Beyonce’s Lemonade – Photo credit: rolling stone.com
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, or away from civilization somewhere on an exotic island somewhere (in which case, may I join you?), you’ve heard about Beyonce’s Lemonade album. The ground-breaking visual masterpiece made a lot of media noise, as it artfully explored themes of infidelity, anger and forgiveness, among others, against a brilliant backdrop of sheer musical and artistic genius.
As the highly talked-about album made its debut amidst rumors of infidelity and cheating allegations in Queen Bey’s marriage, and while the rest of the world is still trying to find out who “Becky with the good hair” aka the “other woman” is, I couldn’t help but see yet again another one of Beyonce’s career-defining moment. One of those make-or-break moments that single-handedly take your work and career to the next level, and the next level, and the one after that…
One of those moments that may appear like you’re taking unreasonable risks but where you’re actually sealing your work with a success stamp…One of those moments where it’s not just about showing up on time and getting the job done, but bringing another dimension to your work and career…
And while we’re not Beyonce, and apart from all the cheating media craze, we can all stand to learn a few lessons about what it takes to define your career in such a way that it not only stands out, but that it also keeps defining it for the better.
- Be authentic. In other words, “come as you are”. In Lemonade, we see the raw, exposed, real Beyonce. The one who may be hurt, or angry, or resentful. We often talk about keeping our private and career lives separate. Yet when you spend upwards of 8 hours at work, with other breathing, living human beings, there are chances the already thin veil of separation between work and personal gets even thinner. It’s hard to hide being pregnant, or going through a divorce, or having to run out to bring your son extra diapers at daycare…And in all of this mishmash between work and life, showing up as authentic as you can be is an advantage, more than it is a liability. There’s always going to be someone who’s not going to like or appreciate you. But your best work always comes from a place of authenticity and genuineness, a place where you can help, inspire and meet others halfway…
- Expose your vulnerabilities. In Lemonade, Beyonce almost gives us permission to breathe and admit to our vulnerabilities. To those dark and grey areas in our lives where things are not as perfect as they may seem. The strongest leaders are not scared of admitting to their flaws and shortcomings. It’s OK to admit that you don’t have all the answers…but that you’re working on it. Or to recognize you messed up the quarterly team report. Or that you’ll need some time off because you’ve been blindsided at work (hello Kelly Ripa). It’s part of being authentic, and leading from the heart. Showing yourself as vulnerable will also make you more approachable and real to your colleagues and bosses. And it’s also what will make your career soar to new levels…
- Learn to confront and leverage conflict. It’s obvious Lemonade is not exactly Beyonce’s way to shower us with romantic ballads and make us see the world with rose-colored lenses. It’s raw, real, and dripping with conflict and drama. Yet that’s exactly what makes it so good. In your career as well, learn to not always seek to avoid conflict. Instead, confront it in a professional yet edifying way. That co-worker who stole your work and is now claiming it? That boss who’s threatening to fire you? Don’t run, address it! Even better, leverage it, and turn the mess into a message. Claim the rights to any work you may have done. Dare to have a conversation about the future of your career, or make a tough but necessary decision! Unlike Beyonce though, please keep the baseball bats and curse words out of it while at work…just sayin’…
- Use your talents! Beyonce has been widely criticized for keeping mum in the media and hardly allowing for any interviews. It’s in her music, in visual ground-breaking albums like Lemonade, that she expresses herself best. And it’s though that medium that she reminds us of the impact of her career…In the same way, use your talents and best attributes at work to shine. While you should aways strive to have a well-rounded set of skills, don’t be afraid to tap into your skills to give you an extra edge. Are you a great public speaker? Tap into that skill by making impressive presentations to management. Are you skilled at crafting memos and reports? Use your writing skills to shine in the office. Use what you’ve got…
- Explore new territory. With Lemonade, the Queen Bey stepped onto new territory. Deeply personal territory…You too can switch it up every now and then in your career. It’s actually recommended to have a wide array of experiences and skills to make it to the top in any field. Most CEOs have previously worked in various departments of their companies, or have been sent to various countries to hone their leadership skills. Being willing and ready to explore new areas is par for the course when it comes to defining and re-defining your career. So think about volunteering for that foreign assignment in Brazil for a year. Or rotating to a different team next quarter. Be open to the new…
- Let the chips fall where they may. With Lemonade, Beyonce has faced A LOT of controversy. And still is…But what if that’s the price to pay for greatness? For daring to step up and bring your career to another level? And what if even when we think we have all the control on our careers, many times we just have to give our best and let the chips fall where they may. Like when you have to make that hard executive decision that may turn some members of your team against you? Or when you have to deliver a particularly tough review to someone? Or even when it’s time for you to step down and go on to a new career? Do your best and let the chips fall where they may…
- Let your work speak for you! I mentioned earlier Beyonce has been widely criticized for not being more vocal in the media. For not speaking out and giving out more interviews to media outlets. Yet what I can see behind this silence, is the desire to let her work speak for her more than any interviews or public appearances would. Likewise, in your own career, let your own final products, and the quality of the work you provide, speak for you. Yes, you have to speak up! Yes, you also have to contribute and participate in the Big Corporate conversations! But after all is said and done, what remains are the results of the efforts you’ve put in. It’s that conclusive medical report you spent weeks writing, that will now be used as a template for the entire hospital. It’s the documentation of the evidence you’ve obtained through that audit that will help improve the company’s operations by 25%. Produce your best work and let it speak for you!
What did you think of Beyonce’s Lemonade album? What other career insights do you have about it?
To your success,
The Corporate Sis.
