Learn and Lead

A recent situation in workplace made me think about the importance of building a performance bank account on lines of emotional bank account. Or perhaps performance bank account is a subset of emotional bank account.

When you join a new organization, the organization’s evaluation of your skills is based on the few interactions had during the interview. In spite of the psychological tests, aptitude tests, and two or three rounds of interview that one goes through, it is at best a judgement to hire you based on limited interactions. Some organizations also do a reference check depending on the level you are joining the organization. It is then up to you to start building your performance bank account with the organization. You build your base by learning quickly and demonstrating execution excellence. You build your deposits by exceeding expectations, going beyond the call of duty, volunteering for challenging tasks.

Building a performance bank account helps you in getting new opportunities within the organization. It also helps when you are assigned to a new role or assigned a new manager. But more importantly, if you take longer to understand the task, or are faltering initially, the past performance bank account provides the cushion of tolerance and the much required support. You can’t bank on your performance at your previous organization. It is important to build a performance bank account at every organization you work with. And of course, like EBA, when you withdraw from your performance bank account, make sure you deposit back in it by improving your performance.