We talk about development as if it’s the secret sauce for success at work. If you want a new job, a higher salary, or less busy work, you’re often told to focus on your development. It seems so simple that we can drill the entire process down to a single word—but is it really that simple? Many people feel lost or even stuck on their development journey. It can be challenging to know where to begin, what to focus on, or even how to define success. Development isn’t a one-size-fits-all process, and many factors will influence what skills you develop and how you develop them. While I can’t give you a complete roadmap, I can offer you a great place to start; ask yourself this one question.
What is your developmental focus?
You might be asking, “What is a developmental focus? What do you mean?” A developmental focus refers to the aspect of your professional life you are actively working to develop. For this, I want you to visualize a long, never-ending walking path, and you come up to a fork in the road. At the fork you see the path splitting off into two directions, with a bench to your side to sit at. Each direction the path splits into and the bench all represents a different developmental focus.
Self-Oriented Developmental Focus
We’ll begin with the path that heads off to the left. This path represents a self-oriented developmental focus. You could say this is the default setting of all our developmental paths. We begin our journeys with a lot of self-reflection and place a heavy focus on how we are perceived by others. Someone with a self-oriented developmental focus will analyze their own skills, knowledge gaps, and behaviors to draft strategies that foster continuous improvement. It’s important to have a strong focus on your own development, especially in the beginning of your career development.
These people tend to hit the ground running in a new job, and don’t take very long to start making a name for themselves. Recognition fuels these workers and motivates them by letting them know that they are heading in the right direction. While those with higher self-focus may be able to drive positive change in an organization, it is often a small change or limited in scope. The self-oriented developmental focus can sometimes result in less emphasis on collaboration and teamwork. These workers can sometimes lose sight of the benefits of working closely with others on tasks or projects, which can result in a narrower thought process when problem solving.
Team-Oriented Developmental Focus
The path that leads off to the right will represent a Team-Oriented Developmental Focus. Someone with this developmental focus will usually prioritize the development of the team before themselves. These people will typically utilize a bottom-up approach to projects and implementing process improvements. They see the value in building on the strengths and weaknesses of the team rather than simply focusing on their own. They are usually the first to identify knowledge or process gaps by leveraging a more systematic way of thinking that helps them to visualize work as it moves through their organization. Those who put a priority on helping the team develop will often involve their peers and counterparts in their work or projects. Since they typically encourage and contribute to a more collaborative environment, it’s common for them to be a part of bigger initiatives and help drive change on a larger scale.
While this kind of developmental focus can be very impactful and help launch entire teams towards better performance, it can have its limitations. Being too focused on the team can cause someone to lose sight of their own opportunities for improvement. It can be common for team-oriented individuals to focus so heavily on building up their team that they forget to reflect and work on improving their own personal work or behavior.
The Bench – No Focus
The third option we have on our developmental walking path is the bench. The bench represents a lack of developmental focus, or a sense of stagnation in developing. Just about every leader will find themselves on the bench at one point or another, the tricky part is being able to identify when you’re there and how to get off. Now, the bench is not a bad place to be, but it is important to be able to get yourself up and off the bench when you need to. Many leaders will find themselves on the bench for too long, leading them to fall behind their peers and they may even lose tolerance for positive change. Someone who may be benched might have fewer ideas for continuous improvement and may have less to contribute to collaborative sessions. Whether they realize it or not, these individuals are no longer moving forward in their development. If they are seeking to continue developing in any area, they may feel lost or uncertain as to where to begin or how to continue. They may be able to contribute to the development of their current job, by creating tangible resources such as reports and documents that support the status quo of their current line of work. However, these contributions often have a limited scope and typically do not translate into success stories that aid them further in their career.
People find themselves on the bench for many reasons. They might be new to their job, or they may just simply not see a reason to continue to improve, but most don’t even realize that they’re on the bench. If you feel as though you are stagnating in your development, you might be on the bench. It can be challenging to get yourself back on the walking path, but I find the best place to start is by continuously asking yourself how you are actively contributing to the development of yourself or your team. The next time you have an idea, ask who is this going to benefit? Yourself, your team, or your job? If the answer is primarily your job, then you may have a bench-oriented developmental focus.
Continuous improvement will always be challenging, but it helps to know where your focus is. I challenge you to try and determine where on the developmental walking path you might be and ask yourself if that focus aligns with what you’re trying to accomplish. This logic can be applied to others as well. If you’re helping someone in their development, what is their focus and how does it align to their goals?
Understanding your developmental focus is a crucial step in taking control of your professional growth. Whether you are focused on self-improvement, team development, or unknowingly stuck on the bench, recognizing where you stand allows you to make intentional choices about your path forward. Development is not a linear process, and there will be times when you shift between these focuses. The key is to remain aware of your growth and adapt as needed. So, as you continue your journey, ask yourself: “What is my developmental focus?” The answer to that question will help shape the future of your career.
Featured Image by holigil 27 on Unsplash
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