Episode 2: Your Career Key
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[00:00:00] Welcome to the Love What You Do podcast. I'm Kelly Duggan, former HR executive turned career coach and personal brand expert, and I am here to help you discover your unique value, leverage your personal brand, and take action to create a career you love.
All right, we've made it. We've made it to episode two, and I'm not sure what it is about episode two, but it just really feels real right now. We are on this love what you do journey together, and I am so excited about the topic that we're going to talk about today because this topic is one that is the foundation of all of the coaching programs that I offer, and it's the closest thing I can think of to a real career key.
And that is your unique value. So that's what we're going to be talking about today. We're going to be talking about how you can discover what your unique value is, because [00:01:00] while there is no quick fix or tip or trick to success, I truly believe that unique value is the foundation of every successful person out there.
This is something that everyone can do to be able to really uncover what it is that they bring to the world. So we're going to be talking a little bit about how you can define unique value today. and how you can actually go reflect and discover what your unique value is. Because again, this is the closest thing I've got to a career key.
So it's a big, it's a big topic today, I'm going to be honest. But let's start with defining unique value. What is unique value exactly? Well, A good way to put it is that your unique value is basically your secret sauce. It's what sets you apart from all of the other folks who might have a similar background to yours, but they aren't you.
There's something about you that makes you [00:02:00] unique. And people who are able to capture this unique value, whether that be in small businesses, whether that be in corporate success, people who are able to acknowledge what sets them apart, what makes them uniquely qualified and different, and then utilize that to sell that and to promote their skills.
That is what makes them successful. So that is the foundation of what unique value really is. And I, with my clients, use something called the unique value equation to help them define what unique value is for them. So I'm going to try to put this up in the screen here so that you have a chance to see this if you're watching the video version of this podcast.
But if not, what the unique value equation is, is your unique value is made up of three things. It's your strengths, it's your personal values, and it's [00:03:00] your experiences that you've been through. And those three things put together make up almost a unique DNA of you and the value that you bring to the world that differs from anybody else.
So, Let's dive into what each of those pieces of the unique value equation really mean and how you can discover them for yourself. So we'll start with strengths. Now, you might be saying, okay, yeah, I know what a strength is. It's something that I'm good at, right? And you're not wrong. That is part of what a strength is.
But when we talk about strengths in terms of unique value, I like to speak about it with my clients, through the lens of three different metrics. So in order for something to be a strength, it should check three boxes. First, you're absolutely right. It should be something that you're good at.
Something that you have an innate [00:04:00] ability to be able to do. But two, it should also be something that you enjoy doing. And three, something that you have the opportunity to do often. So that you're actually realizing that strength. And when you think about strengths in this way, You actually end up with four different categories that the different traits can fall into, right?
So, again, if you're checking all three of those boxes, it's something that you're good at, it's something that you enjoy, it's something that you do often. That's what we would call a realized strength. That's a strength that is reaching its full potential in your career and in you. But we also have this other category of unrealized strengths.
Now, unrealized strengths, these are things that you do have an innate ability for, you're, you are good at, you do enjoy, but for whatever reason, you're not using [00:05:00] a lot of right now. So that's an unrealized strength. I like to think of unrealized strengths as this untapped potential, these tools in our toolbox that we could be pulling from, but for whatever reason we're not at this moment.
Now, when we think about how we want to define our unique value, those are the two categories that we really want to focus on, right? Our realized and our unrealized strengths, because those are our secret weapons that we're using and that we could be using. But just so that we understand the whole strengths model.
The other two pieces of this are also, you have something called learned behaviors. Now, learned behavior behaviors differ from strengths in that you may not have an innate ability to be able to act in your learned behavior actions. However you have learned to be proficient and even good at them. In a lot of cases, so there is some.
It's [00:06:00] something that you've taught yourself to be good at, and it's also something that you may or may not enjoy, but you are spending a lot of time doing in your current circumstances. So one thing to think about when it comes to learn behaviors is that this is where you can be losing a lot of energy.
For instance, if you're in a role right now where you are acting primarily in your learn behavior sector, you might be coming home from work. really exhausted mentally, physically, just feeling totally drained. And that's because it's taking a lot of energy for you to act in that sector. It's not impossible, but we want to aim to not be focusing 80 percent of our day in that quadrant when we're thinking about this strengths model.
And then finally, the fourth piece of this are our weaknesses. And those are the things we don't enjoy, we don't particularly [00:07:00] have an affinity for, um, we're not really great at them and we try to avoid them at all costs. And honestly, when it comes to all of the career coaching that I do, I talk about the weaknesses the least, which might surprise you because a lot of my clients want to talk about weaknesses and figure out how we can improve those weaknesses, right?
And turn those weaknesses into strengths. And this is why I absolutely love, this strengths model. Because it acknowledges the fact that weaknesses are things we do not have that innate ability for. And, and that's okay. Because guess what? We're never going to have an innate ability to be good at everything.
And that is what this entire podcast episode is all about. It's uncovering what we do have that innate ability for and capitalizing on that. So it's important to acknowledge our weaknesses because especially as you get later on in your career can be really great [00:08:00] resource for how to delegate, um and to be aware of what you don't love doing and what you're not great at.
