Trying to be all things to all people?

Never do it. Heard of the story of a boy who had tried to emulate all types of boys who had girls interested in them? Here was a boy trying to copy all the “winning behaviours” and became nice, wild, polite, conservative outspoken and what not. But girls falling for a nice guy would lose interest in him for his wildness. Girls attracted by his politeness would leave him when they discovered his one-upmanship and thus the boy finally ended up with none.

I have come across guys, who at work, try to be all things to all people and end with satisfying none. These are the guys who think they are working hard all the time and yet the end result is loss of credibility and labeled as irrelevant to the most.

Instead of casting a wide net, the strategy of targeting a niche area or a specific area of expertise works better. Focus is the key word here. Focus all your attention to it, so that you make a distinct impression of yourself in others’ mind for what you are very good at. This is the area of work, where you will be seen as 100% relevant and an expert.

Differentiate yourself from the crowd. Unique identity comes from improving your credibility in the chosen area by consistently delivering at “higher than expected” levels. This will certainly enhance your chances of “being noticed”, of building a strong image and for creating a path for your career progression.