This document discusses strategies for career success in technical leadership roles. It recommends choosing the right role and focusing on deliberate practice to improve skills rather than following passion. It emphasizes developing rare and valuable skills through goals and practice. For success, it suggests managing relationships well, building trust over time through contributions and reciprocity. Having the right attitude of bringing solutions, empathy and coaching others is important. Overall career success comes from having the right strategy, achieving results, building influence and maintaining a positive attitude.

1. Kate Matsudaira, Principal / Urban Influence / @katemats
TECHKNOWLEDGE - JANUARY 2016
YOUR CAREER SUCCESS FORMULAand the conundrum of technical leadership

2. What happened to merit?

3. No. 1

4. No. 2

5. No. 3

6. No. 4

7. The new world of tech

8. STRATEGY

9. Choose the right game to play

10. Following your passion is for suckers

11. Craftsman
Mindset*
* For more on this topic you should read
So Good They Can’t Ignore You by Cal Newport

12. Deliberate practice

13. …chess players at the highest skill level (i.e.
grandmasters) expended about 5000
hours on serious study alone during their
first decade of serious chess play — nearly
five times the average amount reported by
intermediate-level players.
Published in 2005 in Applied Cognitive Psychology Journal

14. Do you have a target?

15. MAKINGIT
WORKFORYOU
• Make a list of the skills you have
(or could have) that are rare and
valuable.
• What would it take for you be the
best in the world at your job?
These are your GOALS.
• Carve out time for deliberate
practice and learning.

16. RESULTS

17. Work on the
right things

18. Fill in the gaps

19. Manage your manager

20. Not all bosses
are good ones

21. If a tree falls in the forest, does it make a sound?

22. Send your status
in email

23. Deliver on your commitment

24. Be on time

25. Make the most of your time

26. • Manage your manager - have
regular meetings and ask good
questions.
• Share your status. Make your
work known.
• Be on time.
• Work hard and make the most of
your time.
MAKINGIT
WORKFORYOU

27. INFLUENCE

28. Influence comes from power

29. what is power?

30. 3SOURCESOFPOWER

31. Expertise

32. Charisma

33. Relationships

34. Trust

35. Hours?
Features?
Documentation
Mentoring
Operations
Maintainability
Innovation & new ideas
Quality
Recruiting
Collaboration
HOWDOYOUASSESSPERFORMANCE?

36. HOWDOYOUJUDGEPERFORMANCE?

37. What is trust?

38. Build trust

39. Relationship
Architecture
Reputation
Contribution
Elements are based on Kay’s framework from the “Foundations of Corporate Success”
Elements of trust

40. 1. Who are the most influential
people at your work?
2. Who do you spend the most
time with?
MAKETWOLISTS

41. Relationships are like filmstrips

42. Rebuild burned bridges

43. Reciprocity

44. Focus on the long term

45. Where does success come from?

46. Infinite power
influence

47. • How can you build better
relationships?
• Expand your relationship
architecture: make connections
with influential people outside
your team.
MAKINGIT
WORKFORYOU

48. ATTITUDE

49. YOU AMAZING YOU

50. • Do they work more hours?
• Do they have more knowledge?
• How are they different?
IMAGINE

51. IT’SNOTJUSTABOUTWHATYOU
DO,BUTHOWYOUDOIT.

52. Be someone people want to work with

53. • Who is the person you admire
most at work?
• What do they do differently?
• How do they make you feel?
IMAGINE

54. Be open

55. Bring solutions

56. Empathy with a
positive attitude

57. • Reverse
• Long term
• Chance to grow
REFRAME

58. Make others feel
important

59. Authenticity
Desire to
improve
Humility to
take feedback
Be coachable

60. • How are you coming to work?
• Be present.
• Ask for feedback and then just
say thank you instead of
explaining.
MAKINGIT
WORKFORYOU

61. Mickey and Oprah eating a chess-themed cake?

62. STRATEGY+RESULTS+INFLUENCE
+ATTITUDE=SUCCESS

63. Kate Matsudaira, Principal / Urban Influence / @katemats
HOW CAN I HELP YOU?