Stay Relevant, That’s All

You will be banking on what you already have in term of skills and abilities or what you can offer in the new environment.

You must have read or listened to adverts requesting for applications into some positions within an organisation. Job placement requests for application from individuals possessing relevant skills and experiences for the job openings. Employers are interested in absorbing only persons capable of handling the required roles and responsibilities at the least cost possible for the organisation. An organisation will look forward to the smooth running of the system without interruptions after the process.

The above is one of many applications of the concept of ‘relevance’ to professionalism. According to Merriam Webster’s dictionary, relevant means, “relating to a subject in an appropriate way.” Related words include appropriate, apt,  fit, fitting, suitable, important, meaningful, significant; sensible, useful; admissible, allowable.

As a new employee in an organisation, you will be banking on what you already have in term of skills and abilities or what you can offer in the new environment. You will be using your worth to meet specific needs in the new environment. You want to be rated best in your profession. You want to develop your unique style of doing things. I know you will not want to remain an eighth-century practitioner in your line of business. Similarly, as a business owner or partner, you are collaborating or have collaborated to have a business that consistently meets your customers’ needs any time and every time. You are thinking of competing favourably and outperforming your industry leader, and produce the best product or offer the most appealing service.

You need to make progress as others are doing, but you can prove smarter by going extra miles ahead.

In all the cases, the key is staying relevant, and being on the top of the game. There might be time to get trained in recent development in your field, obtain an additional degree to improve on your skills, and network to be abreast of what is going on in your industry. You need to make progress as others are doing, but you can prove smarter by going extra miles ahead. You cannot do less if you do not want to die while you are still in existence.

How relevant is what you are doing presently to winning the world? How relevant is your skillset to make this possible? How relevant is the energy you are expelling? What is your motivation for doing what you are doing? Know what you are supposed to be doing when you are doing something. In other words, Richard Templar asked, what are you supposed to be doing? What is your priority? What is the endpoint? What is the goal? Has anything changed recently? So, how can you stay relevant?

How to be relevant every time

Rules 1-6: ‘More mastery’, ‘up to date’, ‘more actions’, ‘what others do’, ‘with others’ and ‘clients’ need’

Achieve more mastery: You can gain mastery by consistently improving on your skills and abilities. No time to slack! Situations are not static, you are not expected to remain the same too. Develop interest in what you do and consistently improve on what you can offer. This will enable you to give commensurate values to those you are responsible for or those depending on you for meeting their needs.

Be up to date: The advent of the web has increase access to information. Individuals and organization use information to improve their capacity to meet certain needs. Knowledge has been said to be power. Your knowledge level is the power you have to win in the marketplace. Knowledge will come from the amount of information you can accumulate over time. In a project-based organization, information about the previously implemented projects is used at the planning and implementation stages of current and future project. This shows how relevant is information gathering.

The key to being up to date is knowing what you are supposed to know. You don’t need to know everything. You should know a few details about many things but know many about a few things that are relevant most especially those trending in your industry. Perhaps, Feedly and prominent websites in your industry will help in this area. You should also create time to attend industry events. You need not travel – hookup with webinars on different topics will improve how you work. You should also lookout for new opportunities as you attend events.

Take more actions: Do more than you are doing now to produce results that exceed yesterday’s expectations. Put what you have in motion. Use it to improve it before it becomes absolute and waste the resources of time and money that goes into it.

Know what others do: Somebody said, “If you fear competition, what you really fear is your own competence”. Don’t be afraid to fly on the wings of the eagle. You have other actors in your industry. If you are not the highest-ranked among them, then, you have one or more ahead of you. If person A or business B has found a clue to achieve results on time and with minimum resources, it is not out of place to follow your leader, but you must also strive to think outside your business premises.

Work and walk with others: This is called networking. Taking a step back and looking around you provide the opportunity to seek help and advice on how to make progress. Be delighted and diligent in attending meetings within and outside your organization. This is not limited to formal meetings but also extracurricular social activities that help you develop relationships with people across your organization. This is how to become a star.

Familiarize with clients’ need: Just like your needs changes with time to remain acceptable, the knowledge of clients’ needs is very important. Clients are dominant factors that drive changes in the business world. If a professional knows what they need, he would appropriately utilize the available resources to his benefits. Social media is a great way to stay in touch with clients. It is an avenue for users to express reservation, ask questions and comment on service delivery. With this knowledge, you must be visible and professionally active on social media platforms to keep what you are doing in the front burner. You may need to learn how to use social media or partner with someone that help you in this area.

