Which Hat Should You Wear?

We are asked to play many different roles at work. On any one day, you might be the details person, the structure person, the challenger, the tone person... the list goes on. For maximum effectiveness, get into the right character from the off.    

When a Smarty is asked to contribute they ask:

‘What role would you like me to play here, in order to help you the most?’

While it’s tempting to jump in and go the extra mile, the true value is always in ensuring you are doing what’s being asked of you.

You may have been invited to go over a document simply to proof it for spelling and grammar. Alternatively, the person who asked for your input may feel you’d be a great fresh pair of eyes to see it from the recipient’s perspective – is anything missing? Will this be understood in different geographies? There are a myriad of reasons you may be brought in. Ask.

If you don’t play your part, at best you’ll irritate your colleague. At worst they’ll know never to ask you again. Ouch.

An excerpt from Harvard-endorsed book, The Smarts: Big Little Hacks to Take You a Long Way at Work, by Saj Jetha (Penguin 2019) available on Amazon.

Saj is founder of the multi-award winning The Smarty Train, a training and talent consultancy with a mission to unlock talent everywhere. www.thesmartytrain.com