But when it comes to the conversation of unique value, we want to acknowledge what those learned behaviors and weaknesses may be for ourselves, but we really want to focus. on our strengths, both our realized and our unrealized strengths. So how do you do that? Well, there is an assessment, it's called the Strengths Profile Assessment.
It's something that I offer for all of my one on one coaching clients, anyone who takes any of our coaching courses. However, you don't have to take an assessment to know your strengths because I am willing to bet that you already have a pretty good perception of what your realized and unrealized strengths are.
You just haven't taken the time to sit down and reflect on them. So I have a few reflection questions here, uh, that can be really [00:09:00] helpful for you to think about, you know, what are the things that I am great at, that I enjoy, and that I spend my time doing? So one question I love to ask clients is, what do you lose time working on, right?
Like, have you ever just been in that vortex where you sit down to do something and you blink and three hours have gone by? and you have absolutely no idea how that much time could have passed, that's a pretty good indicator that what you're working on is a strength of yours. All right, another question is what comes easier for you than it does for others?
You know, one of the traps with strengths is that we often think just because it comes so easily to us that it must come easily to other people, so it must not be a big deal. That is a lie that we tell ourselves, right? That's something that we buy into because it comes easy to us. So it must be easy for everyone.
That is [00:10:00] absolutely not the case. And in fact, that is exactly where you should be looking to find out what your strengths really are. Because the things that feel like not a big deal for us sometimes can make the biggest impact in our career because it's not taking a lot of energy for us to be good at it and it's making a really big impact.
So the last question you can also think about is what do people compliment you on? When you go to work and you think back in your entire career history, what are some of those compliments that you've continually received from your co workers? That can be a really great way to get your mind thinking around what your strengths are.
So again, these are just a few questions that you can pull from. But the important thing is that you just take some time to sit and reflection to really understand what are your strengths that set you apart from others. And that's going to be part one of this unique value equation. All right. Part [00:11:00] two, personal values.
So there is another assessment that you can take called the personal values assessment to help you understand what your personal values are. But let's start with the definition and the definition of your personal values. How I like to think about them is that these are really your compass for decision making.
These are the things in your gut that you believe to be true, that drive your actions. So, you may value family, you may value personal health, you may value financial stability. And what you value may shift and change over time depending on your circumstance. But you have a set of core values within you that are driving how you interact in the world.
Now, a really great way of trying to figure out what your personal values [00:12:00] are is to do a little bit of a process of elimination exercise. So I will actually link a worksheet down below so that you have access to a personal values bank of about 50 different values that you may, uh, resonate With that may resonate with you and a really great way to really get that list down to what are your personal values is to start by looking at that list of about 50 different values and circling any of them that resonate with you in any way, shape or form.
So maybe at this point you've gotten that list down to 20, maybe it's 30. And then challenge yourself of those values that you've circled, cross off as many as you have to to get that list down to 10. And then challenge yourself again to cross off five more, and get yourself down to your [00:13:00] top five. Because the truth is, there's a lot of things that we care about when it comes to values. But there's a set of core values in there for us that are going to drive our decision making more than others. And that process of elimination can be a really helpful way to help you determine what those personal values are. Because those personal values are the second pillar of this unique value that we are talking about.
And then finally we've got the third piece of the unique value equation. And this is your experiences. Now, when I say the word experience, I don't just mean all of the things that you're going to put on your resume. Right? Those are great experiences that you've had. They're great career experiences. But think about all of the things who have shaped your life.
who you are today that happened even before you ever accepted your first job. I want you to kind of broaden your [00:14:00] mind a little bit when it comes to thinking about your experiences and call it your history. Think about it as your lore, right? What is your hero story? What are all of the things that have happened both personal and professional throughout your life?
The good the bad things that you've had to overcome, the opportunities that you've had. What are all of these things that have shaped you? And spend some time reflecting on paper, write it down. What are some of these pieces? Because you already know them because you lived them. I'm willing to bet you haven't thought about them in quite some time, and they are a huge piece of what sets you apart from your competition.
What is your unique value? So, in order to bring all of this together, which is what we're going to do next, I highly encourage you to take the time, in reflection, and to really [00:15:00] define for yourself, What are your strengths? You're unrealized and you're realized. What are your personal values and what are your experiences?
Because once you've done that, that's actually doing most of the hard work. Now we have to articulate it. But before we start to put this into one to two to three sentences that resonate with us as individuals, I want to caution against one thing. Okay. Your unique value statement is not the same thing as the blurb that you see at the top of your resume or the about me section on your LinkedIn profile or your elevator pitch.
Each one of those things is actually crafted and wordsmithed for somebody else, right? Your unique value, first and foremost, is for you. Now I will say that elevator pitch, that [00:16:00] resume summary, that LinkedIn about me, each one of those things should be rooted in your unique value. They should reflect your unique value.
That's why we do this whole exercise. But those are all going to be positioned and sold in a way that has your audience in mind. And in order for that to be done effectively, first you have to be able to define and stand by what your unique value is for yourself. So I just put that caution out there because as we get into a template that I'm going to provide for you of how you can bring your unique value into words, I don't want you to get caught up in thinking about how other people are going to receive that just yet.
