October 14, 2025 • 24 mins
The ground keeps moving and for mid-career professionals, that shift feels sharper than ever. As we approach 2026, success will hinge on your ability to adapt, communicate strategically, and lead through change.
In this episode, leadership and career transition coach John Neral breaks down six essential skills that will define your value and visibility in the year ahead.
If you’ve been feeling stuck, undervalued, or uncertain about how to stay competitive in a fast-changing job market, this episode gives you a clear and actionable roadmap for leveling up.
What You’ll Learn
John walks you through six career-defining skills for 2026 that will help you stay relevant, increase your professional impact, and confidently navigate your next career move:
- AI Fluency and Digital Agility – Understand how to use AI critically and practically in your workflow. Learn what to automate, what needs your judgment, and how to show confidence, not resistance, with emerging technology.
- Strategic Communication and Storytelling – Discover how to frame your accomplishments with metrics and impact, and tailor your stories to executives, peers, and clients so your value lands clearly and quickly.
- Building Trust and Emotional Intelligence – Explore how empathy, accountability, and consistent communication build credibility and create psychological safety within your team.
- Resilience and Change Leadership – Learn to influence without authority, keep morale high through uncertainty, and lead steady in a fast-paced environment.
- Cross-Functional Business Acumen – See the bigger picture by understanding how your work connects to revenue, risk, and the customer experience, making you indispensable to leadership.
- Networking and Relationship Capital – Redefine networking as a long-term investment, not a transaction. Build authentic professional relationships that create opportunities before you need them.
For more tools and resources to accelerate your mid-career success, visit johnneral.com/resources or book a Career and Leadership Strategy Session using the link in the show notes.
Ready to give your career the jumpstart it needs to whatever is next? Schedule a $197 Career/Leadership Strategy Session. Click here to learn more about how this transformative strategy session will help you.
Visit https://johnneral.com/resources to:
- Subscribe to my free leadership and career newsletter
- Get The Mid-Career Promotion Blueprint to help you figure out whatever is next for you and your career
- Join The Mid-Career GPS Membership Community.
Please leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts here.
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Subscribe to John's YouTube Channel here.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
John Neral (00:00):
What skills do you need to be successful right now
and in the new year?
As we move through the finalquarter of 2025, it is a natural
to start looking ahead.
Maybe you're feeling stuck inyour current role, you've been
considering a job change, or youknow you need to sharpen your
skills to stay competitive, butaren't sure exactly where to
(00:24):
start.
The truth is, the workplace ismoving faster than ever.
Between AI, economic shifts,and changes in how organizations
are structured, mid-careerprofessionals like you cannot
afford to sit still.
So in today's episode, I'llwalk you through the top skills
I believe mid-careerprofessionals need to prioritize
(00:47):
right now as we head into 2026.
Whether you're planning acareer pivot, looking for a new
role, leveling up yourleadership, or aiming for that
promotion, the skills I'll talkto you about need to be what you
focus on and what you grow togive you an edge in this
competitive and ever-changingmarket.
(01:08):
Let's get started.
This episode is all about whatmatters most for your career
(01:38):
heading into 2026.
And so, number one, right outof the gate, is you need to be
better.
And better in air quotes,because this is all about not
just being better with AI, buthaving greater AI fluency and
digital agility.
(01:58):
I don't want you to panichearing this because I'm not
saying that you need to become aprogrammer or build your own AI
model.
But AI is simply no longer abuzzword.
It is a workplace reality.
And as more and more companiesand employers are integrating AI
into their work streams, you asa mid-career professional and
(02:22):
leader should be watching to seehow your company is integrating
AI and also how you can adaptto these new tools quickly and
use them responsibly.
So this means knowing how touse AI to speed up tasks,
generate ideas, or analyze data.
(02:43):
It's about being able tointerpret results critically,
knowing when you can trust AIand when you have to question
it.
And as a side note to that,that should be something you do
in the hiring process as well.
If you are using AI to help youoptimize your resume, your
(03:05):
LinkedIn, your cover letter,your networking strategy, your
interview techniques, you shouldbe looking at those AI results
and interpreting those resultscritically and with the human
sophistication that you haveinstead of blindly trusting it
to be the be-all and end all.
