Why Working Twice as Hard Could be the Fatal Flaw to Earning Six Figures
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Posted By: Ryan Pack on April 02, 2017 Please see my article that was originally published in The Huffington Post where I share the techniques that enabled me to succeed in Corporate America and earn the coveted six figures in a career I was truly passionate about. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/why-wo... **This article was originally published in The Huffington Post** By: Ryan Pack This is what I heard growing up: You will need to work twice as hard and be twice as good at work and in school just to run your race in life. This one belief was nearly my undoing to being successful in the corporate arena as a black woman in America. For decades, the “Work Twice As Hard” mantra has been ingrained in the minds of people of color all across the country. Shouldering this burden held me locked in bondage and nearly burned me out. Having to wear the mask and carry 500 years of lingering resentment held me to an impossible self-imposed standard that served as a major road block on my pathway to earning six-figures. I conjecture that shouldering the burden of Working Twice As Hard has had debilitating ramifications for organizations. In today’s fast changing economy, innovation is the crux of success. One of the core ways to drive innovation is through diversity. A recent study published by McKinsey supported that diversity has a powerful impact on the bottom line (namely earnings before taxes), race more so than gender. [Related: Be the Diversity You Seek] However, could the “Work Twice As Hard” belief be holding many African-American peak performers back? If so, what can we do about it? According to recent research published by Guilford College professor Richard Zweigenhaft, blacks only made up 2.6 percent of executives within reach of the C-Suite in 2015. I believe the Twice As Good belief is robbing blacks from having enough proverbial gas in the tank to go the distance, to demonstrate all they can do for a business for a long enough time to ascend the ranks. Their mistaken belief about the unhealthy lengths to which they must stress themselves has them focused on the wrong game. Working Twice As Hard leads to overly perfectionistic tendencies, and often burnout. The “Twice As…” mindset stymies collaboration due to the festering undertones of resentment towards non-minority co-workers. Feelings of frustration and unfulfillment grow as some minorities see other “less qualified” co-workers ascending the ranks. Unfortunately, one never wins when you’re focused on the wrong game. Moreover, this self-limiting mentality clogs up prime mental real estate that could be focused on delivering more creative, imaginative, and effective solutions for our organizations. There are abundant opportunities for corporate leaders to guide their people out of this mental prison. Instead of black professionals holding back ideas for fear of being chastised if the perfect solution isn’t presented, imagine if organizations openly embraced an all-brains-on-deck culture that encouraged novel ideas. Coaching by organizational senior leaders would cause many cause many secret geniuses to express their transformative ideas. I fortunately had a few corporate leaders who happened to be white that had mastered the techniques of compassionate-while-critical career coaching. Their commitment to giving me an opportunity to grow allowed me to thrive. I offered innovative ideas that significantly impacted the bottom line, and therefore cultivated the requisite self-confidence to continue taking risks and growing. [Related: Black History Month: Female Role Models] Perhaps the most damaging aspect of the “Twice As…” mindset is that it undermines the required self-confidence demanded of senior leaders today. African-American women are the most educated group in the U.S., ranking as the number one group of new college enrollees per the 2013 US Census Bureau. They are outpacing the college and graduate degree attainment of black men. However, black women are still earning only 91% of what black men earn and only 64% of what white men earn. There are obviously personal and institutional elements involved. In the end, we can only control ourselves. Despite all of the letters behind their name, the deeply rooted feelings of inadequacy harbored by many black women are lurking behind the shadows of their prideful mask. To combat these misgivings, I highly recommend individuals make the major shifts that led me to earn six-figures in corporate America in a dream role in which I was passionate and fulfilled. 1) Radical Honesty a. People, especially black women, need to give themselves permission to clearly outline what it is that they really want from life and their careers. How much do they really want to earn? What is the ideal work environment? Setting a clearly defined goal helps one to chart the path. b. They need to be brutally honest and own responsibility for where they are and more importantly where they are not in their careers. This is a defining moment on the quest to owning one’s Power. c. Take a clear assessment to determine if they are fully showing up in their present roles or if they are focused on playing the wrong game. 2) Genuine Attitude a. Too often we are told that a positive attitude is enough. As a former perfectionist who wore the “perfect Polly positive” mask, I now see this held me back from striking genuine connection with co-workers and teams. In reality, I was harboring the resentment of having to be Twice As Good. I never wanted to reveal a chink in the armor for fear of it holding me back in my career. b. A positive attitude is not enough. Leaders of tomorrow need a genuine attitude, which requires authenticity, imagination, vision, spirit of increase, gravitas, and true presence. 3) Intentional Intervals a. There is no way humanly possible to magically increase the number of hours in the week. Black people, and all people, need to dismiss the mindset of working Twice As Hard. Just work hard and focus on being a person of excellence, a top performer regardless of age, race, gender, or creed. b. “Head-down, work-hard” is not the way to ascend the golden ladder. Working more efficiently and effectively is. Moreover, embracing intentional intervals allows one to push hard on the high-visibility projects that enhance your corporate network and propel your personal brand as one who consistently delivers effective results. 4) Invest in a Mentor a. To identify one’s blind spots and limitations with more ease, I highly recommend black women in particular invest in a mentor external to the organization. Again, this worked magic for me. Not only can investing in an external mentor increase awareness of limiting beliefs hidden from your conscious mind, it can offer a fresh perspective of how to effectively tackle organizational challenges. Moreover, having an external sounding board can be an effective technique to build additional self-confidence. b. Lastly, although the concepts described above are simple to state, implementation can be challenging. To ascend the ranks with more ease and efficiency, it is wise to work with someone that has been there before to serve as an expert guide. These 4 major shifts helped me to uncover my hidden power to close multi-million dollar deals, lead global teams, and ascend the ranks in a role that I was truly passionate about. I embraced the person of excellence I was meant to be — all while earning the coveted six-figures in the process. — Ryan Pack is a results driven businesswoman and success coach with experience ranging from sales for a Fortune 500 company to closing quarter of a billion dollar deals in pharma. She is President of Impackt Squared Solutions, a provider of innovative training solutions that delivers exponential results for companies and individuals alike. She leads a high- performance group coaching program “Six Figure Spirit”(www.sixfigurespirit.com) that helps diverse professionals unlock the code on how to earn six-figures in corporate America Without Working Twice As Hard. References: If you enjoyed this article, Join HBCU CONNECT today for similar content and opportunities via email! |
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