Have you ever let pride sabotage your career? "Robert," was a successful TV news anchor who worked in a good-sized TV market. Robert had the classic anchor looks as well as deep booming voice. But he was frustrated that he was unable to move up a better job, which would involve working in a larger city for a much larger paycheck.
Robert’s problem was that he didn’t work much on the craft of anchoring. His delivery could be a bit flat and robotic. Imagine how someone with a good voice would sound reading something dull like a phone book. Robert was good at his job but not great enough to go to the next level.
Station management wanted to help him and his co-anchors improve their delivery, which in turn could help boost ratings, so they brought in an anchoring coach. The coaching wouldn’t cost Robert anything and it was understood that if he improved at his craft, he might get a job elsewhere.
At the first coaching session, all of the anchors watched a recent newscast with the coach. After seeing one of Robert’s snooze inducing segments, he asked him a question. “Can you see how some people may think that your delivery is a little dry?”
Robert was visibly shaken by the comment and replied, “I’m not one of those people who watches tapes of myself anchoring.” He pointed at some of his younger colleagues and said, “That’s something they do.”
The coach paused a moment and in a quiet voice said, “Then how do you think you’re going to get better if you don’t see what you need to improve. The reason why some of your former colleagues aren’t here is because they did what they needed to do to improve their technique.”
Robert was silent for the rest of the meeting. He never took the coach’s advice. Robert stayed at his same job for a few more years until he retired from the TV business and went to work in a different field. Although he continued to apply for bigger and better positions, he never could separate himself from the other applicants.
Here’s what Robert taught me:
- Raw talent can only take you so far. Talent plus hard work equals excellence.
- Criticism can hurt the ego but it may be right.
- It’s important to frequently evaluate your strengths and weaknesses and improve on both.
- Remember, if you’re not working to improve yourself, someone else out there is and they’ll get the job.
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