Recruiters are more savvy thanever, as are HR professionals,
(03:29):
of being able to look at aresume or a LinkedIn profile or
a cover letter and go, oh yeah,they just had AI write it and
never bothered to truly put itinto their own voice or even
edit the AI.
Lastly, when I think aboutbeing more comfortable with AI,
(03:50):
it is about being able to notonly show that comfort, but to
show that confidence andconfidence in using the AI
instead of resisting it.
And that is what I mean byhaving digital agility.
Digital agility is your abilityto pivot and integrate any type
of new technology into how youlead, communicate, and get your
(04:14):
work done.
If you are the one who isresisting the technology, if you
are the one who is refusing tolearn how to use it, you will be
left behind.
If you are old enough, then thelikelihood is you are, um
nothing wrong in that, right?
(04:35):
But if you are old enough, youcan remember how integrating
things like PowerPoint, Word,Excel, Microsoft Office, that
there were new features thatwere coming out in those things
constantly.
And if you weren't proficientin them, you weren't bringing
those necessary skills, right?
(04:55):
How you were using the internetto search for things.
These are things that that mayhave been a little pedestrian at
the start of your career, butnow are things that you are
embracing wholeheartedly becauseit's just something you do.
It's something you areconfident in doing.
Now, if you want some help inusing AI, especially when it
(05:19):
comes to your interviewpreparation, I want you to go
back into my catalog.
Go to episode 314.
The episode is titled InterviewTip: How Personal AI Stories
Make You More Memorable inInterviews.
I give a very clear andspecific example of how I had
used AI for a personal reasonand shared that if I was asked
(05:42):
in an interview how I'm usingAI, this would have been the
example I would have led with.
So it's episode 314, howpersonal AI Stories Make You
More Memorable in Interviews.
The second skill I want tooffer you to focus on here is
all about your strategiccommunication and storytelling.
(06:03):
Storytelling is more importantthan ever, especially leading
into 2026.
Storytelling should be anon-negotiable skill that you
are actively working at anddeveloping every single week.
Here's why (06:21):
attention is scarce.
Okay?
Our attention can so easily bedistracted by so many things.
Hiring managers, executives,and colleagues need to be able
to understand the value youbring to your current or future
(06:41):
position as quickly as possible.
If you've been following me fora while, you will hear me say
things like it is about keepingthem interested in who you are
and what you do rather thanfinding you interesting.
That is in the art of how youare telling your story.
But telling your story in thisway is about crafting stories
(07:05):
that use metrics, examples,outcomes, results that paint
this picture very vividly aboutyour contribution, your input,
and more importantly, yourimpact.
So they know the kind ofprofessional who you are.
Additionally, in yourstorytelling, you need to be
(07:26):
able to modify your storytellingto impact different audiences.
For example, you will have astorytelling approach that'll be
very different when you'respeaking with executives or
you're saying presenting at aboard meeting, as opposed to
when you're talking to yourpeers compared to when you're
talking to your clients.
(07:47):
Your storytelling needs to bethat bridge that essentially
connects the dots between whatyou've done and the problems you
are capable of solving.
That is how you will help them.
When I start working with myclients one-on-one, we get very
(08:10):
quickly into elements of theirstorytelling.
And it's how we work onessentially what I call this
it's their unique professionalvalue statement.
And I work with them on this sothey can speak about this with
greater confidence when they'reasked that tell me about
yourself question, or they needto deliver a quick point right
(08:35):
away about why someone should beinterested in them working for
them or helping them withsomething.
The third skill is aboutbuilding trust and emotional
intelligence.
As we head into 2026, trust forme, in what I'm seeing right
(08:59):
now, trust is the most importantleadership trait to possess.
Now, I don't want to underscorethe importance of having
competence and proficiency inthe technical aspects of your
job.
But if your team and youremployees do not trust you, you
don't have anything.
(09:20):
Companies have been goingthrough a lot this year,
especially the tech sector, butwe're seeing it in other areas
as well.
Layoffs, budget cuts,restructuring, stress about
whether or not you're going tohave a job.
Teams are smaller andexpectations are higher.
