Q: I have a problem. For the past six years, I have been organizing the warehouse for the plant where I work. My managers think that I have done a good job and have told me that they would like to promote me and make me a supervisor for shipping services for the entire company.
This would be great, but if I get the promotion, I would have to participate in management meetings and maybe even make presentations. I am scared of doing that, afraid that I will make a complete fool out of myself and maybe even lose my job. What can I do?
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A: Anxiety can be a nuisance. To get over your fears of the new job, you might begin by writing down your anxious thoughts.
Your anxiety seems to have convinced you that you will make a fool of yourself in meetings. I suspect that if you did a survey of the other managers, you would find they also felt self-conscious when they began their jobs.
Business schools tell us that most managers need at least a year in their position to learn enough to comfortably handle their responsibilities. Don’t expect too much from yourself too soon and know that you are going to make some mistakes from which you can learn.
Part of your problem is that you are following an all or nothing proposition. You seem to believe that if you make a few blunders, you will lose everything.
You have been given the opportunity to advance within your organization because you are doing a great job. Your company does not want to lose you.
To prepare for your new job, you need to practise being with people. Make a few jokes with the clerk at the check-out counter when you are buying groceries, stop and talk to people you do not know well when you are at church, and practise smiling when you walk to your table in the lunch room.
The more social contacts you make, the more quickly you will develop skills necessary to participate effectively in management meetings.
Don’t forget that a meeting is nothing more than a social gathering that happens to have a specific agenda. The more you can relax and feel at ease with your colleagues, the more clearly you will be able to focus and participate effectively.
Jacklin Andrews is a family counsellor from Saskatchewan. Contact: jandrews@producer.com
