Intelligence isn't Enough: Book Review

When we begin the journey of our careers, most of us don’t know what we are doing. We try to figure it out as we go and sometimes actually never do. That leads to us aimlessly pursuing our careers. Intelligence Isn’t Enough by Carice Anderson answers the questions you may have but never ask because you hope you’ll eventually figure it out on your own. This book also offers advice on aspects you never really think matter.

A whole new world

First things first, what is work really about? Is it all about working hard and delivering excellent results? Nope, the essence of the work experience is described by the author as an opportunity meant for learning and managing who you are and what is important to you, building and maintaining relationships with others and discovering and navigating the organisational culture - all while working hard and delivering excellent results.

Now that we understand what work is about, this experience is customised by your “WHY”. Have you ever thought of work and said, “Is this all that my work life will be?” Perhaps that thought stems from the futile pursuit of your career. What is your WHY? Why did you particularly choose that role - the reasoning may seem trivial and invalid to others but it actually matters. Your WHY will determine the sacrifices you will be willing to make to achieve your goals. When you look at the sacrifices you need to make at work through the lens of your WHY, it makes them meaningful, it gives them purpose This prevents you from becoming resentful, bitter and angry towards your work and co-workers. Take some timeout to write out your WHY and have it displayed where you can see it often. This will serve as a reminder on those days when the sacrifices you make don’t seem worth it.

Once your WHY is established, you have already set your foot forward in taking ownership of your professional and personal development. Taking ownership is more than just taking responsibility for your work. You need to understand what is expected from you at work - with regards to your performance, conduct and interactions with your co-workers. Don’t be afraid to ask around. Consider asking someone to coach you if you do not already have one. This can be an individual you work closely with who is able to provide you with feedback on your performance, conduct and interactions with others. Feedback is vital as it will highlight areas that are your strong points - which allow you to produce excellent results and areas of improvement which delve into your personal development. You need to work on yourself personally to improve yourself professionally. This requires intentionality, where you are not just self-aware but develop a plan of action, ways to measure improvement, and adhering to that plan all for the growth of your career.

When you have taken ownership of your professional and personal development, you are more likely to be an impactful individual. Impact in the workplace includes the difference or improvement you make and the value you add to your teams, organisation, clients and customers. Your impact is showcased by your performance, contributions, outputs, outcomes, deliverables and/or daily efforts. If being impactful is important to you, you need to ask yourself this question: How can I best equip and position myself to be as impactful as I'd like to be? This will enable you to identify the gap between your current position and where you’d like to be and develop and implement a plan to bridge it.

As you work with your co-workers, you realise how different they are, their approach in completing work tasks and their life perspectives. At times this causes you to see their deficiencies and because as people we are inclined to believe that the way we do things is right and better than others, we judge those who are different from us. In reality, a great team consists of individuals with unique skills, perspectives, gifts and talents. Therefore, it is beneficial for the team and yourself to embrace your uniqueness and that of others. It allows you to stand out without feeling the need to compete and compare yourself with your co-workers.

People matter

Building and maintaining relationships with your co-workers is not about getting them to like you. It's about having a mutually beneficial relationship where each individual adds value in one way or another to the other. When this type of relationship is established, both individuals are able to count on the other for support when necessary. To build the relationships, you have to get to know the person and allow them to get to know you, while respecting the boundaries you both have in place of course. This is beneficial as they may have skills and knowledge that you don’t have and might be beneficial in your line of work and considering that most employees spend about a ⅓ of their day at work, having friends may make the experience more enjoyable. If building relationships comes naturally to you then that’s great but if not, make this intentional goal. Give the following some thought as you prepare to build relationships with your co-workers: what are my boundaries and what small steps outside my comfort zone am I willing to take to build these relationships. The most important relationship to cultivate is with your line manager as they add value by mentoring and coaching you, this may mean that the quality of the value they are meant to offer you may be influenced by the quality of the relationship you have.

Building your personal brand

Now for the best, saved for last - Personal Branding. We all have a personal brand whether we think we do or don’t - this is the idea and perceptions that people have about you. Building a personal brand in the workplace is therefore imperative as it involves intentionally forming the perception that your co-workers have of you. Having a great brand encourages people to invest in and support you. This in turn increases your skill set, profile and can give you access to high impact opportunities. It is important to remember that there is a connection between what people think of us and how they experience us. Your personal brand should be authentic and sustainable for you - and to do this, you have first determine the brand you want to be. To find out what your brand is, ask yourself this question - What do I want to be known for and how can I authentically express this in the workplace? Once that is established, you can align your brand to your dress code, how to articulate yourself, who you associate yourself with and your work performance.

We hope that you enjoyed reading this book and found it to be insightful and empowered you to take ownership of your career advancement. For those who have not read it yet, we hope that this review has inspired you to make it your next read! Feel free to send us an email or dm on social media with any book suggestions you would love for us to read together!