(09:41):
And if you had an opportunityto listen to last week's
episode, it goes without sayingyou are all stretched.
We are all stretched way toothin.
We are juggling so much at workand outside of work that it is
more important than ever forleaders to be able to have that
touch point to check in andsimply say, okay, how are you
(10:04):
doing today?
Soft skills are hard skills.
Soft skills do not go away.
And if you're in anorganization where soft skills
are diminished, I feel for you.
Soft skills are the things thatpull people together because
trust gets to build.
(10:25):
And with that, there is thiselement of emotional
intelligence that I trulybelieve will come to the
forefront next year more thanever.
So by that I mean this.
Emotional intelligence is aboutrecognizing your personal
emotions and managing themeffectively.
(10:47):
Emotional intelligence is aboutreading the room and responding
appropriately.
Emotional intelligence is aboutleading with empathy while
still holding peopleaccountable.
Being empathetic doesn't meanwe give people a pass.
(11:08):
We still have to hold peopleaccountable.
But we can have context, we canhave understanding, we can have
insight into what's going on.
For example, let's say you'reon the verge of missing a
deadline at work.
There is a difference in goingto your leadership and saying,
(11:29):
I'm not gonna make the deadlineon Friday, versus I'm not gonna
make the deadline on Fridaybecause fill in the blank, but
here's what I'm gonna do aboutit, and here's where I need your
support.
Emotional intelligence is notsome kind of DEI or woke skill.
(11:52):
These are essential skillsleaders must develop and
demonstrate on a consistentbasis to build successful teams
that allow them to show up andget the job done and get
noticed.
So we cannot overlook this.
(12:12):
Being empathetic and havingemotional intelligence doesn't
just make you, quote unquote, anice colleague.
Ultimately, they make yousomeone who is well positioned
and strategized for what's next.
And that could very well meanthat promotion or bigger
opportunities within yourcompany.
(12:33):
The next skill I want toaddress with you is about
resiliency and changeleadership.
The pace of change is notslowing down.
In fact, it is accelerating.
We are seeing this very clearlywith AI.
And I talked about this at thetop of the episode.
(12:55):
Companies more than ever,especially in 2026, are going to
need mid-career professionalsand mid-level leaders such as
yourself who can lead throughuncertainty.
And this means not simplysurviving change, but driving
it.
(13:15):
Think about it.
How do you respond when thingsdon't go as planned at work?
Do you shut down?
Do you find solutions?
Do you rally other people andhelp them move forward with you?
When it comes to leadingthrough uncertainty and
(13:37):
impacting or influencing withoutauthority, can you remain
steady and keep your perspectivewhen the pressure is on?
And how are you demonstratingcalm in a turbulent time?
If there's a crisis happening,who are you going toward?
(13:59):
More than likely, if the crisisis happening, you're not going
toward someone who's fueling thechaos.
You're going to move toward theperson who is fueling the
change or the path through it.
That's why in dangeroussituations we look for the
helpers, as Mr.
(14:20):
Rogers said.
Your ability to stay resilientand help others adapt is what
separates you from someone whois going to get overlooked and
not get promoted.
Your ability to stay resilientand drive that kind of change
(14:41):
needs to be directly connectedtoward your visibility within
the workplace.
So you are the one who's ableto tell that story with results
and impact and data about whatyou did, why it was effective,
and where you have all benefitedfrom it.
Number five is all aboutcross-functional and business
(15:09):
acumen.
Acumen is probably somethingyou have seen on a performance
metric or mid-year review.
Here's the way I like to thinkof it.
If you have ever said tosomeone at work, that is not my
department, that is not myresponsibility, that is out of
my lane, I'm going to challengeyou and ask you to shift your
(15:32):
perspective on that.
Mid-career professionals whowill thrive in 2026 understand
the bigger picture.
They connect their work acrossdepartments and across functions
because they see how their workis directly impacting
everything else that is goingon.
(15:52):
For example, if you are aproject manager, do you see how
timelines are impacting oraffecting customer satisfaction?
If you are an HR, humanresources, do you understand how
hiring strategies are impactingrevenue?
