Part III, Conclusion - What now?

A serial of the book...

Wed, 05/01/2013 - 16:08

Tom Dowd is the author of two award-winning business books, "The Transformation of a Doubting Thomas: Growing from a Cynic to a Professional in the Corporate World" and "From Fear to Success: A Practical Guide to Public-Speaking."

Tom Dowd

During his inconsistent first 20 years in a business environment, Tom Dowd learned lessons, both positive and negative, which transformed into shared professional success. The experiences guide readers to differentiate themselves and enable them to work smarter—not harder—to thrive in corporate chaos that, due to the current economic conditions, has taught the employed and unemployed alike to simply try to survive.

Following is the next chapter in Dowd's book, The Transformation of a Doubting Thomas: Growing from a cynic to a professional in the corporate world. Earlier chapters are linked at the end.

Part III Conclusion

What Now?

So I have laid out over twenty years of my professional lessons for you. You now see the many mistakes I have made, and the arduous chore it was to make the vulnerable decision to open up and be willing to learn from them. I have changed for the better. Whether others believe that statement or not isn't important. It is how I feel about myself. I feel that my transformation has made me a better colleague, a better worker, a better leader, a better manager, a better teacher, a better learner, and, more importantly, a better person. I feel less stressed each day that I come into work, because I have the confidence to take it all on. I have my bad days like everyone else. But, I have more good days than bad. I have a confidence level that I have never had before and feel like I have built a network of people who believe in my abilities.

I have to admit that my original thoughts to write this book were just a dream—and not one of those childhood dreams that I always wanted to do. I had just lost a big Toastmasters competition in Canada. I use the word "lost" because it was a competition, but in reality, I won big. I had great enjoyment around the conference portion of that weekend, during which I met many great people, some of whom even thought I was a life coach. I got caught up in telling people how much I had grown over the years. I enthusiastically shared my transformational experiences based on how much I had learned from my mistakes.

I was so impressed with my competitors. I asked the winner, Joey Grondin, if he would be my mentor and help me develop my speeches. He graciously said yes, and we continued to build on our relationship. The next day, I also won a door prize: Joey's book and CD. Call it fate or coincidence that I won a prize that would provide me more confidence. I am not talking about the material items. I am talking about the newly forged relationship that would continue to evolve. As a result of that relationship, I have been given more encouragement to go further than my previous comfort level ever allowed.

I had already been planting the seeds of a book over the past couple of years with many of my speech topics. I had also invested time in mentoring more people and building my own library of teaching materials designed to improve others' communication skills, leadership skills, time management skills, and other professional development needs. The book became a consolidated view of all that I had been trying to share with others. I went for a routine run one day, and simply ran through the door to the computer and put together my outline. The outline turned into a vision and mission, and turned into all the lessons I have learned in my career. Let's revisit both and see where we land.

My vision for writing this book is to provide a simple-to-follow, written guide for professionals hoping to develop their skills in a multitude of areas including communication, leadership, organization, and networking. The lessons are based on my own professional experiences over more than twenty years in a corporate environment. I want to utilize my experiences gained from work, my membership in Toastmasters International (a group of 270,000 world-wide members looking to improve their communication and leadership skills) and the National Speakers Association, and from the epiphanies I have experienced by teaching a professional development series. In addition to my normal job responsibilities, I started investing time with emerging leaders and experienced managers a couple years ago in an attempt to teach my lessons to others. I want to spread those teachings to a broader audience.

My mission is to create an easy-to-read guide that will motivate and inspire you to take the steps to transform yourself. I want you to improve your professional experiences and increase the positive impacts you have on the people around you. Whether you are working in a small business or a large corporation, you will be able to apply these examples and teachings to your situation. Whether you are a manager, an entry-level employee just joining a company, someone struggling to get through the daily grind, or a professional striving to reach the heights of your career, there will be something in here for you. The book will navigate through key teaching moments from my professional life and offer you a simple reference guide for better organizing your professional life and effectively maneuvering through the complexities of communication, relationship building, and organization.

Tom has more than 20 years of experience in the financial industry in management and leadership roles, and runs his own business, Thomas Dowd Professional Development & Coaching, as a speaker, author, trainer and coach. Tom developed a series of management presentations into a speaking program called "Powerful Professional Transformation: Unleashing Leadership." The speaking engagements turned into "The Transformation of a Doubting Thomas: Growing from a Cynic to a Professional in the Corporate World," a book detailing Tom's own professional growth based on lessons learned in his career. "Transformation" received honorable mention in the business category at the 2012 New England Book Festival. Tom has since written his second book "From Fear to Success: A Practical Public-speaking Guide."

