Why keeping your promises could be the biggest disruption of all

Why keeping your promises could be the biggest disruption of allWhy keeping your promises could be the biggest disruption of allAs kids, were told that good people keep promises. Were taught it in school and church we read it in books and advertisements we even hear it in Disney movies. Somewhere along the way, Western business culture forgot the importance of keeping promises.Nowadays, being true to your word almost seems old-fashioned. The modern corporate world has a general culture of flakiness unreliability is not only acceptable but also a sign of seniority.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and moraAdd to that the instant gratification nature of our digital era and the bombardment of competing priorities, and we have ourselves a trustless society. In that sort of environment, showing that youre a person of integrity - who people can count on to do what you say you will do - is a g reat way to stand out from the crowd.How I lost (and found) my wayGaining a foothold in commercial real estate meant sacrificing significant chunks of my integrity. I had to learn the tricks of the trade and use them to outpace the competition. It meant prioritizing opportunities based on potential profits, keeping multiple competing commitments, being late to almost everything I did and treating deadlines like suggestions.I viewed my actions as smart and efficient, but I had no clue how much this inconsistency undermined my credibility and potential success. To repair both, I decided to focus on honoring my commitments. Most commercial real estate brokers are known to overpromise and underdeliver. My new business strategy involved doing the exact opposite.What does this look like in practice? For example, I had a guy join us after years at a traditional commercial real estate firm. During a conversation, I mentioned that I had brought back a case of a local rum from Hawaii a few mo nths back and that I would bring him a bottle the next day. As promised, I placed the bottle on his desk the following morning. After experiencing so many empty promises throughout his career, he was stunned by this small token that showed he could trust me.If you want to start being your word, begin by fostering a culture of keeping promises. Here are three ways to practice integrity genuinely and disruptively1. Be clear and realisticBusiness people routinely overcommit to impress or win business. Build a new muster by simplifying your commitments - making them realistic and clear - and setting specific deadlines and goals that everyone understands.Build a simple process for tracking and following through on your word. Record the commitments you make, setting reminders along the way. If you cant keep your word on a specific commitment, be honest about what happened. An attainable, systematic approach to integrity is the most direct path to being the kind of leader that people tru st.2. Be accountable and coachableAsk others to hold you accountable to your commitments. This requires you to embrace humility and recognize that others can help you keep your promises. Set goals together as a kollektiv and hold each other accountable for deadlines and expectations.For example, I like to recognize members of my team with a Courage to Disagree award when they call me out for failing to follow through on my word or live up to our core values. Its especially important for me, as a leader, to cultivate an open environment where nobody is above honest feedback. The more you open yourself up to input from others, the more you can grow into a person that people trust.3. Be open and flexibleNeeds sometimes arise at inopportune times. Weve all inconvenienced others - or been inconvenienced - enough times to know how this goes.Set aside regular time to allow for out-of-the-box requests. One member of my team builds margin into his schedule, which is extra backup time that allows him to stay on track when unexpected disruptions occur. True integrity shows when its least expected, so be a flexible resource who can come through in a pinch.Reliable leaders must remember to be straightforward, accountable, and flexible. The more your people can trust you regarding the little things, the more they will trust and follow you when it comes to the big things. Trust is everything, and being your word creates that trust.If you enjoyed this article, sign up for SmartBriefs free e-mails onleadershipandcareer development, among SmartBriefsmore than 200 industry-focused newsletters.

