Life lessons never come wrapped in neat little packages, but rather crushed boxes that resemble the new shape of my ego after receiving one of them.

I received a nice ego crushing, yet valuable lesson on the importance of thorough research and professional preparedness early on in my career while working at a video production company. At the time, I was part of a team responsible for creating a multi-media exhibit for The Jimmy Carter Library and Museum in Atlanta.

We had just finished the final cut of the signature film for the exhibit and President Carter was scheduled to view it early the next afternoon. The editor burned me a DVD copy of the film; I labeled it and gave it to our production assistant to overnight to Plains, Ga. The next day I arrived at work and tracked the package to ensure it was going to arrive that morning in time for the afternoon viewing. I quickly discovered the error of my ways – there was no early morning overnight delivery option for Plains and the package wasn't going to arrive until the end of the day. Sending them an electronic file wasn't an option because it would have taken hours to do and time was not on my side.

After picking my heart and jaw up from the floor, I went into action. I had the embarrassing task of informing the president's chief of staff that the DVD may not make it, but that I was working with FedEx in the hopes of a timely delivery before his afternoon meeting with President Carter.

My co-workers were understandably skeptical of the chances of my success. However, what I lacked in preparedness I made up for in persistence.

I called FedEx and explained the situation to them. I don't know if they were more moved to action by the pathetic tone in my voice or the fact that this package was for a president. Regardless, I didn't care. I just needed the package to arrive before the scheduled viewing that day.

The FedEx operator was able to track down the delivery driver and give me his cell phone number. I then begged and pleaded with the driver to deliver the package in the morning instead of later in the afternoon. He was an hour away from Plains and heading in the opposite direction. My chances weren't looking good.

However, good fortune, a nice delivery driver and my powers of persuasion intersected on that day and he delivered the package after we got off the phone. I still wish I would have sent that driver a thank you card for saving the day, and my job.

There was enough blame to spread around for the near disaster, but the buck stopped with me. I was responsible for getting the film out the door and I failed to check to make sure it could arrive on time. It was a simple error, with potentially huge consequences for my company and me.

I got lucky that day, but the lesson I walked away with was: Be prepared and do your research. Not just on FedEx delivery times, but with everything. Assume that Murphy's Law is always lurking around the corner, ready to pounce on the unprepared.

From that point on I made a shift in how I approached work and life.

Here are some tips so you can do the same:

Do your research. This applies to everything.
Arrive on time – to work and to meetings. It shows you're reliable and respect the person's time.
Have a problem? Research a solution. Chances are someone else has had a similar problem.
When stating a problem to your boss, always propose a solution with it.
Proofread your emails. Know the difference between their, they're and there.
Bring a notepad and a pen to meetings. Optics is often as important as reality and it's important to look prepared (and be prepared).
Write down your to-do list. A study on goal-setting with 267 participants found writing one's goal enhances goal achievement.
Tell a friend about your achievements. In the same study, those who sent their commitments to a friend accomplished significantly more than those who didn't.
Take advantage of every training opportunity available.
Talk face to face. Email is great, but sometimes much more can be accomplished in a one-minute conversation.
If you have a meeting or interview somewhere you've never been, Google Map it at the same time as your interview/meeting the day prior so you'll have a more accurate sense of how long it will take to get there when traffic is similar.
Google people whom you're meeting for the first time. Learn about what they do so you can ask informed questions and have informed conversations.
If you don't know something, Google it and then ask someone. My claim to fame is not being the smartest person in the room, but rather the most resourceful.
Overwhelmed at work? Ask your boss for a list of priorities.
Be kind. Sounds obvious, right? People will generally go out of their way to help and support you when you're kind – thus making your job and life much easier.
Clean your desk. It's easier to be productive when you can find things.
Don't be afraid to admit when you're wrong. Humility demonstrates strength and sends a signal it's okay for other people to do the same.
Avoid email disasters by leaving the “to:” field blank until you've reviewed the email and are ready to send it.

Have your own career or life hacks, or life lessons you want to share? Feel free to email them to me and perhaps they'll appear in a future column!

Tahira Hayes is a Correspondent-at-Large for CU Times. She can be reached at thayes@cutimes.com.

Instant Insights /

Preparation, Research Key to Professional Success

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