(16:13):
Having a strong business acumenmakes you more valuable because
you are not merely doing atask.
You are driving results acrossthe organization.
It is what makes you aversatile employee.
It is what makes you someonewho is seen as doing things in
(16:34):
multiple lanes rather than one.
And going into 2026 and into2026 and beyond, it is your
versatility at your mid-level,at mid-career that is going to
shape where you are mostvaluable to your company or
organization because they're notgoing to see you in a silo.
(16:55):
They will see you acrossdifferent aspects.
And with that, here is my finaltip.
In 2026, your networking andrelationship capital are more
important than ever.
Networking is something thatyou should be doing anyway.
(17:17):
But here's the truth.
And we've talked about thisbefore, but I'm going to bring
it up again.
The hidden job market is aliveand well.
Referrals, connections,recommendations still drive a
huge percentage of hires.
But networking today, nor hasit ever been, nor should it ever
(17:44):
be, merely transactional.
Networking isn't just about,hey, what you can do for me.
Thanks so much.
We're done.
Networking is about buildingthis relationship capital and
having these authentic, ongoingprofessional relationships that
you foster and cultivate andgrow and support over time.
(18:05):
When it comes to yournetworking, especially like
right now, heading into theholidays, but also into 2026,
make it a habit to stayconnected to former colleagues.
Make it a habit to stay engagedwith industry peers on
LinkedIn.
(18:25):
Reach out to people even whenyou do not need something.
Hey, I'm just checking in.
How can I help you?
What can I do for you?
What do you need?
Just as I talked about in aprevious episode, this is about
adding to your value bank.
You're going to add to yourvalue bank when you network and
(18:46):
build these relationships sothat when the time comes when
you do need support, you cantake that withdraw.
You can make that withdraw fromyour value bank and collect on
all the relationships you'vebuilt.
There's somebody in my networkwhom I recently connected with.
We had a one-on-oneconversation the other day.
I got a handwritten thank younote from him in the mail.
(19:09):
A handwritten note.
Thanks so much for theone-to-one conversation.
I really appreciate it.
Here's what I took away fromit.
Looking forward to talking toyou soon.
You don't think that matters?
That matters.
Maybe you don't send ahandwritten note, but you send
an email.
You say thank you and mean it.
You build that relationshipbecause heading into 2026, it is
(19:34):
more than ever about how wellconnected you are and where
people find you valuable andready for them when they need
something.
Because you can help them andvice versa.
So look, as we wrap up, let'sjust take a moment to recap
here.
As we head into 2026, these arethe skills that I believe
(19:58):
mid-career professionals likeyou need to be focusing on that
will set you apart from yourcompetition.
AI fluency and digital agility,strategic communication and
storytelling, trust building andemotional intelligence,
resilience and the ability tolead through change,
(20:19):
cross-functional businessacumen, and continued growing
your networking and relationshipcapital.
If you want to stay competitiveand thrive in the new year, it
is time to invest in theseskills now.
Because what you already havemay be good enough.
The question then is it goingto be good enough three months
(20:42):
from now or six months from now?
It won't be if you're notfocusing on these things.
So what does this all mean,right?
Like if you do all of thesethings, what then happens?
Well, first thing is that Ican't promise you you're going
to get a new job.
(21:02):
I can't promise you that.
I don't know all thecircumstances that go into that.
But what I can assure you, andI can promise you with the
absolute confidence that I haveis this if you work on these
things, you will be morestrategically positioned.
You will have more peopletalking about you and why you're
(21:25):
valuable.
You will have people willing toadvocate for you in the job
market to try to help you find anew job when you need it or
when you want it.
You will build a personal boardof directors within your
company and outside of it thatwill be actively advocating for
your advancement.
And what does your advancementmean?
(21:47):
Bigger title, biggerresponsibility, more money, more
visibility, and setting you upfor what's going to be next
after that.
It is time to invest in thoseskills right now.
Now, if you're ready to havesome kind of support in
sharpening those skills, I wantto invite you to check out one
of my career and leadershipstrategy sessions.
(22:10):
In just one session, I willhelp you create a customized
roadmap, the beginning frameworkof your mid-career GPS, to help
you make your next career movewith more confidence than you've
ever had in your career.
