HI All,
Career Advice: Five Secrets to
Becoming the Perfect Employee That Everyone Wants – Part One
The following are five career development
secrets to being the perfect employee everyone wants:
1.
Respect.
Respect others with whom you work everyday. What is respect?
Respect comes in many different forms. The following are just a few
examples:
§
Respect fellow
employees as individuals with unique ideas and thoughts that may be different
from yours. This diversity of ideas may seem a little different at
first, but that is how we produce better solutions. “Group think”
often gets you nowhere fast. Embrace diversity of thought so that
you are open minded for better solutions.
§
Respect fellow
employees by greeting them in the morning. Many times I hear from
employees who say that certain co-workers make it unpleasant in the office
because they seldom say “Good Morning” or “Hello,” don’t smile, and
are just plain nasty to fellow co-workers. Take the time to give
a pleasant greeting to your co-workers even when you may be having a difficult
time. You will be known as someone who is pleasant to work with,
and guess what; more opportunities will come your way. Also, you
can break out of a bad mood and become more productive at work if you are
pleasant to others.
§
Respect the work
of others. Appreciate the time and efforts of co-workers and let
them know. You may not agree on the final product, but you can respect
the time and effort put into the project.
§
Respect others
by practicing the Golden Rule…well sort of. The Golden Rule states
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Well, there
are many people, because of their poor self-esteem, who like to be “dumped
on” emotionally and physically. If we follow the Golden Rule, does
that mean that these same people should “dump on” their fellow co-workers?
Of course not! Treat your co-workers with the utmost respect
and appreciation they deserve.
2.
Knowledge.
Knowledge is the key. The workplace is constantly changing.
Even the look of change is changing. Also, change is happening
faster and faster. Just look around you in society, work, and technology.
The only way to master change is to gain the knowledge to be ahead
of change.
Take the time to learn not only about
your present job, but also about your future job opportunities. This
will make you a more valuable employee. Also, take time to learn
about the job that is one level above your present position. When
this position becomes available, you will be in a better position to receive
a promotion.
Also take responsibility for your knowledge.
Time and time again I hear the following:
“Well, my company won’t pay for
the class, so I’m not going to take the class.”
I say to that, “Find the way to gain
the knowledge!” There are too many educational options not to have
the knowledge. Whether you pay for it yourself, receive online training,
volunteer, etc., there are ways to receive knowledge.
Remember, once you receive knowledge
it is
your
knowledge to take anywhere you go in life.
3.
Communication.
Communicate, communicate, and communicate. Talking is one half
of the communication process. Listening is the other and sometimes
the most important part of the communication process. Listening means
being open-mined to new ideas.
Communication also means learning how
to give and receive feedback. Giving feedback means giving feedback
that is honest and fair and leaves the person wanting to do better. Receiving
feedback means information given to you, and it may include questions for
clarity and understanding about what needs to be done.
Communication is also good follow-up
with employees and management. Do you inform your managers or co-workers
about the process or changes in the project on which you are working?
4.
Appreciation.
Appreciate to motivate others. Be accountable for your words.
Once you say something, it’s hard to take it back.
Show and give praise to others in the
workplace. Work at finding them doing something good and praise them
(Read my article
Appreciate
to Motivate
.).
The more you do this, the more you will tear down barriers and motivate
others in the workplace.
5.
Solutions.
Be a solution creator, not a problem dictator. Anyone can find
problems; but the employee who can find a problem or challenge and create
a solution is an employee that can write his/her own ticket for success.
Take it upon yourself to be a part of the solution and not a part
of the problem.
Ask yourself these questions:
§
What
is the positive that can come out of this challenge?
§
What
will I learn from this challenge?
§
What
are some solutions I can present?
§
How will
I present my solutions so that the organization sees the immediate benefits?
Apply these career development techniques
and you, too, will become the perfect employee and enjoy career advancement.
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