There's time for that. There's, you know, many more episodes to come about how we can take your unique value and really position it for success in all of these different arenas. Uh, but first and foremost, it has to be your [00:17:00] rallying cry. You have to be able to speak to it. Uh, and, and it has to resonate with you before it can resonate with anybody else.
All right. So with that, I am going to read for you the resume or excuse me, not the resume template, the unique value statement template that I use with my clients. And I'm going to give you the same word of caution that I give all of my clients and that this is just a template. It's a starting point.
You do not have to stick to this word for word. What you are looking to create here is a concise statement that you are able to articulate that defines your unique value that combines everything that we just talked about in a concise way that you can repeat to yourself. Now this template. Might be exactly what you need to help you do that.
Uh, or you might say, Kelly, don't put me in a box. I don't like templates. In which case I say, go for it. Journal this out yourself. I am totally fine with that. [00:18:00] But for those of us who like a little direction, at least a place to start, here is the template that I recommend when it comes to, how are you going to articulate your unique value statement?
So, it is, I stand out for, for, for, Insert unique strength, value, or trait here. And another unique strength, value, or trait. I'm known for a unique attribute that you're known for. I excel at how you deliver a specific value, solve a problem, address a specific need. Driving, insert transferable outcome. All right, so like, let's break down each of these pieces.
The first pieces are pretty easy, because when we talk about, I stand out for, and then insert a series of some of these strengths, values, or traits. That's everything that you just directly reflected on. [00:19:00] So you want to pull in the pieces that really resonate with you most based on all of that homework really that you've done to get to this point.
And the same with the unique attribute that you're known for. That question that we talked about around the strengths, you know, what are the compliments that you're getting? That can help you fill in that blank very, very well. What do people know you for? That is what you're answering there. And then when we get into the I excel at, this is where you want to start getting a little bit more specific around how you are delivering value and solving a problem.
You don't want to get so specific to the point where you're giving an example of that one time at work Where you solved this one major problem. You want to go a little bit more general than that But you do want to be able to share how you are Capable of solving problems and the value that you are [00:20:00] capable of providing.
Now it's going to be very unique to the career path that you are on the type of work that you do and the type of value that you provide. But this is why your unique value matters. The second half of this statement is going to help tell help other people realize the value that you provide and the solutions that you are able to give that provide the last piece of this template, which is The transferable outcome.
So again, this statement is for you, but eventually it's going to be the foundation of all of these other pieces that are going to make other people care about why they should invest in you in your career. And in order to do that, we need to be able to talk to them on their terms, and we need to help them to not only understand what are your strengths your personal values and your experiences. But how do those all combine for [00:21:00] you to be able to provide value for them? And what outcome are they going to get out of that? So all of those things are the boxes that this template is checking. And this is why I recommend this as a starting point. But again, don't feel tied to it.
It is just that. This is your starting point. And when we think about where we go from here, you've done all of the pre work, you've done the reflection. Now you have a unique value statement that you can rally around and you feel really great about. What comes next? Well, this is when you start utilizing it.
And as I mentioned, there are many more episodes to come about how you can then transform this unique value into your personal brand online, into how you network in conversations, into how you interview for roles and positions. [00:22:00] But if you attempt to do any of those things before taking the time to actually define your unique value.
They will all be completely empty. This is why I tell people when I work with them on resume writing, even in my resume writing clients, we start with unique value. Because without the unique value piece, all of the wordsmithing is just empty words. We're not providing people with the essence of what makes you unique and what is actually going to give you the competitive edge in the market.
So all of those pieces are to come, but they are going to be so much better because you took the time to do this, because you took the time to actually define for yourself what your unique value is. So after this episode, you've got all the tools you need to To go and do this on your own, right? Like, and I hope you do, because when I tell you this is [00:23:00] a game changer, it truly is just in the clarity that it provides you to be able to confidently talk about what your unique value is and know it in your core, all of the conversations that you start having start to change, and this is how you start to not only find opportunity, but attract opportunity with this kind of clarity of what your unique value is and what you bring to the world. But if you are looking for a little bit more help when it comes to your unique value, you're looking for a little bit more guidance. As I mentioned, this is the basis of all of my one on one coaching. And it's also the basis of my brand new discover your career path, self paced on demand, coaching course.
So if you're interested in having a partner in helping you define your unique value, I will make sure there are links to all of those opportunities below so that you can check those out. [00:24:00] But as I said, do not let Anything be a barrier for you to this action. You've got the tools you need just from this episode to get started.
So I truly, truly hope that you do because we've got so much left on this journey that we're going to explore together over our love what you do podcast. And so much of it is going to come right back to what we talked about in this episode, which is your unique value. So thank you so much for joining me on today's episode.
I can't wait to see you next time.
Thanks so much for joining me on today's episode. As always, if you're looking for coaching, support, or would like to submit a question, you can drop me an email at [email protected]. And if you enjoyed today's episode, don't forget to subscribe, share, and leave a review so this podcast can find its way to other amazing listeners just like you.