AFSC 2T3X7 Vehicle Management and Analysis Specialist

AFSC 2T3X7 Vehicle Management and Analysis SpecialistAFSC 2T3X7 Vehicle Management and Analysis SpecialistVehicle Management and Analysis Specialists in the Air Force are like the auto mechanics of that branch of the service. They schedule and analyze maintenance on Air Force vehicles and equipment, making sure everything is in working order. Although theyre dealing with vehicle and vehicle systems, airmen in this job arent simply grease monkeys. Theyre working with some of the fruchtwein sophisticated and intricate mechanical systems in the world, which includes thousands of vehicles. Most of them require unique maintenance, and keeping up to speed with and learning the latest technology and techniques is a key part of this airmans job. The Air Force categorizes this job as Air Force Specialty Code (AFSC)2T3X7. Duties of Vehicle Management and Analysis Specialists Vehicle Management and Analysis Specialists supervise and perform On-Line Vehicle Integrated Management System (OLVI MS) management functions, including inputting data into the OLVIMS computer system and verifying its accuracy. They coordinateto ensure the timely repair of assigned vehicles, monitor contract, and warranty repairs and develop long and short range plans and programs to keep maintenance schedules on track. They oversee delayed maintenance, accident and abuse programs and keep track of vehicle historical data and records. ansicht airmen also extractand tabulate maintenance data, and prepare that data for presentations to managers and supervisors. They analyze data for deviations from specific performance indicators and help to develop corrective actions. Qualifications Needed forAFSC 2T3X7 Youll need to know maintenance control and analysis, diagnostic duties, maintenance responsibilities, maintenance data collection and reporting procedures, and small computer operation in support of OLVIMS. Airmen in this job need a high school diploma with courses in algebra or other mathematic s and should complete a vehiclemaintenance control and analysis course is mandatory. How to Qualify forAFSC 2T3X7 Recruits interested in this job should score at least a 41on theadministrative (A) Air Force Qualification Area of the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) tests. After 7.5 weeks of basic training and Airmens Week, airmen in this job spend 30 days in technical school Lackland Air Force Base. Here theyll gain experience inmaintenance control or analysis, quality control, diagnostics or maintenance shop work center, and obtaining parts and materials for use in vehicle maintenance. Additionally, these airmen need to know how to conduct maintenance control and analysis, quality control, diagnostics and how to obtain parts and materials for vehicle maintenance. Civilian Equivalents of AFSC 2T3X7 Even though youll be working primarily with military vehicles, the training youll receive in this job will make you eligible for a wide variety of civilian jobs working on vehicles and their systems. Youll be qualified to work as a garage mechanic or work in an auto dealership on vehicle maintenance. Any public or private company that owns vehicles that need regular maintenance (and most vehicles do) will have a use for the skills of an Air Force VehicleManagement and Analysis Specialist.

Job Requirements for a Marine Corps Electrician (1141)

Job Requirements for a Marine Corps Electrician (1141)Job Requirements for a Marine Corps Electrician (1141)According to the U.S. Marine Corps, the job of a Marine Corps electrician or 1141 includes installing, operating, maintaining, and repairing electrical power distribution systems, whether those systems are underground, above ground, and overhead. Electricians also operate and perform organizational level maintenance on electrical power generation equipment, load banks, and floodlight sets. When theyre on Military Operations Other Than War, or MOOTW, they install and repair interior wiring in buildings. Electrician Duties An electricians duties include installing hardwareincluding cross-arms, insulators, and lightning arresters. He might also assemble or erect and climb utility poles or towers and stringwire conductors. He would be charged with measuring, cutting, bending, assembling, and installing electric conduit. He might be charged with installing control and distribut ion apparatus such as switches, relays, and circuit breakers, or testing circuits for continuity, compatibility, and safety. Circuits can include ground units and those of components. The electrician would typically use test instruments such as multimeters and ohmmeters and install and repair electric fixtures. The Course for Non-Commissioned Officers Non-commissioned officers are afforded the opportunity to attend the Advanced Electrician Course that provides in-depth instruction on the requirements of the National Electric Code and the planning of electrical hilfestellung. This includes determining demand, phase balancing, and voltage drops. An apprenticeship program that leads to U.S. Department of Labor certification as a journey worker is available to electricians under the United Services Military Apprenticeship Program, known as the USMAP. Apprenticeships The USMAP is an official military training program that offers Navy and Navy Reserve full-time support service me mbers the ability to improve their job skills and to complete their civilian apprenticeship requirements while theyre still on active duty. The U.S. Department of Labor provides the nationally recognized Certificate of Completion when the program is complete. The USMAP affords military participants with an opportunity to enhance their job skills and show motivation for more challenging military assignments. Having a DOL Certificate of Completion often proves to be a significant advantage in obtaining better civilian jobs because employers know the value of these apprenticeships. Job Requirements You must possess the following to become an 1141 electrician An EL score of 90 or higherYou must not suffer from acrophobia, a fear of heights.You must first complete the Basic Electrician Course (M0.311B2) at the Marine Corps Engineer School inCamp Lejeune, North Carolina.You must have normal color vision. Refer to MCO 1510.96A Individual Training Standards,for a complete listing of du ties and tasks.