Tom is currently the vice president of education for Dirigo Toastmasters Club in Belfast. Toastmasters International is a supportive learning environment of more than 270,000 members worldwide looking to improve communication and leadership skills. As a founding member of the club, Tom has been involved in Toastmasters since September 2008. Tom holds advanced communication and advanced leadership certifications with Toastmasters International, including High Performance Leadership certification. In November 2011, Tom was selected as the District 45 Toastmaster of Year, which represents more than 100 clubs in the states of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire and the three Eastern Canadian Provinces of Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Tom has also exhibited consistent success when competing at the division (state level equivalent) and district levels in Toastmasters speech contests, which include humorous, inspirational, impromptu and evaluation events. He was the Table Topics Impromptu 2012 District Champion. Additionally, he is a member of the National Speakers Association and a member of the Camden Lions Club.

Tom graduated from the University of Delaware in 1990 with a Communication degree, concentrating on interpersonal and organizational communication.

Tom currently lives in Camden with his wife and three daughters.

I set out to teach you the wisdom left on my doorstep either through self-awareness (over long periods of time in some cases) or through shared lessons from people I now emulate. I intentionally wrote "now" since I had thought cynically of many of them in the past or did not respect them as I do now. Even in situations when there was a barrier I could not break through with someone, whether it was due to different styles or personality clashes, I have looked back and learned something from that situation in my professional career.

My cynicism held me back. The concepts in this book are so simple in nature, yet were so complex to add to my everyday thinking and everyday belief system. I know that I am no rocket scientist, but I am a proud employee of twenty plus years. Hard work has not paid off as much as smart work. I am so appreciative of the people who have touched my professional life, including the individuals bold enough to stare me in the face and say I needed to improve. That includes the person in the mirror who became strong enough to say, "It's time for a change. It's time to make a difference for myself and others. It's time to transform."

The list of my lessons is not all-inclusive because I don't know where it is going to end. Learning is a constant process and should never cease. I was convinced I would never need to take another class after I left college. In a conversation during one of my rotational mentor programs, I was told that my thirst for knowledge could take me to my MBA and beyond. I was being pushed to take the next step in my education. I spent several days thinking about my response to him. I came back and said, "Thanks, but no thanks." My response was not because I wouldn't gain from additional scholastics, but I felt I would sacrifice putting my heart and soul into learning as much as possible of the business I had sitting in front of me. I had an entire ocean of learning and I was only at the shore about to dive in. The concept of transforming me further was starting to gain momentum at this time, and I still feel I made the right decision, for now. I am not done because I am far from perfect, but I am excited for the road ahead. I have grown from a cynic to someone thirsty for what comes next.

I have found a long career with the same company to be a great reward. Whether you have had the same job, worked with the same company, or moved around regularly, you are doing it to find the right moves for you. Even if a decision was made for you, I am a firm believer that things happen for a reason. The reason is usually dictated by the fact that you have done the right things leading up to it, whether it is through your own preparation or meeting the right people.

I had an uncle who worked for a company in system technology for many years. Besides being an extremely loyal person, he was a nice guy. The economy caused his job to be eliminated. He graciously went out without stepping on any toes, and actually took calls from his previous colleagues on "how to do more with less" for jobs in which his old peers had no expertise. He had lain the groundwork years before with his leadership and job knowledge. He knew patience and timing would eventually pay off. They did. He was offered his old job back because they couldn't do it without him. However, the nice guy took some cues from the "you not only want me" mentality; he went down the "you really need me" path and asked for more than he originally had. It was a fair assessment and he knew he did not need to roll over. He learned a little about himself and the corporate world during his time off and deserved everything on top of what he'd had when he left.

I also had a friend who was caught up in job cuts. He was told he needed to either find a position he was qualified for in a department where there were openings within the company, or he would lose his existing job within forty-five days. He had the support of friends and colleagues convinced he was good for the company. Together, the whole network was on the move to ultimately find him something that ended up being a position where he had greater responsibility. It is funny how things work out with a little effort and a great support system. Although we all have 20/20 hindsight about mistakes made in the past, we still have luxury of looking forward to the next challenge of the unknown that may have previously caused fear.