You can find a link to bookthis in the show notes or visit
my website, johnnarrell.comforward slash resources.
(22:34):
All right, my friends.
Lot going on.
Hang in there.
Keep being the amazingprofessionals you are.
Mid-career is one of the mostdynamic times in our careers.
And I wish you the best innavigating through it.
And I'm honored you spend sometime with me today.
So until next time, rememberthis.
You will build your mid-careerGPS one mile or one step at a
(22:58):
time.
And how you show up matters.
Make it a great rest of yourday.
Thank you for listening to theMid Career GPS Podcast.
Make sure to follow on yourfavorite listening platform.
And if you have a moment, I'dlove to hear your comments on
Apple Podcasts.
Visit johnnarrell.com for moreinformation about how I can help
(23:21):
you build your MidCareer GPS,or how I can help you and your
organization with your nextworkshop or public speaking
event.
Don't forget to connect with meon LinkedIn and follow me on
social at John Darrell Coaching.
I look forward to being backwith you next week.
Until then, take care.
And remember, how we show upmatters.
What skills do you need to be successful right now
and in the new year?
As we move through the finalquarter of 2025, it is a natural
to start looking ahead.
Maybe you're feeling stuck inyour current role, you've been
considering a job change, or youknow you need to sharpen your
skills to stay competitive, butaren't sure exactly where to
(00:24):
start.
The truth is, the workplace ismoving faster than ever.
Between AI, economic shifts,and changes in how organizations
are structured, mid-careerprofessionals like you cannot
afford to sit still.
So in today's episode, I'llwalk you through the top skills
I believe mid-careerprofessionals need to prioritize
(00:47):
right now as we head into 2026.
Whether you're planning acareer pivot, looking for a new
role, leveling up yourleadership, or aiming for that
promotion, the skills I'll talkto you about need to be what you
focus on and what you grow togive you an edge in this
competitive and ever-changingmarket.
(01:08):
Let's get started.
This episode is all about whatmatters most for your career
(01:38):
heading into 2026.
And so, number one, right outof the gate, is you need to be
better.
And better in air quotes,because this is all about not
just being better with AI, buthaving greater AI fluency and
digital agility.
(01:58):
I don't want you to panichearing this because I'm not
saying that you need to become aprogrammer or build your own AI
model.
But AI is simply no longer abuzzword.
It is a workplace reality.
And as more and more companiesand employers are integrating AI
into their work streams, you asa mid-career professional and
(02:22):
leader should be watching to seehow your company is integrating
AI and also how you can adaptto these new tools quickly and
use them responsibly.
So this means knowing how touse AI to speed up tasks,
generate ideas, or analyze data.
(02:43):
It's about being able tointerpret results critically,
knowing when you can trust AIand when you have to question
it.
And as a side note to that,that should be something you do
in the hiring process as well.
If you are using AI to help youoptimize your resume, your
(03:05):
LinkedIn, your cover letter,your networking strategy, your
interview techniques, you shouldbe looking at those AI results
and interpreting those resultscritically and with the human
sophistication that you haveinstead of blindly trusting it
to be the be-all and end all.
Recruiters are more savvy thanever, as are HR professionals,
(03:29):
of being able to look at aresume or a LinkedIn profile or
a cover letter and go, oh yeah,they just had AI write it and
never bothered to truly put itinto their own voice or even
edit the AI.
Lastly, when I think aboutbeing more comfortable with AI,
(03:50):
it is about being able to notonly show that comfort, but to
show that confidence andconfidence in using the AI
instead of resisting it.
And that is what I mean byhaving digital agility.
Digital agility is your abilityto pivot and integrate any type
of new technology into how youlead, communicate, and get your
(04:14):
work done.
If you are the one who isresisting the technology, if you
are the one who is refusing tolearn how to use it, you will be
left behind.
If you are old enough, then thelikelihood is you are, um
nothing wrong in that, right?
(04:35):
But if you are old enough, youcan remember how integrating
things like PowerPoint, Word,Excel, Microsoft Office, that
there were new features thatwere coming out in those things
constantly.
And if you weren't proficientin them, you weren't bringing
those necessary skills, right?
