Doing Your Job Is Only Part of It
I have spent a lot of years working around vehicles, operations, and people, and one thing I have come to believe is that being good at your job and being someone others can count on are not always the same thing.
You can be very skilled at what you do and still be difficult to depend on. You can know your job inside and out, but if you do not communicate, follow through, or take responsibility when something goes wrong, people will eventually notice.
I learned this gradually through different jobs and different teams. Early in my career, I was focused heavily on doing the work correctly. When I was working as a mechanic, that made sense. The vehicle either had a problem or it did not. You had to find it and fix it.
As I moved into management and fleet operations, I started to understand that people remember more than whether you did your individual job well. They remember whether you showed up when you said you would. They remember whether you helped when something went wrong. They remember whether they could trust your word.
That matters.
Skill Gets You So Far
Being good at your job is important. I would never tell someone otherwise.
You should know what you are doing. You should take pride in your work and continue improving your skills. I have always tried to learn something new, and I think that mindset is important no matter what position you hold.
But technical ability is only one part of being valuable to a team.
I have seen people who were extremely talented at their jobs but were not necessarily the people you wanted beside you when things got difficult. Maybe they were not good at communicating. Maybe they avoided responsibility when something went wrong. Maybe they were great when everything was going according to plan but disappeared when someone needed help.
That has always stood out to me.
I would rather work with someone who is dependable, honest, and willing to learn than someone who knows everything but cannot be counted on.
There is a difference.
What Does Dependability Actually Mean?
For me, being dependable is not complicated, although it is not always easy.
It means doing what you said you were going to do. It means showing up prepared. It means telling someone when there is a problem instead of hoping the problem disappears. It means admitting when you made a mistake.
That last one is probably one of the hardest.
Nobody wants to walk into a conversation and say, “I made a mistake.” I have had to do it myself. But I have learned that trying to hide a mistake usually makes things worse.
If you are honest about what happened, you have a chance to fix it and learn from it.
I have always tried to look at mistakes that way. What happened? What could I have done differently? What can I take from it so I do not make the same mistake again?
I do not think you need to be perfect to be dependable. I think you need to be honest about where you are and willing to take responsibility.
People Notice the Small Things
One of the things I have learned through management is that people are paying attention even when you do not realize they are.
They notice whether you follow through. They notice whether you treat people with respect. They notice whether you are willing to help when things get busy.
They also notice whether you expect something from others that you are not willing to do yourself.
That has made me think about how I approach leadership. I cannot expect people to take their responsibilities seriously if I do not take mine seriously. If I want people to communicate with me, I have to communicate with them. If I want people to own their mistakes, I have to be willing to own mine.
It sounds simple, but it is something you have to practice.
Being Someone Others Can Count On
There have been plenty of times in my career when things did not go exactly as planned. That is part of working in operations. Equipment has problems. Priorities change. People have unexpected situations come up.
You have to be able to adjust.
For me, being someone others can count on does not mean always having the answer. Sometimes it means staying calm and figuring out what the next step should be.
I have learned to take a breath when something goes wrong instead of immediately reacting. That does not mean ignoring the problem. It means giving yourself a moment to think before making the situation harder than it needs to be.
I learned a lot about pushing through difficult situations after experiencing a serious motorcycle accident. Recovery gave me a different appreciation for patience. You cannot always rush your way through something just because you want it to be over.
Work can be similar.
Sometimes you have to take things one step at a time and keep moving.
Trust Is Built Over Time
I do not think you can decide one day that you are going to be dependable and expect everyone to trust you immediately.
It is built over time.
People watch what you do repeatedly. They see whether your actions match your words. They see how you handle pressure and how you treat people when things are not going well.
That is why I place a lot of value on integrity and honesty. Those words can sound simple, but they mean something when you actually have to make a decision.
I have never wanted to be the person who only does the minimum because nobody is watching. I believe in going above and beyond when I can. Sometimes that means taking on something that was not necessarily my responsibility. Sometimes it is as simple as helping someone who is having a difficult day.
You do not always know what impact those small decisions will have.
The Reputation I Want to Leave Behind
When I look back at my different jobs, I hope people remember more than whether I was good at the position I held.
I hope they remember that they could count on me.
Being skilled at your job is something you can continue to develop. You can take training, gain experience, learn from mistakes, and become better over time.
Being dependable requires something different. It requires consistency.
For me, that means being honest, keeping my word, taking responsibility, helping when I can, and continuing to learn. I still make mistakes, and I still have plenty to learn. But I think that is part of it.
At the end of the day, I would rather be known as someone people could call when they needed help than simply someone who was good at his job. Being good at what you do matters. But being someone others can trust when it really counts is what stays with you.