Apply the principles of long-term investing to everything

Apply the principles of long-term investing to everythingApply the principles of long-term investing to everythingYou probably know the effects compound growth can have on an investment over a number of years.With a long enough time and a sufficiently high-interest rate, the growth is always impressive.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and moraWarren Buffett has been preaching the importance of compound interest for six decades, and its made him billions.Stephen Guise writes, All who have been educated in basic finance know this about compound interest, but far too few think about their decisions in the same way, even though it works the same way.The principle affects everyone the same because it depends on time.Its no different than planting a tree. Naturally, the tree is going to be larger when it is 50 years old than it welches when it was 20 years old.Compounding is the process where the value of an investment increases because the earnings on the investment, both capital gains, and interest, earn interest as time passes.When we apply the compound effect in ur life, it can go both ways - either we will be moving forward in life or backward.The power of compounding can be applied to reading a book, eating healthy, spending quality time with the people you love, working out, getting up early, using a system to get things done, and changing many areas of your life.The results are dependent on the actions we take every day.Jeff Olson once said, Those little things that will make you successful in life, that will secure your health, your happiness, your fulfillment and your dreams, are simple, subtle, tiny things that nobody will see, nobody will applaud, nobody will even notice. They are those things that, at the time you do them, often feel like they make absolutely no differencelike they dont matter. But they doOne of my core philosophies in life is performing si mple daily actions and commitments each and every day to get a little bit closer to what I want.Daily actions, both positive and negative create a cumulative effect.Albert Einstein once noted that the most powerful force in the universe was the principle of compounding.Imagine you committed just ten minutes of your time to improve your life every day for an entire year.Or better still you made just one percent improvement in your life every day.After 365 days, your skills will compound to almost a38ximprovement from your starting level.Conversely, a 1% decline every day (99%) will result, after 365 days, in a skill level of just 0.0255 of your starting level.Quite a phenomenal deterioration.Compound is one of the best ways to improve anything.Want to become more mindful?Practice just five minutes of meditation every day. You choose time and place.Want to start exercising?Start with just stretches in the morning and steadily increase time commitment and routines.Want to build long-te rm wealth?Invest just $50 into a broad-based fund every week. Once a month, I buy more shares of the Vanguard Index Fund and thats it.The cost is low, and the risk is also relatively low (when a company thats on an index goes bust, it gets replaced by another one).Compounding is like making daily deposits into goals, ideas, projects, people that are important to you, and watching them build over time.Its an amazing process if you can commit to it daily, weekly or monthly.Acting rationally, consistently, has long-term effectsLife is a series of choices we make daily that add up to a large outcome.Every decision is a seed planted for your future.Good decisionsgood outcome.Bad decisionsbad outcome.Its not the big things that add up in the end its the hundreds, thousands, or millions of little things that separate the ordinary from the extraordinary, says Darren Hardy, author ofThe Compound Effect.Darren lays out a simple formula in the first chapterSmall, Smart Choices + Consistency + Time = RADICAL DIFFERENCEAccording to Darren, Small, seemingly insignificant steps completed consistently over time will create a radical difference in your life and put you on the road to the career success you want and deserve.Compounding is not different from the 10,000-hour rule.Malcolm Gladwell talks about it in his book best-selling book,The Outliers.Every action has consequences on your future.Even the simplest choices compounds.Actions taken over time GROW.Darren explains, The real cost of a four-dollar-a-day coffee habit over 20 years is $51,833.79. Thats the power of the Compound Effect.ACTING or NOT ACTING is a decision you shouldnt take lightly.Anything repeated over time ultimately creates a compounded result.There are countless actions you can take every day to reap the benefits of compoundingHoning your skill one day at a time, reading just five pages of a great book, choosing to eat 100 calories less, working out for just 10 minutes a day, taking a few minutes walk d aily, meditating for five minutes in the morning, drinking a glass of water when you wake up, getting up half an hour earlier to work on your passion project, expressing appreciation, starting a journal, saving a few dollars every month, and investing in your personal development even if its just a few minutes everyday, pays in the long-term.In fact, after just a year, the difference will be huge in your life.Cumulative discipline paysSome of our choices support our growth, and some dont.Choose your actions with careSimple errors in judgment, that dont seem to make any difference today, can cost you tomorrow.Becoming aware of your choices is the first step.The first step toward change is awareness. If you want to get from where you are to where you want to be, you have to start by becoming aware of the choices that lead you away from your desired destination, writes Darren Hardy.Making an informed choice today, not tomorrow, to mindful of your habits, actions, and decisions can chan ge your life.Compound effect makes all the difference in the world.You reap what you sow you cant get out of life what youre not willing to put into it.Key takeawayToday is the BIG day to make decisions you will be thankful for by this time next year. You are at this point in your life because of the way you have treated every today for decades.To apply the principles of compound growth in your life, aim to go the extra mile by 5% in every piece of work, interaction, or action you take.Starting today, set goals, map out a plan and commit to it every day.You deserve to live an extraordinary life, use the power of compounding to create the success you deserve.This article first appeared on Medium.You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from Benjamin Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, acc ording to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people

