#careerlessons

When you first step into a new environment, whether it is a workplace, a community, or a new phase of life, you often carry an image in your mind of the kind of leader you hope to encounter. You imagine someone confident but approachable, someone who guides without controlling, someone who listens before speaking. In your mind, the leader is a steady light in the confusing corridors of the…

I was glued to my TV last night for the season 3 premiere of Scandal. Olivia Pope (Liv) and Associates had dual roles last night. They provided more than entertainment, they were also teachers (career teachers, that is). From beginning to end, the show lived up to the name Scandal! and I captured the nuggets that we all can use as career lessons. 

Own your mistakes. Very early in the episode Liv had the opportunity to run away from her problems and start over somewhere else. Liv decided to face the music and go to work.There's a good chance in your career you will make a mistake, that makes you want to shrink up and hide. The best way to move forward in a difficult situation is to dig deep and find your courage to face whatever challenge you have to overcome. Keep strong and get back in there. 

Call on your Gladiators. When Liv returned to the office the Paparazzi prevented her from being able to get out of the car and enter the office easily. But her inner circle aka The Gladiators showed up, pulled her out of the car, and held her hand as she walked back in. There are times that you may need your inner circle to rally around and help you navigate difficult situations. It is important to surround yourself with people who want to see you do well. 

Create a Game Plan. There were various  scenes that showed strategy sessions to develop a plan. The Gladiators were planning to help Liv, she was planning on how to handle the situation, and the White House staff was also developing a plan. The key lesson here is you spend time creating a plan. Regardless of  how you plan, it's clear that if you don't plan, someone else will. Take control of your career and be the key voice in planning your path. 

Don't play the blame game. With all the plans swirling around, the first plan to be executed decided to take the spotlight off of  the "guilty parties" and shift it to an innocent person. Liv's reaction showed her disapproval and the cliff hanger for next week's episode gave a glimpse of her helping the innocent staff member escape the blame. In short, If you own a mistake you have to OWN all of it. You have to take responsibility and do the right thing by others. 

"Work twice as hard." It was revealed that as a child Liv's father drilled this phrase into her to establish that she should not seek to work like her peers, but she needed to work twice as hard to be just as good. I think we can all relate to a moment when we thought " Ok, that's good enough." But good enough is not enough if you want to advance in your career you have to push yourself and work twice as hard as everyone else if you want to stand out from the crowd. The time to stop working twice as hard is NEVER, when you get comfortable you will passed by someone else who is working twice as hard so keep the fire burning.  

Scandal will surely have more lessons for us next week, and I can' t wait to tune in.