MANAGING ONESELF
Peter F. Drucker
People are working more years of their lives than ever before, often pursuing more than one long-term career in a lifetime. But will that work be fulfilling? It can be, if people can learn to properly manage themselves.
Managing oneself to achieve ongoing success and happiness at work, whatever that work might be, comes through:
*Taking charge of one’s own personal development.
*Looking for opportunities to make a contribution.
*Being engaged in the work and the workplace.
The keys to this kind of self-management are:
*Knowing what one’s own strengths are and capitalizing on them.
*Understanding which personal learning and work styles work best.
*Having a strong sense of personal values and matching those to the work situation.
Operating from personal strengths, rather than trying to develop in weak areas, is the path to high performance. This is basically “doing what comes naturally” and doing it often. Discovering personal strengths comes through feedback and self-observation.
People perform best when they are allowed to learn and perform according to their natural styles. Some people learn by reading, others learn by doing. Some people like to work in teams, while others do better working alone. Environmental conditions are a factor as well. High pressure environments fuel top performance in some while others need peace and quiet to do their best work.
People tend to be happiest and most fulfilled when they feel they are making a contribution in a work culture that aligns with their own values. Making the right contribution is based on assessing business needs; evaluating how one’s own strengths, preferred performance methods, and personal values can make a difference in the situation; and taking into consideration the desired results.
Building successful relationships is a critical part of creating a fulfilling career. Successful relationships are developed through paying attention to the strengths, performance methods, and values of colleagues and coworkers and helping them be the best they can be at work. Good communication is the vehicle for developing this understanding.
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