Jim Citrin Leadership by Example

Take a ‘Step Back' to Gain Perspective on Your Situation

I want to contrast two executives, both of whom were recently let go from their employers after a culture clash, to illustrate how important it is to gain perspective on your situation before moving forward. Michael was the president of a cable television network and a member of the parent media corporation for the past 20 years. Joy was the head of business development for a global luxury products company. When I met Michael, just a week after his departure, he was eager to pursue the presidency of a new cable network that was being launched. In terms of relevant experience and track record he was an exceptional candidate. But in our discussions he could scarcely conceal his anger and he wasn't able to articulate sound lessons learned from what transpired.

I concluded that Michael simply was not ready to be a candidate for the position. Joy, however, having been out of her company for two months, more than personified her name. During the previous two months she was able to get perspective by speaking with a number of her former colleagues to get their input as to what happened. She went for long walks and replayed the history of her tenure. She even wrote a letter to herself to verbalize what happened with the fit issue and lack of chemistry with her boss. As a result, Joy was evenhanded about her situation and was neither defensive nor sugar-coated in how she articulated the story. More importantly, she was able to put forth what she learned from the whole episode. Joy is therefore ready to move into a new situation and is an attractive candidate for a range of important positions.

Apply Your Experiences in New Ways

You've had a good run. Unfortunately, despite your best personal efforts, you can't stem the sliding fundamentals of your industry. Whether you've spent your career in music, newspapers, steel manufacturing, or video rentals, even the most talented employees are being pushed out. The best defense in a situation like this is to critically assess your skills and strengths and figure out how to apply them to a new and different business in which they are valued as a means to growth.

One global chief marketing officer of a major hospitality company, for example, used to work in the dial-up Internet access business. How did he "escape" from an inexorably declining business into a completely new field? First he analyzed which industries were driven by the same customer acquisition, retention, and data-base marketing fundamentals that drove his prior experience. He concluded that the hotel industry, with its frequent guest programs and still relatively nascent online direct marketing capabilities, was the ideal place in which to apply his skills and experience.

He made a target list of 25 hotel companies, both major chains and boutiques, and mapped out the key executives, including the CEO, chief human resources officer, and marketing staff. With that expanded list, he worked his extended relationships and various social networks to get the best possible introduction to these people. When he was able to secure a series of meetings, he was able to offer a cogent argument of how he could take his expertise to help them succeed in their business. In so doing, he transcended being a job-seeker and instead became the solution to hotel companies' trickiest problems. Then once one company became interested in him, others suddenly became even more interested and competitive juices being what they are, he ended up getting multiple offers. Sometimes you can make this happen on your own, but oftentimes you'll need to find someone in a position of authority who is willing to give you a shot.

Figure Out What Really Gets Your Juices Flowing

John Pepper, chairman of The Walt Disney Company and former CEO of Procter & Gamble, once gave perhaps the best and most succinct career advice: "Figure out what you love to do and find someone to pay you to do it." The first step to pursue this strategy is to get beyond the obvious and identify what subjects, product areas, or industries really stoke your passions.

One proven technique to help with this is the "kitchen table pile" exercise. Here's what to do: Collect a bunch of business magazines and newspapers for about two months. Sit down at the kitchen table to go through them and tear out anything that strikes a chord. Don't over-think it or ask yourself why. Just put what you've ripped out into a folder. When you're done, go through the folder and separate your selections into piles, one for each area of interest. Inevitably, patterns will emerge. The tallest piles will be those things that genuinely interest you. Now all you have to do is figure out how to follow the second part of Pepper's advice - find someone to pay you to do it! For that challenge, see steps one through three.

How you handle the transitions that will inevitably be thrust upon you over the course of your career is one of the greatest determinants of your long-term career success and personal satisfaction. Think about how to prepare and execute transitions in a way that creates the most attractive and most compelling opportunities for you and you will be far ahead of the field.