“Figure it out” is some career advice that might help you. Early in my career at Service Express, as we were growing the company and trying to find our footing, the owner challenged me and the other executives to figure things out. I remember it being a turning point for all of us. He said, “You guys keep looking at me for the magic answer, but I don’t have it. We’re all trying to figure this out, so do the work and figure it out.”
Something clicked with me then. I realized that’s how you add value. The rest of the team understood that, too, and we decided that we wouldn’t go to him expecting magic answers. Instead, we would figure things out ourselves, bring him solutions and get his input. Together, we would work it out.
He didn’t abandon us to succeed or fail on our own; he was essentially saying, “Take the lead. Identify the problems, come up with solutions, and then let’s discuss and refine them together. But stop relying on me for all the answers.”
If you’re trying to build your career, focus on developing a reputation for figuring things out. Do the work, ask the right questions and come up with solutions. They won’t always be the right solutions—no one has the right answers all the time. I’ve had far more wrong solutions in my career than right ones. But those wrong solutions led me to the right ones, or at least enough of the right ones, to have a significant impact on my career.
As I think about Service Express and our growth, both for my career and for the company, as we continue to grow and expand throughout Europe and beyond, we’ll need to continue figuring things out. That’s how you avoid plateaus—you have to keep solving problems. The executive team and I are committed to this, and we’re looking for more people within the organization who can do the same. Drive the business, find solutions to the challenges we face, and implement those solutions. If you do this in whatever organization you’re in, I promise you that over time, you will succeed. Figure it out.
