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I'm On It!

· Expectations,Performance,Results

When my assistant’s young son occasionally comes with her to work in my home office, we sometimes have some small tasks for him to perform. He loves shredding most of all. When I show him a task – he’s proud to announce: “I’m on it!”

How good is your do-to-say ratio? How do you present yourself to your colleagues, your manager? Can they rely on you to do what you say you will do, perhaps even exceed expectations? One thing that many learned during the pandemic was the necessity to be agile learners and be ready to face the unknown or the unexpected. Another great quality is reliability.

Brett Wilson, the co-founder and former CEO of TubeMogul, was quoted as saying, “particularly in a start-up…you just need people who follow through, and it’s a lot more fun when the people you work with do that. You can count on them, and you can get by with fewer layers of management, communication flows faster.” Andre Durand, co-founder and CEO of Ping Identity, had this to say about what he seeks in a new employee: “It comes down to trust. If you look at the essence of trust, it’s a one-to-one ration between say and do. If over a period of time, I observe a good ratio of someone doing what they say they will do, they will earn my trust. There are some people who are so reliable that I could set my clock by what they say. And then decision and, because I will give them full autonomy: I trust you, make the decision, and go.”

Accountability is also part of this equation; and when it’s missing, it will have a negative impact. Employees who mean it when they say: “I’m on it!” are taking responsibility for their own follow through. They get things done. But be careful as to what you commit to; be sure that you can deliver the expected results and better yet, exceed those expectations. This will also set you apart in a competitive market impacting your career or your business.

“I can give you a six-word formula for success: Think things through - then follow through.” - Eddie Rickenbacker