3 Key Skills of the Anywhere Worker

Isolation. As human beings we all struggle to balance connectedness and individuality. If we venture too far into connectedness we may feel we loose our individuality. If we pull back too far into individuality we feel isolation. For the Anywhere Worker, this isolation takes a particular form. One of the most common obstacles the Anywhere Worker faces is what I like to call OOSOOM. It stands for out-of-sight-out-of-mind. We have all felt the impact of this condition at one time or another. Whether you work in an office and your boss works in another town (or country); in your home office; or at cafes and community WIFI locations; you have experienced the OOSOOM effect. OOSOOM includes: being left out of an impromptu meeting at the ‘office;’ not being considered or thought of for a project just because you were not the first person the boss saw at the office; not getting the latest draft of the presentation your team is delivering next week to the governance group; and many other omissions from the location influenced communication habits of your organization.

So what does an Anywhere Worker due to overcome this type of isolation? There are 3 (three) skills to develop:

1. Connect. Take responsibility. Reach out your (virtual) hand to shake the other person’s. Who is the other person? Your stakeholders: your boss, your boss’s boss,  your co-workers, the office manager, the IT team that supports you, the project team members of both your projects and projects of interest, the functional group that uses the information you provide and so on. First, make a list of all of your stakeholders.  Think of those you directly and indirectly influence. Consider those who influence your ability to get your work done. Answer the question: ‘Who are my clients.’  Make sure a person’s name is listed and not a department or project name. This is all about human to human connections. Second, next to each name, identify how to best connect with that person (email, phone, IM, other). Now for skill #2.

2. Communicate. Take action. Once you know who to connect with and how to reach them, it’s time to communicate. Each person has their own communication style and preferences (as do you). Understanding those preferences is key to getting your message heard. Take the time to understand your style and that of your key stakeholders. One way is to simply ask your stakeholders how they want to communicate with you. Questions you may consider: What form of communication do they prefer (email, phone, txt); How much detail do they need?; How often should you communicate (daily, weekly, as needed)? Another way to understand communication styles, especially with multiple stakeholders, is to tap into the Power of LIFO. Life Orientations is a strengths based system of understanding and utilizing your strengths and preferences to connect, communicate with and increase your productivity with those around you. With strategies and tools at your fingertips, you can turn a strained communication relationship into an effective and efficient interaction.

3. Collaborate. Add value. Communicating with your stakeholders is step closer to being a productive part of the team. To increase your stakeholders’ awareness (and thus reducing OOSOOM syndrome) you need to add value through collaboration. To successfully collaborate you need to build on the communication styles and understand your own and your team’s work styles. Who has the strength of analytics? Who is great with building relationships? Who is great at getting the team into action? Who will manage the quality of the work? Knowing this about yourself is the first step in being able to collaborate successfully and productively with your work team. Again, the Power of LIFO will help you to identify your areas of strength and give you tools to balance those strengths in the best way for you and your team. Once you recognize your own strengths in your behaviors, you will be able to recognize others’ strengths. You are on your way to effective and efficient collaboration.

Connect. Communicate. Collaborate. These three key skills of the Anywhere Worker are valuable not only to those that have distance between them and their colleagues. They are keys for any professional. Three keys – numerous applications. Are you connecting with the right people to achieve your goals? Are you using a communication style that helps your message be heard? Are you utilizing your strengths in your life of business and business of life? Take a moment and consider the truth.

~Linda

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