A Little Bit Sucky

I had a call with Alicia recently and we were talking through several things I am helping with while we are figuring out where to allocate some work tasks. I have been helping with a number of things that were on Alicia's plate over the past few weeks. While talking to Alicia, I came to realize that I was a little bit sucky at some of the work I'd been assigned - the work being administrative work that requires a high level of attention to detail. We laughed really hard at this and it actually made me feel really seen.

I find administrative and high attention to detail work:

Not fun and;
Pretty stressful because well, it's not fun for me and I know I'm likely making mistakes or missing things.

It felt good to know that someone I work with sees this, is willing to talk about it, and is willing to find other solutions that are a better fit. I think many of us can attest to working somewhere where the things we aren't good at are not talked about but we continue to do them, they're talked about behind our backs, or we're redirected to other work without anything actually being addressed.

I think this was a pretty simple exchange but there's actually quite a lot to unpack here:

Alicia's ability to be open with me about performance but in a very kind, human, and even funny way
Our team's ability to recognize my strengths and move me towards work I am better suited for.

Alicia has a very honest approach - she says what is on her mind and she literally can't hide her feelings. You always know where you stand with her and there's no guessing or "reading into" required. She explained that I didn't update a company's title throughout a whole document, acknowledged my attention to detail was a lil' sucky, and we both really laughed about it because, well, it's true.

Once she made that recognition she started looking for a solution - if Bri doesn't like this work, is better at other work, and there is another solution, why don't we find it? It's literally better for everyone involved. Alicia, and our team, is really good at thinking outside the box and coming up with new solutions, pivoting, and refusing to be held to one set idea. This is wildly refreshing - it makes me feel as though we are always changing and growing for the better.

I did have a self-conscious moment where I made her validate me and that I am, in fact, good at other things. We also had a good laugh about this because working at MOD and with this team, they make me feel like I do bring a lot to the table every day. MOD has been an incredible confidence booster for me as it's helped me really understand what I am good at and what I do bring to the table. It just may not be admin.