(04:55):
How you were using the internetto search for things.
These are things that that mayhave been a little pedestrian at
the start of your career, butnow are things that you are
embracing wholeheartedly becauseit's just something you do.
It's something you areconfident in doing.
Now, if you want some help inusing AI, especially when it
(05:19):
comes to your interviewpreparation, I want you to go
back into my catalog.
Go to episode 314.
The episode is titled InterviewTip: How Personal AI Stories
Make You More Memorable inInterviews.
I give a very clear andspecific example of how I had
used AI for a personal reasonand shared that if I was asked
(05:42):
in an interview how I'm usingAI, this would have been the
example I would have led with.
So it's episode 314, howpersonal AI Stories Make You
More Memorable in Interviews.
The second skill I want tooffer you to focus on here is
all about your strategiccommunication and storytelling.
(06:03):
Storytelling is more importantthan ever, especially leading
into 2026.
Storytelling should be anon-negotiable skill that you
are actively working at anddeveloping every single week.
Here's why (06:21):
attention is scarce.
Okay?
Our attention can so easily bedistracted by so many things.
Hiring managers, executives,and colleagues need to be able
to understand the value youbring to your current or future
(06:41):
position as quickly as possible.
If you've been following me fora while, you will hear me say
things like it is about keepingthem interested in who you are
and what you do rather thanfinding you interesting.
That is in the art of how youare telling your story.
But telling your story in thisway is about crafting stories
(07:05):
that use metrics, examples,outcomes, results that paint
this picture very vividly aboutyour contribution, your input,
and more importantly, yourimpact.
So they know the kind ofprofessional who you are.
Additionally, in yourstorytelling, you need to be
(07:26):
able to modify your storytellingto impact different audiences.
For example, you will have astorytelling approach that'll be
very different when you'respeaking with executives or
you're saying presenting at aboard meeting, as opposed to
when you're talking to yourpeers compared to when you're
talking to your clients.
(07:47):
Your storytelling needs to bethat bridge that essentially
connects the dots between whatyou've done and the problems you
are capable of solving.
That is how you will help them.
When I start working with myclients one-on-one, we get very
(08:10):
quickly into elements of theirstorytelling.
And it's how we work onessentially what I call this
it's their unique professionalvalue statement.
And I work with them on this sothey can speak about this with
greater confidence when they'reasked that tell me about
yourself question, or they needto deliver a quick point right
(08:35):
away about why someone should beinterested in them working for
them or helping them withsomething.
The third skill is aboutbuilding trust and emotional
intelligence.
As we head into 2026, trust forme, in what I'm seeing right
(08:59):
now, trust is the most importantleadership trait to possess.
Now, I don't want to underscorethe importance of having
competence and proficiency inthe technical aspects of your
job.
But if your team and youremployees do not trust you, you
don't have anything.
(09:20):
Companies have been goingthrough a lot this year,
especially the tech sector, butwe're seeing it in other areas
as well.
Layoffs, budget cuts,restructuring, stress about
whether or not you're going tohave a job.
Teams are smaller andexpectations are higher.
(09:41):
And if you had an opportunityto listen to last week's
episode, it goes without sayingyou are all stretched.
We are all stretched way toothin.
We are juggling so much at workand outside of work that it is
more important than ever forleaders to be able to have that
touch point to check in andsimply say, okay, how are you
(10:04):
doing today?
Soft skills are hard skills.
Soft skills do not go away.
And if you're in anorganization where soft skills
are diminished, I feel for you.
Soft skills are the things thatpull people together because
trust gets to build.
(10:25):
And with that, there is thiselement of emotional
intelligence that I trulybelieve will come to the
forefront next year more thanever.
So by that I mean this.
Emotional intelligence is aboutrecognizing your personal
emotions and managing themeffectively.
(10:47):
Emotional intelligence is aboutreading the room and responding
appropriately.
Emotional intelligence is aboutleading with empathy while
still holding peopleaccountable.
Being empathetic doesn't meanwe give people a pass.
(11:08):
We still have to hold peopleaccountable.
But we can have context, we canhave understanding, we can have
insight into what's going on.
For example, let's say you'reon the verge of missing a
deadline at work.
There is a difference in goingto your leadership and saying,
(11:29):
I'm not gonna make the deadlineon Friday, versus I'm not gonna
make the deadline on Fridaybecause fill in the blank, but
here's what I'm gonna do aboutit, and here's where I need your
support.
Emotional intelligence is notsome kind of DEI or woke skill.
(11:52):
These are essential skillsleaders must develop and
demonstrate on a consistentbasis to build successful teams
that allow them to show up andget the job done and get
noticed.
So we cannot overlook this.
(12:12):
Being empathetic and havingemotional intelligence doesn't
just make you, quote unquote, anice colleague.
Ultimately, they make yousomeone who is well positioned
and strategized for what's next.
And that could very well meanthat promotion or bigger
opportunities within yourcompany.
(12:33):
The next skill I want toaddress with you is about
resiliency and changeleadership.
The pace of change is notslowing down.
In fact, it is accelerating.
We are seeing this very clearlywith AI.
And I talked about this at thetop of the episode.
(12:55):
Companies more than ever,especially in 2026, are going to
need mid-career professionalsand mid-level leaders such as
yourself who can lead throughuncertainty.
And this means not simplysurviving change, but driving
it.
(13:15):
Think about it.
How do you respond when thingsdon't go as planned at work?
Do you shut down?
Do you find solutions?
Do you rally other people andhelp them move forward with you?
When it comes to leadingthrough uncertainty and
(13:37):
impacting or influencing withoutauthority, can you remain
steady and keep your perspectivewhen the pressure is on?
And how are you demonstratingcalm in a turbulent time?
If there's a crisis happening,who are you going toward?
(13:59):
More than likely, if the crisisis happening, you're not going
toward someone who's fueling thechaos.
You're going to move toward theperson who is fueling the
change or the path through it.
That's why in dangeroussituations we look for the
helpers, as Mr.
(14:20):
Rogers said.
Your ability to stay resilientand help others adapt is what
separates you from someone whois going to get overlooked and
not get promoted.
Your ability to stay resilientand drive that kind of change
(14:41):
needs to be directly connectedtoward your visibility within
the workplace.
So you are the one who's ableto tell that story with results
and impact and data about whatyou did, why it was effective,
and where you have all benefitedfrom it.
Number five is all aboutcross-functional and business
(15:09):
acumen.
Acumen is probably somethingyou have seen on a performance
metric or mid-year review.
Here's the way I like to thinkof it.
If you have ever said tosomeone at work, that is not my
department, that is not myresponsibility, that is out of
my lane, I'm going to challengeyou and ask you to shift your
(15:32):
perspective on that.
Mid-career professionals whowill thrive in 2026 understand
the bigger picture.
They connect their work acrossdepartments and across functions
because they see how their workis directly impacting
everything else that is goingon.
(15:52):
For example, if you are aproject manager, do you see how
timelines are impacting oraffecting customer satisfaction?
If you are an HR, humanresources, do you understand how
hiring strategies are impactingrevenue?
(16:13):
Having a strong business acumenmakes you more valuable because
you are not merely doing atask.
You are driving results acrossthe organization.
It is what makes you aversatile employee.
It is what makes you someonewho is seen as doing things in
(16:34):
multiple lanes rather than one.
And going into 2026 and into2026 and beyond, it is your
versatility at your mid-level,at mid-career that is going to
shape where you are mostvaluable to your company or
organization because they're notgoing to see you in a silo.
(16:55):
They will see you acrossdifferent aspects.
And with that, here is my finaltip.
In 2026, your networking andrelationship capital are more
important than ever.
Networking is something thatyou should be doing anyway.
(17:17):
But here's the truth.
And we've talked about thisbefore, but I'm going to bring
it up again.
The hidden job market is aliveand well.
Referrals, connections,recommendations still drive a
huge percentage of hires.
But networking today, nor hasit ever been, nor should it ever
(17:44):
be, merely transactional.
Networking isn't just about,hey, what you can do for me.
Thanks so much.
We're done.
Networking is about buildingthis relationship capital and
having these authentic, ongoingprofessional relationships that
you foster and cultivate andgrow and support over time.
