Leaderly Quote: Differentiate Yourself
By Jo Miller
What does it take to thrive when you work in a highly competitive team?
When a participant asked that question in my recent webinar, Finding Your Voice, panelist Monali Jain leapt at the opportunity to offer some guidance.
Jain has spent her career working in high-performing, highly competitive teams in roles that include software engineering, technology leadership, angel investing and consulting. “I’m working on a two-hundred-million-dollar project right now,” she said. “Everybody who is on the team is very competitive; that’s why they’re there.”
Jain offered this advice for thriving in these fast-paced environments. “Differentiate yourself so that you can complement others, not compete with them,” says Jain. “When you’re in a competitive team, it means you’re there to collaborate. You’re there to help each other and complement each other.”
You might feel intimidated by the team at first, but you’re there for a reason. You’ve met the price of admission, so figure out what you can do differently to other team members that will be a uniquely valuable contribution.
The next webinar in the Emerging Women Leaders webinar series takes place on June 23, 2015. The topic is Stretch Assignments and High Profile Projects. Learn more or register.
Jo Miller
A leading authority on women’s leadership, Jo Miller is a sought-after, dynamic, and engaging speaker, delivering more than 70 speaking presentations annually to audiences of up to 1,200 women. Her expertise lies in helping women lead, climb, and thrive in their corporate careers. Jo has traveled widely in Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East to deliver keynotes and teach workshops for women’s leadership conferences, women’s professional associations, and Fortune 1000 corporate women’s initiatives. Jo is founding editor of BeLeaderly.com. Learn more about her speaking engagements at www.JoMiller.net and follow @Jo_Miller on Twitter.
By Jo Miller
What does it take to thrive when you work in a highly competitive team?
When a participant asked that question in my recent webinar, Finding Your Voice, panelist Monali Jain leapt at the opportunity to offer some guidance.
Jain has spent her career working in high-performing, highly competitive teams in roles that include software engineering, technology leadership, angel investing and consulting. “I’m working on a two-hundred-million-dollar project right now,” she said. “Everybody who is on the team is very competitive; that’s why they’re there.”
Jain offered this advice for thriving in these fast-paced environments. “Differentiate yourself so that you can complement others, not compete with them,” says Jain. “When you’re in a competitive team, it means you’re there to collaborate. You’re there to help each other and complement each other.”
You might feel intimidated by the team at first, but you’re there for a reason. You’ve met the price of admission, so figure out what you can do differently to other team members that will be a uniquely valuable contribution.
The next webinar in the Emerging Women Leaders webinar series takes place on June 23, 2015. The topic is Stretch Assignments and High Profile Projects. Learn more or register.
Jo Miller
A leading authority on women’s leadership, Jo Miller is a sought-after, dynamic, and engaging speaker, delivering more than 70 speaking presentations annually to audiences of up to 1,200 women. Her expertise lies in helping women lead, climb, and thrive in their corporate careers. Jo has traveled widely in Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East to deliver keynotes and teach workshops for women’s leadership conferences, women’s professional associations, and Fortune 1000 corporate women’s initiatives. Jo is founding editor of BeLeaderly.com. Learn more about her speaking engagements at www.JoMiller.net and follow @Jo_Miller on Twitter.
