Story: Growing through Getting Opportunities

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>> Francesca Sadikin: Another story, right? The accumulation of opportunities lead to massive growth. This is something that I have experienced in my own. So, contrasting John's experience, I found that trust-building unlocked countless opportunities, which led to what I perceive to be massive career growth for me. So fresh out of my apprenticeship, I was assigned to a really difficult client project.

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This client was demanding, the requirements were huge in scope, the deadlines were extremely tight and it could not be moved. And my manager made it clear that she didn't believe that I had the skills to be on the team. She actually singled me out and had me tested, and let me know she didn't really trust me.

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So this could have easily gone very badly for me, but instead of getting upset, I just focused on delivering high quality work. And as recommended by my mentors, still try to build strong relationships with my manager and my teammates. And this approach transformed this potentially tough engagement into a success story, and I eventually did earn my manager's trust.

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So one specific example stands out in how I tried to build relationships. So I needed to work with another engineer, let's call him Bob, on something that was totally blocking my project, I really needed his part because my project could not proceed. But he was struggling to get his part done.

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Instead of getting frustrated and angry that he wasn't doing the task, I had a conversation with Bob instead to understand what was going on for him. And he explained that he did understand that this task was really important to me. He did want to help, but he just could not help me in the timeframe I was looking for because he had a bunch of other things that he had to do.

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So hearing this, I spoke with his manager, not to complain, but to see if there was any wiggle room in my task being prioritized instead. And that approach worked, my task got prioritized, my project moved forward, and I maintained a great relationship with Bob, which was important [LAUGH] cuz I needed to continue working with him.

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And this wasn't an isolated incident, I applied the same principle in all of my interactions, essentially always looking for win-win scenarios for everybody involved. So even though, of course, I did run into problems, I ran into blockers, the help I received from these strong relationships allowed me to consistently deliver outstanding work on time.

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All of which eventually earned my manager's trust. And this initial success was crucial for my career, though I didn't know it at the time. By turning a difficult situation into a positive outcome, I began to get assigned to more projects when went back to my home company. And I maintained the same approach on those projects, deliver excellent work while fostering good relationships.

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That looks like, clear communication, supporting teammates whenever I could, looking for those win-win scenarios, helping B me execute projects successfully each time. So each project became an opportunity for growth of my technical skills and larger responsibilities. And then successfully completing those projects then strengthened my reputation, leading to even more opportunities coming my way.

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And so this continuous cycle of trust then opportunities allowed me to accumulate a huge amount of new skills and experiences in a very short amount of time. So when I hit that one year mark at this company, I was like, I'm gonna go for a senior promotion. It's probably unlikely, because I've only been here for a year, but I'm just gonna try it.

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And to my surprise, I had all of these colleagues, ex-managers who eagerly supported and vouched for me. And with their support and the experiences that I had gathered to prove that I could perform at the next level, I got that promotion. And the trusts and the relationships I built continued to open doors for me.

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Opportunities kept coming and I found myself on a fast track, continuously growing and taking on new challenges. So ironically, while I didn't believe in the importance of relationships, they turned out to be the very thing that helped me grow the fastest. So this approach is something that you can use too.

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But intentionally focusing on building trust, you can rapidly grow your skills to take advantage of those opportunities and climb that career ladder quickly. Trust me, it really makes a big difference. That's the end of this story. How do you guys feel? Do you guys relate, agree, disagree? Yeah, I 100% agree, I can't talk specifically about the tech industry roles, cuz I'm still looking for my first opportunity.

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>> Female student 1: But in other work environments, trust is just essential, with both teammates and managers, clients, if you're dealing with them as well, it's very important.
>> Francesca Sadikin: Yes, I know it's not something a lot of software engineers are thinking about in what they think makes a good career, yes.

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>> Male student 1: What qualities do you look for in a manager and want to work for, every manager is toxic, how do you navigate that type of situation?
>> Francesca Sadikin: If a manager is toxic, and what I describe as toxic is, someone who's intentionally pigeonholing you, as in, they're constantly only giving you tasks that limit your abilities.

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I would actually try to transfer to a different team. That's the type of manager who already doesn't really like you, and it's very hard to turn around that narrative. And so, instead of trying to stay there and making it work, I would continue looking for another place that helps you grow instead.

