what you once did or contributed doesn’t still carry you today. What are you contributing now?

Below are three ways to help develop and demonstrate your worth:

Buck up. Don’t use excuses, even if you have one (or many) and feel completely justified. You may even be justified. But honestly, they only serve to keep you stuck where you are and make you look weaker. Focus instead on what you can do to move forward. We often think we can’t beat the system … but let’s be honest, more often we end up beating ourselves.

Set up. Get the necessary knowledge, skills and experience. Think about the role you ultimately want to achieve and then position yourself on the right trajectory to get there (i.e., if you want to be a CEO, make sure you’re on a path to secure roles that serve as a feeder for the top spot). Also, find mentors, male and female, who have done what you want to do.

Step up. Advocate for yourself. This is something women don’t do well. Our male counterparts tend to be much better at speaking up for themselves (yes, even when they are less experienced or qualified). Whether it’s to make a sale, get promoted or any other variety of scenarios that require us to step up — we often sell ourselves short. Muster your estro-mojo and act.

Know what you want and pursue it. To succeed, place yourself firmly in the value chain of your organization (not on the fringe) and show your contribution. Earn it. Every single day.