Kara Aragona - The Balance

Kara Aragona - The BalanceKara Aragona - The Balance

A Secret Weapon for Indeed.com Resume

A Secret Weapon for Indeed.com Resume What You Dont Know About Indeed.com Resume As stated above, you can utilize Craigslist search tools to expand your resume search and locate the ideal employee. One just should type in the details for the sort of resumes one is on the lookout for, on different search engines and he receives a lot of search effects. For doing free resume search, you ought to know about different sites which offer such services. The real key to your online resume is to possess the keywords that best fit your industry and your professional skill. There are a large array of resumes listed on Craigslist. You wish to move at this time. Creating a resume isnt really something which is taught anymore. Essentially, you get mixed outcomes. Your contact information is only going to be shared when you opt to respond to an employer. Well, its pretty simple to discover a bit more about it. To get the best targeted results, you need to do efficient resume search. You can also make hashtags with keywords that recruiters might hunt for so you can be readily found. Recruiters just want to bring in people that are confident and capable of doing a great job for their organization. You would like to show recruiters that youre prepared and that youre able to be trusted to do the work well. The recruiters dont need to devote all their time and money looking for the suitable candidate in the market. Finally, you can create your resume private which means that it wont be searchable by employers. Employers typically wish to employ friendly, charismatic men and women who will assimilate well into a team atmosphere. Whenever you make your resume private, employers cannot locate your resume, so they cant contact you if they think you may be right for employment. These days, many employers have the benefit of online companies while searching for an employee simply by putting information into a search in regards to what they want to find and the searc h will subsequently pull up resumes that match the employers criteria. You will be mindful of a broader variety of jobs and companies. It may be wise to try to remember that a few firms have distinct names for the precise same standing. Its difficult to imagine different businesses dont do precisely the same thing. After all, companies find it impossible to deliver services or products to their clients without great folks supporting their mission. If youre really not confident then take the crucial training that you should learn your work well. You may also search and view resumes of different candidates who have the kind of job that youre searching for to obtain insight into the experience and skills employers value. Ensure you know the abilities and experience men and women in your industry are searching for in job candidates. With a Indeed Resume you are able to make your abilities and experience visible to employers and provide them an effortless means to get in touch with you about relevant jobs. If youre looking into turning into a nursing assistant, acquiring a professional resume can help you stand unbekannt from the other candidates. Resume can earn a lasting impression on the employers and you cannot take any risk by compromising on the standard of resume. Make certain your resume is not hindering all of your hard work There are several distinct ways which you could look for a candidate on Indeed and even more ways which you could submit your resume. As soon as it is one method to learn what openings exist, you and millions are looking at that exact same posting. Youre able to search by job title to acquire an awareness of what other men and women in your field include in their resumes. Every time you apply to get a job working with an inadequate resume is a possible job lost. You can find plenty of steps involved with search resume process the very first measure is going to be to recognize the targeted audience and locate the most fitti ng resume out.

