My Blog Ulterior Motives

Competence, Confidence, Caring

“I once sat through a three-day training session in our company, and this was for new managers, very capable people who were ready for a big step up. I counted, over three days, 68 things that we told them they needed to do to be successful, everything from how you coach and mentor, your annual reviews, filling out these forms, all this stuff.

And I got up to close the session, and I’m thinking about how it isn’t possible for these people to remember all this. So I said there are three things that matter. The first is competence — just being good at what you do, whatever it is, and focusing on the job you have, not on the job you think you want to have. The second one is confidence. People want to know what you think. So you have to have enough desirable self-confidence to articulate a point of view. The third thing is caring. Nothing today is about one individual. This is all about the team, and in the end, this is about giving a damn about your customers, your company, the people around you, and recognizing that the people around you are the ones who make you look good.” - William Green

I read this quote as I started at my first job five years ago, and it really resonated with me. It was from the Accenture CEO at the time.

Whenever possible, I try to remember Competence, Confidence, Caring. Most importantly, I try to remember to never be overwhelmed. We can accomplish anything when we stay focused and work together.

Full interview here.

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