You can define your rules but be sure they have these ingredients: More mastery of the relevant, up to date, more actions, what others do, with others, and for clients’ need. Kindly share your experience on the job in the comment section and remember to share. This is very relevant!

Proactive, Relevant & Organised

Call him a Pro or Professional. You don’t need not look for him among the elderly in the society or organisation. It is not even all about the experience though this is also very important. So, what image comes to mind? It is the portrait of a person with special training or skills in a particular field that makes him act or perform a piece of work as if he knows everything. He masters the act of achieving results in his endeavours. A professional concentrate on a particular field of human endeavour and give all energy to staying relevant.

You probably hear somebody say, he is a professional photographer or fashion designer. That erases the notion that the skills and expertise of professionals can be gained only in a formal education environment. That is not always the case. Training in the two areas mentioned can both be within a school system and under a trainer. Notwithstanding, those that emerged from years of studies at higher institutions are often associated with a governing body registered by the national government for regulation the profession. They have sets of rules guiding their operations, and members are supposed to comply accordingly. Others have associations though less formal than the later and maybe less subjected to rules and regulation.

A professional is not supposed to act in the realm of the ‘unknown’ in meeting the needs of customers, but this does not mean he should be assuming when he does not ‘know-how’. Therefore, he may need to work with professionals in his or other fields.

He is proactive, always looking out for solutions to emerging issues. This will be a means of personal development to demonstrate his worth. A Pro should also be responsible for his actions and choices, more generally, his decisions.

As a professional, you should be able to act more than expected and must not be an island of knowledge – get to know more and share what is known to increase the reservoir of knowledge and stay relevant.

A combination of competence, confidence and belief in business processes will increase ‘trust-worth’, which invariably will leave a lasting impact on the customers. He should be a two-way actor in business processes. That is, pay attention to customers’ needs and be able to give appropriate feedback. He needs emotional intelligence to get this done and communicate effectively. By doing this, you remain organised to address issues as they come to light.

As you make efforts to be at your best, you will be operating on the path to staying proactive, relevant and organised. Do share your take and experience in the comment section below.

Step Out, We’re Together

It’s a lockdown period! Everyone seems to be indoor. The fear of catching the deadly virus is enough to keep one in, even if there is no enforcement by the government. Expectations on the relaxation of the restrictions are not even on sight, but then life must continue. I must think of what to do.

I remember putting down a few things to achieve in the year. Do you have Vision 2020?. I also have. I wanted to be better than the past years. 2020 must be a new beginning. I am not getting younger, so are the days gradually slipping away. Truthfully, I wrote a statement of commitment, which I supposed will guide my future endeavours. See it here:

I, Aasa Olaoluwa will arise and build; but dazzling sights have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in my life project.

Use what you have

I started well. I launched out by writing a business plan on a life-changing project. I was on fast lane early on while getting the needed advice both within and outside my immediate family. It appears the compulsory holiday is for me since I have always been busy with one activity or the other before then, but this isn’t the case. I am getting tired already. I even misplaced the manuscript at a time, but later found it where it was hiding. Along the line, other ideas emerged, one of which is this reason for this note.

The motivation

I have noticed over time I get to write scripts for presentations or correspondences after getting short notices. Most times, I am impressed with myself (I don’t know if my audience does, but I think they do). When it comes to doing the same for myself, I linger until the idea goes out of reach. I used to have a blog which, was not adequately managed. I later deleted it to begin again, this time more seriously. Not without you !… Smiles! Maybe that’s your story?

The promise

This idea wouldn’t get to fruition without you. Therefore, I call on you to be part of this success story. I wouldn’t want to disappoint you. I must drop something here regularly. I am sure this will benefit you and someone close to you.

Raise the bar

Do you also have a similar story? What are you doing to raise the bar? The time is not always right. All the needed resources may not be available at a given time. You’re not likely to have all the supports from those you trust. The pandemic may not be over very soon, and likewise, the economy may not be fast enough for recovery. The opportunity you have now may be the only one to change your status quo. Succeeding opportunities maybe for other areas of your life not very relevant for the season they come. Will you sit down idle or focus on your past? I call on you to rise with me. Let’s do something different and celebrate our success together. You’re not alone.

Kindly visit the About to have a preview of what to expect as we journey together. I also call on you to share your short story about this period in the comment section. Hoping to read from you soon.

Thank you.