How Do You Show Up?
Guest Author: Bill Treasurer
All seasoned consultants have benefited from good mentors. Mine is a guy named Nelson Frye. Nelson and I used to facilitate leadership classes together for Accenture, a large management and technology consulting company.
Nelson spent over 25-years doing organizational development work for Ma Bell, and he is one of those grizzled veterans of the human performance world who has been through everything in from ‘sensitivity training’ to ‘consciousness training.’ Working with Nelson was one of the highlights of my career. We facilitated classes together from Alaska to London, and spending time with him was like having my very own Ben Kenobi! (Minus the light saber!)
During our leadership sessions, Nelson would frequently ask the class participants to think about this question: How do you show up at work? As Nelson explains, ‘showing up’ translates to: How do others perceive you based on your actions and deeds? According to him, there are only three ways of “showing up” at work: Instrumental, Detrimental, or Irrelevant.
Instrumental: When you show up as instrumental you are someone who contributes to the good of the team. Instrumental folks go beyond just identifying problems and search for solutions as well. They are conscientious, reasonable, and cooperative. What’s more, as team members, they try to anticipate the needs of the both the team and its members. As such, Instrumental people try to stay apprised of what is going on in other parts of the organization (and with other teams) so that they can bring value to their team from other places. Above all, being Instrumental means demonstrating personal leadership, that is, being a source of positive influence on those around you.
Detrimental: Detrimental people are folks who continuously complain about what can’t be done. While they are great at identifying problems, they offer no ideas about how to solve them. They are often condescending, dismissive, pessimistic, and out for themselves. Maybe the word that best characterizes a Detrimental person is malcontent; Detrimental people are perpetually dissatisfied. Thus you can never meet their expectations. You’ll know when you leave the presence of a Detrimental person when you feel worse about yourself. For above all, Detrimental people undermine other people’s confidence.
Irrelevant: The problem with Irrelevant people is that they show up by not showing up. The philosophy of these folks is that the person who hides out the longest is the one who wins. Their approach to work is to do just enough to get by – but no more. Consequently, Irrelevant types rarely extend themselves and take few risks. After all, if you are taking a risk, you just may become relevant. Above all, Irrelevant people seek to be invisible.
It is normal to look at these three ways of showing up and start identifying which category that you fall into. But Nelson would say, not so fast! In fact, at one time or another each of us has shown up as all of these people. Plenty of things may affect which posture you choose including the job your doing, the people you work for, the situation you are dealing with, your mood, etc. But over time, we do start to show up as one more than the other two. The point that Nelson likes to drive home is that, over the long haul, only one of these ways of showing up will lead to a successful career…being Instrumental. He also points out that being Irrelevant is really just another way of being Detrimental because, ultimately, you don’t add any additional value to the team.
Whether we like it or not, we are transmitting a lot about ourselves through every interaction we have with others. People learn a lot about us by how we treat our teammates, colleagues, or clients. The best way to be Instrumental (and to prevent yourself from being Detrimental or Irrelevant) is to continually ask yourself, How am I showing up at work!?
For additional tips on consulting skills, consider The Facilitative Consultant, the three-day, skills building training course from Leadership Strategies. You may also purchase the course manual from www.leadstrat.com/.
Bill Treasurer is CEO of Giant Leap Consulting and author of Right Risk: 10 Powerful Principles for Taking Giant Leaps in Your Life. Bill is a member of the Leadership Strategies Core Team of facilitators, providing training and consulting services across the nation.
