Skilled HR professionals, especially in larger organizations, learn to "read" others in great detail and recognize the importance of paying attention to the needs of others. This article will share the secrets of their success.
Observe Aggressively
Fortunately, by carefully and consistently observing others, anyone can learn to read people, and through reading them, work better with them. Understanding the needs of others enables a successful manager to negotiate employment terms skillfully, manage others responsibly (with a minimum amount of stress and resistance), gain information, and enlist others to support a cause. The crucial characteristic required in this process is that of "aggressive observation."
Aggressive observation is a phrase coined two decades ago by the late Mark McCormack, author of Staying Street Smart in the Internet Age. Aggressive observation requires working with people face-to-face. Whenever possible. This arrangement is optimal because, as you know well, observing a person reveals far more than what you hear, read, or can deduce from a screen.
When you meet another person, aggressive observation means that you take action, carefully listening to the content of the conversation and watching for signals in body language.
Read and Adapt
One of the widely observed traits that successful HR professionals possess is resilience. Resilience entails adapting behaviors to meet challenges, but it is more than simply enduring and overcoming an ordeal. It means having the ability to come back even stronger than before.
Completing big projects at work, or even winning a long-term personal struggle, requires resilience that is demonstrated through patience, alertness, and steadfastness. These behaviors set the stage for adaptation and action.
Is resilience fundamental to dealing with upheaval in our professional or personal lives? Yes – quite simply, those who have resilience, flourish!
Resilient people establish a balance. They believe they'll succeed. They learn to sharpen their focus on the task at hand, stay loose, and roll with the punches. They maintain order and self-awareness, if primarily to avoid becoming overwhelmed and confused.
While resilient individuals are as vulnerable to the anxieties of change as anyone else, they're able to read others, regain balance quickly, stay physically and emotionally healthy, and remain productive when confronted by unsettling or gloomy situations.