How to Capitalize on Mobile Recruiting Techniques - Spark Hire

How to Capitalize on Mobile Recruiting Techniques - Spark HireIf youre like most people, your phone has become an extension of your body. You bring it everywhere with you, and may even feel naked without it. Because were becoming a phone-dependent culture, its no surprise that recruiting efforts have become increasingly phone-focused too. But is your mobile platform as appealing as it should be to potential employees? When youre working on your companys mobile recruiting efforts, keep ansicht points in mindOptimize your site accordingly Many companies invest thousands of dollars in beautiful websites, but forget to take a peek at how these sites look on a mobile phone. They may be disappointed to notice that the site they worked so hard on doesnt look quite so appealing when its loaded on a cell phone. Unfortunately, this fact may lead to a poor user experience and may cause a person to quickly navigate away from your site. In buchung to optimize your mobile recruiting efforts, make sure that an individual can actually enjoy using your site on their phone.Promote mobile productivity People are much more transient than they used to be, and want their job to be able to go with them wherever they go. In order to appeal to both current and potential employees, youll want to ensure that your company becomes tech savvy. There are dozens upon dozens of productivity and work-related apps available in the iTunes store today, indicating that plenty of companies understand the importance of this work from anywhere mentality. In order to recruit the best talent, illustrate that you embrace technology and want new employees to feel flexible.Dont forget about social media Many companies know that sharing job postings via e-mail is important, however, they often forget about incorporating social media as they get the word out. Send out an e-mail blast, but also tweet out a mention about the job and post something on LinkedIn too. The people you want to hire are probably socia l media enthusiasts, so you need to get your business in places where you know theyre hanging out when they have free time.Though mobile recruiting may be a relatively new trend, its important that business professionals embrace it quickly in order to ensure that they continue to bring top-tier talent on board. If you ignore candidates who may be browsing your site on a smartphone or who use social media to find out about jobs, youll be missing out on a talented pool of applicants.How do you ensure that your companys mobile recruiting efforts are up to par? Let us know in the comments.

