成功经理人寄语：关注前方固然重要，但绝不能忘记来时的路

MPW内部网络是一个在线社区，商界内外的大咖会在这里及时回答与职业和领导力有关的问题。今天的问题是：“对于攀登职场阶梯，所有女性都应该认识到哪一点？”回答者是苏黎世保险公司全球特种行业部门负责人劳瑞·巴雷。

我学开车时，我爸爸会坐在车上教我道路上的规则。作为保险人，他在几乎任何情况下都能迅速做出有效的建议和指点，告诉我要做什么（不要做什么），而且他有一句话一直触动着我，那就是别忘了看后视镜。这一点似乎显而易见，但那时才16岁的我更注意前面出现的情况，而不是背后。不过，就像他经常提醒我的那样，有时候对我们影响最大的是发生在身后的事。

攀登职场阶梯其实并无二致，而且我发现这条建议在商界同样作用很大。我们中的大多数都从职场阶梯的底部开始自己的职业生涯。就我自己而言，那是一个理赔方面的入门级职位，如今的大学应届毕业生一般都会获得这样的工作机会，以便在公司里得到升迁。这个岗位的工作内容和职责相当基本，而且并不总是光鲜亮丽。但这份工作很重要，它让我更好地了解了公司，了解了理赔程序以及在职业生涯中向前迈进的必经之路。从任何角度来说，它都是职场阶梯的第一级，也是一个开始。我认真对待这份工作，全身心地投入其中。

在不断升职的过程中，每当我朝着新的方向迈出第一步，这条建议就会回响在我耳边，并且一直伴随着我。有目标并且一直注视前方固然重要，但不要忘记来时的路同样要紧。人们常说，谦逊是领导者最伟大的品质之一。有的时候，只要隔一阵子回头看看就能完美地做到这一点。

前不久有人联系了我，想跟进我上一任的遗留问题。我既未参与其中，也不掌握任何相关信息。此时我又想起了这条建议。对我来说，无视对方的要求，或者说默不作声本来易如反掌，因为我还有许多能帮我在职场阶梯上更进一步的事要做。但在那一刻，我忽然瞥见了差不多20年前的自己，我还记得处于那样的境地是什么感觉。这番回忆让我意识到我有可能让他们的工作变得非常困难，或者，我有可能帮助他们解决这个问题，而且这样做或许会帮助别的什么人在职业道路上迈进。

我们的注意力往往过于集中在接下来的这一步上，以至于我们忘了过去迈步向前时是怎样的情形，以及我们前行时都需要的那些帮助。虽然我相信我们应该一直关注前方的情况，但我们也应该时不时地花上一点儿时间来回顾以往。这样做不仅会帮我们看到自己所处的整体局势，还能让我们变得谦逊，并且看到那些跟随着我们的人。（财富中文网）

译者：Charlie

校对：詹妮

The MPW Insiders Network is an online community where the biggest names in business and beyond answer timely career and leadership questions. Today’s answer for: “What’s one thing every woman should know about climbing the corporate ladder?” is written by Lori Bailey, global head of special lines at Zurich Insurance.

When I was learning to drive, my father would ride along with me to teach me the rules of the road. As an insurance man himself, he was always quick to provide helpful advice and tips on what to do (and what not to do) in almost every situation, but there is one piece of advice that always stuck with me: Don’t forget to look in the rearview mirror. It may seem like an obvious point, but as a young 16-year-old, I was more focused with what was going on in front of me rather than what was happening behind me. Yet, as he often reminded me, sometimes it’s what happens behind us that impacts us the most.

Climbing the corporate ladder is really no different, and I have found that this advice applies just as much in the business world. Most of us started our careers at the bottom of the corporate ladder. For me, it was an entry-level position in claims that all recent college graduates typically obtained in order to advance to the next level in the organization. The roles and responsibilities of the job were rather basic, and weren’t always glamorous, either. But it was important job, and one that allowed me to better understand the company, the claims processes, and the necessary steps to move forward in my career. In every way possible, it was the bottom step of the ladder, but it was also a beginning. It was a position that I took seriously and embraced fully.

As I continued to advance my career, this advice would ring in my ears and stay with me each time I took a step in a new direction. While it’s important to have goals and always be looking in front of you, it’s equally important to not lose sight of where you came from. It is often said that humility is one of the greatest attributes that a leader can possess, and sometimes this is best achieved by simply looking behind you once in a while.

I was reminded of this recently when I was contacted by someone who was following up on an from my predecessor—something I was neither involved with nor had any information about. It would have been very easy for me to ignore the request and simply not respond, as I had many other things to do—things that arguably would help me advance further up the corporate ladder. But in that moment, I caught a glimpse of myself—almost 20 years ago—and I remembered what it was like to be in their shoes. In that moment of reflection, I realized that I could have made their job very difficult, or I could help solve a problem that, in turn, would help someone else advance in their career.

Too often, we are so focused on getting to the next step that we forget what it was like to be on the steps behind us—and the help we all needed in order to advance. While I believe we should always keep a firm view on what lies ahead, we should also take a moment now and then to look behind us as well. Doing so will not only help you see the bigger picture of what’s around you, but also enable you to be humble, and recognize those who are following your lead.