My 5th in Circles.Life

It's my 5th year today in Circles.Life, and I'm here to share a little bit of what I've been through in the last 5 years in, and what types of ordeals and challenges that I've gone through.  I'm writing this article in full transparency over what we all have to constantly deal with in our working world! Feeling like a ‘dinosaur’ here but I suppose I’ll continue being a ‘learning dino’. 

Being a ‘First-time manager’

I had the opportunity to take on a managerial role in my 3rd year in Circles.Life, and that has definitely been a journey so far.  By nature, I empathise with people around me and I'm always around to help everyone in any particular area they may require, even if it's beyond me. Interestingly, becoming a manager has been the best learning for me so far as I progressed from being an individual contributor, to seeing my team members make their ideas to life. Truth be told, it was very tough at first where I could not stop myself from doing most of the execution, but one key learning that I've picked up is that working through others is possibly the best thing a manager can do. By stepping out of the way and allowing your own team members to take on the projects, you free yourself up and you provide the space for your members to grow. And still get your hands dirty from time just because you need to keep your feet on the ground for the team :’) 

As a first time manager, I also had to struggle alot dealing with my own emotions while keeping a stable front with the team. Being able to conquer that has elevated my maturity in thinking and problem solving methods with my own challenges as well as my team's problems. Learning from great mentors around me about thinking ahead, zooming in and out, and being able to critically think in situations, it has definitely shaped myself up as a manager in my own form. 

Colleagues leaving the team and company 

In every company, we have to deal with the reality that not everyone will be there in your team forever. How we choose to deal with it is the difference. Being a 'dinosaur' in the company, I've seen countless of my closest friends and colleagues come and go throughout the 5 years. Some departures or 'graduations' were cordial, some were not as smooth, but overall, we had to deal with the consequences in some way.

Prior to the colleagues leaving, there would typically be handovers and transitions that will take place. The hardest part actually comes after the departure. For one, whenever a colleague leaves, you would start to doubt yourself - why am I still here? Another factor would be the motivation around you as well, especially if we see multiple members leaving. How do we then deal with the aftermath around? 

Something that has personally helped me tide through so many graduations is really sticking to my Why. Temptations are all around and as humans, we will always feel that the grass is greener on the other side.  But coming down to reality and stepping back during reflection, the Why is going to be key to your own personal motivation for wanting to stay in a company. As for mine, I still personally believe that there is a lot more to go with the company in terms of growth and that we will make it there, and I want to be able to say that 'I've been here from the start'. 

Also, don't hesitate to speak to peers around you about the situation. By speaking up and having honest conversations about your motivation/feelings, you are able to better face it and have them resolved rather than it being bottled up longer than needed. Burning out? Speak up. Overwhelmed? Reach out. Bored? Do something about it. 

There will always be opportunities out there, and it is really up to you. If you still align with the company in any way, then think twice before you give in to external temptation.  

Transiting from execution to strategy 

One of the earlier points that I mentioned was about execution. As an early joiner of the company and team, we were in a completely different phase then. Every single one of us had to be involved in deep execution in multiple functions. As we progress over the years, you develop teams, and your role starts to change. The transition period is honestly tough af when you no longer are ‘the only one’ doing what you do, and as you start to bring in members, you start to doubt if you’re even up to their par. This is where growth happens when you start to learn and pivot what you do - and grow into roles that requires more strategic thinking down the line. Many of us get uncomfortable and are unable to transition proper as the company evolves, but for those who managed to, the sheer amount of experience being able to do so is redeeming in itself. 

This is also where the inherent soft skills start to matter much more than hard technical skills. How do you learn to support other functions outside your own, and in my case, now assist all my team members in Marketing reach their strategic outcomes? I’m still learning here, but that’s the next (steep) learning path right there. I admit I do get caught in situations where execution still takes over, but its getting better everytime I try again. 

This next phase of this journey has just about to begin again, we will see how it unfolds as we move into exciting things!