Tow Trucks as the secret to Career Growth
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I used to drive a 2000 VW Golf. I loved that car - a two-door, stick-shift, white exterior with a beige interior, and the best part - 18-inch chrome rims. It was the baddest car I ever owned. There was only one problem: it was a VW Golf with 200K miles on it and left me stranded on the side of the highway more than once. The thing burned oil like the altar flames in Leviticus (sorry, Bible joke).
There is a strange comfort when you see the tow truck pull up behind you when you’re stuck inside your vehicle next to a road with tractor-trailers whizzing past you at 80 MPH. Maybe it’s the feeling that you are not going to die if a driver dozes off seconds before you in your stuck vehicle, sending you to Kingdom come.
Picking up stranded drivers on the side of the road is not a glamorous job; yet, as long as cars break down at inopportune times, tow truck drivers will be in demand. They solve a real problem.
I work with individuals who want to change careers, start a business, or advance in their current role. They have elegant ideas and well-thought-out plans for their move, but often something is missing; they cannot solve problems.
Well, I shouldn’t say that; they can solve problems, but they fail to realize that people get hired, promoted, and grow a business because they know how to position themselves as someone who solves problems.
In its purest form, the only answer they want to know in a job interview is can you solve our problem? We need to raise money, we need this team managed, we are losing customers. Can you solve this problem?
In its purest form, businesses exist because they solve customer problems. My website isn’t converting into sales. Can you write persuasive copy? I can’t keep up with cleaning my home. Can you clean my home weekly? I’m stuck on the side of the road; you get the idea.
What about a promotion at work? The problems change but still need solved. Whereas an individual contributor can get the job done, a manager has to align people and projects, a director can lead teams and improve systems, and an executive can drive growth and build strategy.
If you can identify problems and position yourself as the one to solve them, you will always have something to do (and someone to pay you).
Just solve problems.