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How to get noticed in your job for all the right reasons!

February 2nd, 2011 · 9 Comments

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Feel like you aren’t appreciated at your job? Or that others don’t listen to or respect you? Are you overlooked for promotions and other opportunities?

You may think the only solution is to find other work, but that’s not necessarily true. And with today’s high unemployment rate, a new job could prove elusive.

So, before you start sending out your resume, think carefully about why you are dissatisfied with your current position. Assess yourself honestly, and determine if you’re doing everything you can to make the most of your job.

If you’re not, the same problems may follow you to a new position. Rather than search for the answers in a new job, make your current job the best it can be. You may even advance your career in the process.

When you focus on what you do, rather than what others do, you can change your life for the better.

The following tips will help you get noticed at work, for all the right reasons.

Make the most of your time at work

Your attitude can help you feel respected and appreciated at work. Concentrate on the positive, and enjoy your job. Even those who are unhappy in their jobs can findsomething good on which to focus. Maybe it’s just the background music, or the ability to be out in the fresh air. There’s something good in everything we do.

Maintain an upbeat attitude with your co-workers – smile and say hello to those you meet. Positive interactions with others can change one’s mood. After all, a big part of your life is spent at work, so those relationships are important.

Keep an open mind when problems arise. The way you see things and react to them will affect what happens next. So make every effort to be positive in every situation.

Remember: when “woe is me,” more woe will come!

Take pride in your work

When you feel respected and appreciated for your good work, you will feel better and will perform more confidently and professionally.

Don’t rush through your work to get it done; become known as a person who can be relied upon to do a particular job well, while also meeting deadlines.

Stop and appreciate every accomplishment yourself – no matter how small. Our days are made up of many, many accomplishments, yet we move so quickly we don’t always reflect on what we’ve done. Don’t wait for others to give you compliments. Keep a “celebration journal” to help remind you of the many good things that happen, and read it when you need a pick-me-up.
Cherish the moments that make life special. Take the time to stop and think: what is it about today that I am grateful for?

Show your respect for others all the time

Ask yourself these questions, and make changes where needed:

• Do I treat others in a way that is sensitive to their feelings?
• Am I consistently fair in my interactions with others?
• Do I speak negatively or complain about others?
• Do I appreciate and honor differences?

Know that you have the ability to make a positive difference in your own life, as well as in the lives of others.

Recognize that everyone is different, but we all have something in common. When you meet someone new, look forward to learning more about him or her.

Introduce yourself to people you don’t know, making sure to say their name and make eye contact. Work hard to remember names and say hello when you see people again.

Make sure to thank someone who does something special for you. In fact, go out of your way to thank people publicly when possible, even if it’s just an e-mail with a copy to their supervisor.

Make it a goal to make someone else feel good each day.

Act like a professional … be a professional

People notice both big and little things about us – the words we use, our tone of voice, the way we dress, the way we present ourselves to others – and they respond accordingly.

For example, if you are angry about something that happened at work and you march into your supervisor’s office, slam the door and yell about your problem, you probably won’t get the best response. On the other hand, if you walk in and politely say you have a concern you’d like to discuss, your supervisor will be more likely to listen.

Speak to others in a calm and courteous manner, even when they do not give you the same courtesy. Be a role model – a positive force to influence others.

Respectful and professional behavior will help you get noticed for the right reasons.

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Tags: Getting Ahead · Office Politcs · WorkLife

  • Guest

    HA! Not where I work! It is a Titanic load of political crap! You have to run in the right crowd – that is IF they accept you. First off you have to be a drinker and hit the bars after work (most are divorced), you have to cool & project a certain image (knowlege or abilities don’t count), and you are willing to submit your soul to the whim of senior management (aka the devil). Did I mention that we have a full Bozo Explosion where you have to be dumber than management. The smart ones are trying to leave while retaining lawyers to protect him/herself from our management. No one reports the abuse from management because of retaliation.

    Sorry but I would rather KEEP my soul, I’m not a drinker, and I want to keep my marrage. The issue is that I project intellegance as well as being educated (MBA) while some managers have an Associates Degree. I have been told that I am considered a treat to management because of my advance degree. So what does management do with me??? They shove me in a little corner of the organization – out of sight, out of mind. There are others that are thrown into this pit of hell we call Siberia.

    The employees I talk to are seeking to escape this place where they can be treated with respect.

    • http://allmediany.com Jon

      Haha not always true. Sometimes you can have 3 and 4 degrees and still feel threatened.

      My friend’s boss has an MBA and my friend only has a Bachelor’s but I can tell he feels threatened because my friend’s ideas are unique/creative as well as memorable.

      As a result my friend doesn’t get to meet clients or with the CEO much.

      Sometimes more degrees doesn’t mean jack but how well your ideas are applied in a practical sense in the real world business setting.

      • Guest

        I stopped giving ideas a long time ago. Some of my co-workers/friends I share my ideas with and they keep them to themselves but utilize them when needed.

        But when employees hire lawyers to protect themselves from their employer … not a good sign!

  • http://twitter.com/JLynnPro Jen M.

    It’s really hard to do this when you work in a really toxic environment. People don’t communicate directly–just go and bitch to supervisors behind people’s backs. Nothing gets resolved, and people get hit with surprise negative feedback at review time.

    It’s awful. Sometimes, escape really IS the only option!

  • Guest

    @Jen – Communication is important but so is confidentiality. We had one manager that would have an “open door policy.” When employees would go to him with “issues” in confidence, he would tell the person’s supervisor what he/she said and told to “take care of the problem” and that never want to hear about it again. The supervisor would then place pressure on the employee (retaliation). To us, “open door” means a trap and you just don’t enter the trap. “Open door policy” is like a Venus Fly Trap has an “open door policy.”

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  • mastedon2

    I agree, this is complete ridiculous drivol. When you work for managers and CEOs that know nothing about what you do, you will find them all too willing and able to equate it with shoe-shining, as opposed to brain surgery. Its that shitty fiscal cheap ass policy that establishes “Raise Sentries” throughout the company in the form of supervisors, that at one time are told by the CEO, “I dont want to see people about raises”.
    From that point on, even if youve saved the very core of a company’s life, the ignorance you are faced with about your job, is just that. Willful ignorance, willful declination, willful denial of your successes.
    Because Small-Time Crook ass owners like the one that runs this company arent worth working for. It really is too bad that employees who work for individual owners have no rights at all. “At Will” employment for sure..

  • mastedon2

    I’d also like to add, that employers are now doing away with “Reviews”.
    Years can go by and your only option is to go and “ask”.
    This leaves you in the position of having to support and explain what it is youve done there, when mgmt does not want to really know, because their sole purpose is to stay cheap as dirt.
    Except when it comes to their own salaries, listed as employees of the company as well as CEO, yet do nothing, never show up, and are never available for these professional discussions.
    I work for a guy that sued his former company for sexual harrassment. He then bought out our company, and turned it into fucking bizarro-world.
    This has destroyed my desire to work in this field, and has permanently squashed my willingness to do a damn thing more. Its now, just a paycheck. Some shit company relying on the poor economy to keep employees. Hows that for a plan?