Calculate the Value of Talent

Calculate the Value of TalentCalculate the Value of TalentCalculate the Value of TalentCompanies are as diverse as the people who run them, but all organizations benefit by taking a systematic approach to assessing employees and attracting top talent. And its important to maintain your talent pool at all times, regardless of economic ups and downs. Why? It always pays, quite literally, to have talented people on board.You may be thinking that I am going to recommend you do a forced ranking of your employees to weed out the low performers. In response, you may be saying that your companys culture wouldnt stand the test of a forced ranking. OK, I can live with this. However, you should understand the intrinsic differences between your top and average performers.Top performersProduce as much as 10 times more than the average worker, while they often require less than two times the pay.Generate most of the innovation and new ideas.Help others to improve their performance, because they se rve as mentors, trainers and role models.You may think that even though ansicht findings seem true, it would be nearly impossible for you to figure out the value of your companys top talent versus its average talent. Think again. If you need a better business reason than my warning to identify and retain your top performers over all other performers, then try this simple value-differential exercise using some of the people from your team.Start by identifying several jobs with measurable results. Sales positions make for an easy starting point. Other easily measured jobs might be programmers (lines of code) or customer service jobs. The goal is to compare the differences in output or results between those with average performance and those ranked as the best in each job category.Steps in Calculating the Top-Performer DifferentialHere is how it can be done, step-by-stepCalculate the output of average and top performers.Start with the output of the average performer (the average output per employee).Look at the output of the very top performers or the average of the top 10 percent (the top-performer output).Calculate the top-performer increase factor.Start with the top-performer output per employee as the base.Divide into that number the output of the average performer (the small number into the bigger number). That is the top-performer increase factor.Calculate revenue per employee.Calculate the average revenue for an employee for these jobs (total divisional revenue for a year divided by the number of divisional employees).If that is not available, take the total revenue of the firm for a year and divide it by the number of employees.Calculate the revenue increase for top performers.Take the average revenue per employee and multiply it by the top-performer increase factor. That number is the revenue generated by the top performer.Calculate the value difference between top and average performer.Subtract the average revenue per employee from the revenue of the to p performer. The difference is the value added each year by hiring or retaining a top performer.Add additional jobs.Follow steps 1 through 5 for other measurable-output jobs. If the ratio (the percent difference) is close for most jobs and it usually is use that ratio for all jobs in the firm.An Example with NumbersThe average salesperson generates $250,000 per year, while your top salesperson generates $400,000. Divide 400,000 by 250,000, and you are provided with a top-performer increase factor of 1.6. Next, divide total revenues of your organization by the number of current employees, well say $100 million and 1,000 respectively, for this example. The result is an average revenue per employee of $100,000. Multiply this number by the top-performer increase factor, and you get the average contribution to revenues by top performers, $160,000 in this example. Subtract from this number the average revenue per employee of $100,000, and you see that on average, top performers contribu te $60,000 more per year than average performers.

What to Do When You Dont Know How to Answer a Job Interview Question

What to Do When You Dont Know How to Answer a Job Interview QuestionWhat to Do When You Dont Know How to Answer a Job Interview QuestionThe scenario sounds like something out of your worst job search nightmare. The hiring manager looks at you, poses a questionand you have no idea how to answer it.Obviously, though, youve got to say something. So take a deep breath to compose yourself and deliver some much-needed oxygen to the brain. Then, quickly assess why youre having difficulty with the question. The tips below can help you figure out your next move.What to Do When You Really Dont Know How to Answer a Job Interview QuestionAsk to have the question rephrased.When the question doesnt make sense to you, or is oddly worded, see if you can get the bewerberinterviewer to rephrase it. Different language may shed greater light on what theyre asking and enable you to respond intelligently.As a candidate, its perfectly fine to clarify the question and much better than guessing what the inte rviewer is looking for, says Mikaela Kiner, CEO and founder ofuniquelyHR. Phrases like I want to make sure Im answering accurately. Would you mind repeating the question? or I think what youre asking is . . . . Is that correct? work well in this situation.Figure out what the interviewer really wants to know.Interviewers should be well aware that they arent supposed to ask inappropriate or illegal interview questions, such as about a candidates marital status or age, but sometimes these issues do come up. Simply stating that youre not comfortable answering is one route to take hopefully, the person will realize they crossed the line and move on to a different subject. Another option is to figure out what the interviewer really wants to know and respond to that concern.Try to assume good intentions, Kiner says. For example, if an interviewer asks whether you take your kids to and from school, they probably want to know ifyou can work the hours required for the job. An answer like I un derstand the hours for this role are from 9-5, and Im completely available during those hours should work.Think of a positive spin.Candidates know that presenting themselves in the best possible light is crucial in an interview. It follows, then, that a question to which you know the truthful answer is less than stellar can cause panic.Lies have a way of coming back to haunt, so give an honest response- but quickly steer the conversation back to something positive. For instance, if asked Why did you leave your job at Company X? and the reason is that you were fired, try something like, I was let go, but I learned a lot from the experience. Ive really worked on improving my commitment to not missing deadlines by reading books on time management, breaking big projects into chunks, and constructing a daily to-do list that keeps me on track.As Kiner notes, Honesty and self-awareness go a long way in an interview. Nobody is perfect, and the best companies wont shy away from hiring someon e who is humble enough to admit mistakes and demonstrates that they have learned from those mistakes.Know someone looking for a job? Refer a friend to with this link- youll get a month free service and theyll get 30% off