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Now, if your manager is just someone who isn't thinking about it, they're not intentionally getting in your way, but they aren't actively providing you opportunities. Definitely, the managing up scenario applies, where you are now like, okay, hey, I talked to these other engineers, it looks like maybe they need help over there.

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I'd love to help take on some of that responsibility, or you're actively asking managers as well for more opportunities, yes.
>> Male student 1: How did you know you were ready for the next level?
>> Francesca Sadikin: Well, [LAUGH] when I was working on these client engagements, I was working with a lot of other engineers and managers.

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And when I was having these casual conversations with them, they would be like, wait, you're not a senior? And I'm like, no, I'm not. And they're like, you perform at a senior, [LAUGH] you should go for senior promotions. And so I kept getting that feedback, and that's when I was like, I'm just gonna go for it.

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And then I also could tell from working with the managers that I was doing very well. I was meeting their expectations and performing exactly where they wanted me and more. And so I was, okay, I think I am performing at the next level, I'm going to just try it.

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Even if maybe I didn't have enough tenure, years of experience.
>> Male student 1: How do you build these relationships earlier in your career? For instance, if you're trying to find your first opportunity or even still in university,
>> Francesca Sadikin: How do you build those relationships? So it's important to note that when you're starting off, the types of relationships that will eventually lead to opportunities, it's a long game, right?

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You won't see the immediate results, so just keep that in mind, right? They may not immediately refer you. But what I like to do is that I take whatever common context we have. So for example, if it's another engineer or another manager, I actually just go to them with questions or where I'm like, I clearly have done a lot of the work, but I'm really asking for their opinions on something specific.

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I would really wanna hear their thoughts and experiences on this project or problems that we're facing, and then use that as the initial conversation to get them talking with me. And then over time if I feel like that was a really great relationship that he was starting to form, I may be coming back and be like, hey, you told me about that, let me give you an update on that.

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Now the problem is this, what do you think? I'm gonna try this other thing, but I'd love to hear your experience and your opinions on it. And so, slowly over time, you keep using work as the initial set of conversations, that by going into their experience, you're naturally going into a little bit more of their life story.

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And you're eventually gonna see them enough that you've built kind of a natural relationship with them. So that's just one way that I like to do it.
>> Male student 1: Is it possible to avoid problematic people in a more systematic way?
>> Francesca Sadikin: What does problematic people mean in this case?

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>> Male student 1: Or just avoiding problems with people.
>> Francesca Sadikin: Avoiding problems with people, [LAUGH] well, you can never control what another person does, so I try my best to give them the benefit of the doubt. So it's more about how I receive their actions and their behaviors. So for example, I've worked with engineers who are very, very cranky, [LAUGH] they're a little prickly, but I think of it as, well, they're not intentionally trying to be this way.

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Maybe they're stressed or they're just overwhelmed and they just don't have enough time, and that's why they're being a little short with me. I don't let that bother how I respond with them. And I continue being kind and trying to speak with them kindly and just not contribute to the problem, don't trigger the problem even more.

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So to reiterate, the story takeaways of this first set of stories, you need opportunities to learn new skills and take on more responsibilities, all of which becomes evidence of your readiness to move to the next level. You will not be able to get promoted without this type of evidence.

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And so, while some might think opportunities come randomly, and they do, some of them do come randomly, I've learned that they're often also cultivated through the people you work with. So by consistently delivering quality work and being a great partner in these opportunities, you foster that continuous cycle of success and growth, which leads to accelerated career progression.

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>> Francesca Sadikin: Okay, yes, yes.
>> Male student 1: Do you have any tips for acting professional and a team while you have a clash with another teammate?
>> Francesca Sadikin: How to act professional [LAUGH] while you have a clash with the teammates? Definitely, I think, just like friend dynamics, you don't wanna drag your personal problems with someone into a group dynamic [LAUGH].

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And so, if you're having conflict, I think, and this is not something you can resolve through conversations with that actual person. It may be time to bring it up to your managers to help mediate what's going on, because it should be resolved. So yeah, if you can't have the conversation and resolve it together, it's time to step up, managers are there to help mediate this type of issue as well.