Moving on...and up
When I joined the hotel industry after passing out from the Ceylon Hotel School (as it was then known), I had some doubts as to whether I had it in me to work at the highest level. Joining a new team, getting accepted by proving that I can fit in capably as a team player, whilst succeeding as an individual, were some of the challenges I faced. They never quite prepared us for this in hotel school.
Take onboarding for instance; how employees dive gracefully into a new job, or belly flop into their role, can depend on their onboarding. Sadly, many new hires are made to dive into the deep-end no sooner they start work. Knowing to swim and diving into a pool is totally different. Depending on the form and technique, diving into a swimming pool can be poetry in motion. Hit the water with your belly and it can be the aquatic equivalent of a car wreck – leaving the employee dazed, painfully embarrassed and unhappy.
Fortunately, in those early days of my career, I had the good fortune to work under a supervisor who, when introducing me to a task, let me first shadow an experienced colleague who explained the key points. I was then asked to do a part of the task under supervision and only when he felt I can undertake the full task on my own, was I left to handle it. He gave me some sound advice by telling me that “appreciation of a job well done can be occasionally overlooked – especially during busy times. It does not mean though that it has gone unnoticed. Remember, just because you are not continuously being praised, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you not doing a great job. If you have given it your fullest efforts – be content”.
Moving on… I had to face up to adapting to the ways of working under my immediate supervisor. Getting that chemistry between us right was crucial and that meant looking at ways to convince my supervisor that I was willing to take on a little more responsibility. I quickly learnt that being over-enthusiastic was discomforting to certain supervisors - especially those who were stuck for long in their positions, as they felt threatened by any subordinate showing signs of wanting to move up. In such situations, the choices I made included moving out if I felt moving up was not going to happen…even when deserved.
Along the way, I discovered that one’s capacity for learning was (and still is), the currency we can trade on in our careers. The day one stops learning is the day one should call it quits – for good! Where we once went to work to learn to do a job, learning now is the job. Adaptive and proactive learners are highly prized assets for progressive organizations, and create long-term dividends for career development when employees demonstrate a good return on investment on the company’s learning and development efforts.
Moving up… I faced the reality that approaching someone above me in the professional hierarchy required a subtle balance and a profound understanding of both the person and the situation. That It requires navigating, and engaging in a perceptively intricate dance of power dynamics, diplomacy, and mutual respect. Adaptability is critical throughout one’s career rise. It is important to know which battles to fight and which to move away from.
One thing that left me in despair was when dealing with financial controllers who were unable to marry their obsession with figures with the passion of hospitality. I’ve had my share of dealing with finance guys who were always combative rather than collaborative. To them it was always about the result and not necessarily about how we got there – never mind the environment out there! While it was all exhausting…it helped me ‘sharpen the saw’ to near perfection.
The bedrock, on which I built my charter, for my personal success which included work ethic and adaptability, was to prioritize a ‘work-life’ balance – which at times proved extremely tough to follow. I made an active effort to work on building a positive and encouraging environment in whatever position I held.
Shafeek Wahab – Editor, Hospitality Sri Lanka, Consultant, Trainer, ex-Hotelier
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