When to be a lone wolf or choose to work with the herd

When to be a lone intertriginses ekzem or choose to work with the herdWhen to be a lone wolf or choose to work with the herdWeve all heard the career tropes about there being no I in team and similar. For the most parte, I cant think of a time Ive heard a motivational speaker encourage people to ignore the rest of the work crew in favor of doing it all on their own.Not all of us do their best work in group settings (raises my hand), one of the reasons the rise of the remote office and freelancing make the gig economy so powerful and popular. So how do you know when to stick with the rest or when its best to strike out on your own?Business has many similarities to individual and team sports, said Drew Westervelt, Founder + COO of HEX Performance, an entrepreneur who played nine seasons of Lacrosse in the MLL, NLL and with Team USA. You need to clearly understand and perform your best in the role that leads to wins. Whether you have the helfende hand of a team or are a lone ranger on t he court, the same level of vision, preparation, and commitment is required to battle through.Okay, so we know that the analogies work, but how can you determine which team to join and which of the rules to follow? Sometimes its literally a matter of showing a willingness to be part of the group, even if part of your work is done independently.The royal weTrying to act more like part of the team? Westervelt says I never like to hear I internally during conversations as we inevitably will have a hand in the execution. I think it signifies an unwillingness to be open-minded and empathic to accepting other thoughts, idea and support. Good to know. Sometimes its important to try to act like part of the group simply not to be excluded from upcoming projects.How well do you prioritize?If youve got a constantly updated to-do list in your head, its possible youre best on your own. One of the most crucial skills that can help people figure out whether its best to fly solo or be a team player is the ability to prioritize, said Mike Lu, CEO of Triller an AI-powered music video app. Figuring out how much time is needed and what kind of return youll get on every project you take on is a tactic that will help you work smarter.Challenge yourselfWhile a strong team is powerful, Westervelt says Sometimes have to challenge yourself to think differently from the team. Why? Because If you rely too heavily on others, Westervelt believes you become a follower. Ive learned to believe in what sets me and my business apart. We all have roles in business or on the field. Believe in your ability and have the confidence to make your value be seen by actions to drive your team or business. But dont just follow the pack. Westervelt believes that Me too ideas are never game changers.Come for the criticism, stay for the life lessonsBelieve it or not, being the lone wolf can sometimes make it harder to move swiftly and effectively because you dont have input or challenges from others necessa ry to better yourself and your work style. You might sit around puzzling over an issue when asking a potential team member for advice could change the trajectory of your career.One skill that stands out is the ability to accept constructive criticism, said Westervelt. Whether on the playing field or business arena, always ask for feedback. Customer feedback in business is similar to watching film in sports. It doesnt lie. But dont expect it to always be positive. Constructive and real feedback is sometimes hard to listen to, but it always helps build stronger products or services.Whats your action plan?As a leader, your ideas are nothing but thoughts in your head until you figure out how you can actually execute them, according to Lu. This involves deciding if its possible to execute on your own or if you need a team of five to help you out.You cant do it allOne of the problems perfectionists face is the inability to delegate, which usually means theyre trapped in a mire of busy wor k instead of the things they do best. Westervelt said.In my experience, a trusted team is essential to business success. You cant do it all. Nobody can He believes that You will grow individually when you surround yourself with great people and identify team goals metrics to achieve those goals.