Personality, emotion, politics, and corporate culture may get in the way of our transformation, but we can eventually get there. Regardless of your generation, experience, or current position, you are in a position to become better and stronger. The vision and mission were to provide you with some tangible examples and lessons to strengthen yourself in a way that was easy to grasp. I have had my vision clouded in the past, but feel the importance of this mission to move it forward. When I ask, "What now?" I am asking myself and you. I'm sure I have plenty of new lessons I could toss into a new book, but the path has yet to be shown. I will continue to teach, and more importantly, learn.

I will be impatiently patient in driving my performance, my growth, and my lessons learned. I even have to ensure I take my own advice. In 2010, I was tapped on the shoulder as a potential candidate in a business that I had never been in before. I was excited to learn a new business. I was pulled in two directions, since I had been in my current role for less than nine months. I loved what I was doing. I loved my boss, and I found myself fascinated by the dynamic nature of the current business.

I went through the interviews quickly because there seemed to be an urgency placed on the requests. Yet, after those interviews, which I personally thought had gone well, the communications went silent. It did not make sense. Although putting my name in the ring was a well-thought-out decision that included discussions with my family about the potential impact to my hours (most likely having to work West Coast hours while on the East Coast), there was still some excitement attached to the potential of fulfilling a goal when it came to the level of responsibilities I would have taken on.

The extra time allowed me to rethink my decision. I had to repeat to myself: I loved what I was doing. I loved my boss, and I found myself fascinated by the dynamic nature of the current business. I had just answered my own question. Although I felt surrounded by great people in the current role, they had made it clear that they would never hold me back from growing. This felt good to hear. They had my back and had even offered to make calls on my behalf to get me the new position. I felt that I would be cutting my learning curve short if I left at that point. I decided to stay for selfish reasons, because I was surrounded with a cast of people dedicated to becoming leaders in the industry, all of whom were seeing the bigger picture. I wanted to be a part of that vision. I was willing to take my chances to grow and be a little more patient. This one was a clear decision in staying to do what I love while allowing myself to continue to be challenged. Ironically, in a "Wait three month" sort of way, I was offered an expanded role that I couldn't refuse shortly after that decision. It was in a field in which I was an expert, it was a start-up operation, and I could build my own organization. I left my old team behind with a sense of loyalty and pride, knowing that they were there for me, and I approached the new job with fervor for making a difference in the overall organization. I saw a bright future in my new role, in which I could use my strengths and play off my past lessons.

I now have an inside-out view of my future. I have spent too much time in my past pushing people away and blaming the powers that be for my failures. The internalization of assessing my own failures is enlightening. I have become addicted to making myself better, and have taken to asking advice of anyone willing to hear the question, "What can I do to make myself better?" I am dependent on co-workers, family, friends, mentors, Toastmasters, strangers (rotational mentors), and people who work for and with me to provide critical feedback that I am responsible for integrating into my growth. I am the proud owner of feedback and carefully have to take the actions necessary to truly benefit from it.

You have just taken part in the journey of who I am professionally. I get the luxury of the therapy attached to draining all of my thoughts, opinions, stories, and lessons learned onto the blank page. Many of my frustrations bubbled up after years of repressed memories, while others flooded out way too quickly. I hope the common sense aspect hits home—though I know that "Hope won't win the game without a game plan. Take action." My action plan is the book. It is my guide to reinforcing what I need to practice each day. I am not a shoot-to-the-top employee. I am a loyal, dedicated senior leader of a company, who is confident enough to say I have earned everything I have gotten, and earned everything I didn't get.

The experience in organizing the many random thoughts that have filled my mind for years was a lesson itself in ensuring I believed what I was saying. The experience will have a lasting impact in understanding whether I can effectively influence and persuade just one person to take action. I already have, because I am moving forward more effectively than before. I am appreciative of everyone who helped me through my personal and professional life to realize I have not peaked yet and my potential is still waiting to be fulfilled.

Cynicism is contagious, if you allow it. So is inspiration and motivation. I had two roads to look down, and I chose the path of transformation. I am not a life coach, nor do I want to pretend to be one. I am someone who has passion burning in me that needed to be released in a targeted fashion that would do well for my own self-motivated reasons, while at the same time being good for any business and people within an organization. I am the former, or recovering, "Doubting Thomas" who now believes in the ability of people to transform their negativity to something positive. I am humbled to admit my mistakes and willing to shout what I have learned from the rooftops. I still haven't answered the question, "What now?" What I want to do now is be better today than I was yesterday, and continue to make the transformation toward someone I want to be. When I am done, I'm going to do it all over again.

Previous chapters: