Career advice from a director of innovation and growth

What’s the best advice you ever received? What tips did you wish you knew earlier? How did this help you on your career journey?

We’ve spoken to members of the Apolitical community to share their top three pieces of career advice with us. In this article, Brett Maxwell explains why it’s important to read the room - and admit to your limitations - in their role as a Director in the Innovation and Growth Policy Division.

Your first piece of advice:

Know the audience: "Read the room", so to speak. Be aware of the audience you are presenting to or writing for in giving policy advice. If you are not sure, ask who it is ahead of time so you can deliver your message at the right level. You don't want to lose people in details, nor do you want to leave too much information out for audiences that are more informed on the topic.

Your second piece of advice:

Give concrete examples where possible. In explaining an issue, examples help provide visuals or points of reference for people to better understand what you are trying to communicate and allow them to provide more constructive feedback. This is particularly important on complex issues that the audience is perhaps not as familiar with.

Your third piece of advice:

Say "I don't know" if you don't know. While it never feels great to not have an answer, particularly in front of senior management, it is better to say "I'm not sure, I'll have to get back to you on that one" than to give an uninformed or wrong response.

Want to share your own career advice with the Apolitical community? Use this form to let us know!

(Image Credit: Unsplash)