(18:05):
When it comes to yournetworking, especially like
right now, heading into theholidays, but also into 2026,
make it a habit to stayconnected to former colleagues.
Make it a habit to stay engagedwith industry peers on
LinkedIn.
(18:25):
Reach out to people even whenyou do not need something.
Hey, I'm just checking in.
How can I help you?
What can I do for you?
What do you need?
Just as I talked about in aprevious episode, this is about
adding to your value bank.
You're going to add to yourvalue bank when you network and
(18:46):
build these relationships sothat when the time comes when
you do need support, you cantake that withdraw.
You can make that withdraw fromyour value bank and collect on
all the relationships you'vebuilt.
There's somebody in my networkwhom I recently connected with.
We had a one-on-oneconversation the other day.
I got a handwritten thank younote from him in the mail.
(19:09):
A handwritten note.
Thanks so much for theone-to-one conversation.
I really appreciate it.
Here's what I took away fromit.
Looking forward to talking toyou soon.
You don't think that matters?
That matters.
Maybe you don't send ahandwritten note, but you send
an email.
You say thank you and mean it.
You build that relationshipbecause heading into 2026, it is
(19:34):
more than ever about how wellconnected you are and where
people find you valuable andready for them when they need
something.
Because you can help them andvice versa.
So look, as we wrap up, let'sjust take a moment to recap
here.
As we head into 2026, these arethe skills that I believe
(19:58):
mid-career professionals likeyou need to be focusing on that
will set you apart from yourcompetition.
AI fluency and digital agility,strategic communication and
storytelling, trust building andemotional intelligence,
resilience and the ability tolead through change,
(20:19):
cross-functional businessacumen, and continued growing
your networking and relationshipcapital.
If you want to stay competitiveand thrive in the new year, it
is time to invest in theseskills now.
Because what you already havemay be good enough.
The question then is it goingto be good enough three months
(20:42):
from now or six months from now?
It won't be if you're notfocusing on these things.
So what does this all mean,right?
Like if you do all of thesethings, what then happens?
Well, first thing is that Ican't promise you you're going
to get a new job.
(21:02):
I can't promise you that.
I don't know all thecircumstances that go into that.
But what I can assure you, andI can promise you with the
absolute confidence that I haveis this if you work on these
things, you will be morestrategically positioned.
You will have more peopletalking about you and why you're
(21:25):
valuable.
You will have people willing toadvocate for you in the job
market to try to help you find anew job when you need it or
when you want it.
You will build a personal boardof directors within your
company and outside of it thatwill be actively advocating for
your advancement.
And what does your advancementmean?
(21:47):
Bigger title, biggerresponsibility, more money, more
visibility, and setting you upfor what's going to be next
after that.
It is time to invest in thoseskills right now.
Now, if you're ready to havesome kind of support in
sharpening those skills, I wantto invite you to check out one
of my career and leadershipstrategy sessions.
(22:10):
In just one session, I willhelp you create a customized
roadmap, the beginning frameworkof your mid-career GPS, to help
you make your next career movewith more confidence than you've
ever had in your career.
You can find a link to bookthis in the show notes or visit
my website, johnnarrell.comforward slash resources.
(22:34):
All right, my friends.
Lot going on.
Hang in there.
Keep being the amazingprofessionals you are.
Mid-career is one of the mostdynamic times in our careers.
And I wish you the best innavigating through it.
And I'm honored you spend sometime with me today.
So until next time, rememberthis.
You will build your mid-careerGPS one mile or one step at a
(22:58):
time.
And how you show up matters.
Make it a great rest of yourday.
Thank you for listening to theMid Career GPS Podcast.
Make sure to follow on yourfavorite listening platform.
And if you have a moment, I'dlove to hear your comments on
Apple Podcasts.
Visit johnnarrell.com for moreinformation about how I can help
(23:21):
you build your MidCareer GPS,or how I can help you and your
organization with your nextworkshop or public speaking
event.
Don't forget to connect with meon LinkedIn and follow me on
social at John Darrell Coaching.
I look forward to being backwith you next week.
Until then, take care.
And remember, how we show upmatters.
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