Whether the economy is strong or faltering, employees can make themselves more valuable to employers by proactively taking charge of their careers. Here's how to do just that:
A Better Professional Image and Networking Skills
Image is about more than what one wears – although that's important, too. To impress management, have an enjoyable working relationship with colleagues and open up even more job opportunities, employees should:
- Dress better: Wear more professional, more mature and less trendy attire.
- Be more timely: Anyone who has a problem showing up five minutes late or taking long lunches can make a serious effort to be on time or early. It demonstrates a commitment to the job and the employer.
- Become the "go-to" guy or gal: Everybody loves that person in their department who is friendly, knowledgeable and always eager to help or learn more. Someone who can become that person and help their colleagues will find that others will want to help them in return.
- Take ownership of projects: Instead of just attending meetings, the indispensible employee will take responsibility for their part of projects and complete tasks on-time with pride and excellence.
- Network more effectively: Taking advantage of conferences and company parties to do a little professional networking is a smart idea. So is getting to know people in other departments (or companies), and maybe even choosing a mentor – someone whose career and success it would be nice to emulate.
Considering Career Training
While improving one's professional image and networking is important, it's also important to make sure that career-related knowledge and job skills aren't stuck in the past. One way to think about how to develop know-how is to consider the following questions:
- What trends in the industry might be smart growth areas to move into? Keeping current within the industry shows managers (and potential employers) seriousness, foresight and commitment.
- If an employee doesn't love what they're currently doing, can they tailor their job to something that's more interesting? Is more training needed?
- Will the learning goals the employee is considering require a degree, a night class at the local college, or just some good quality books?
Indispensible employees are honest with themselves, looking into all options to decide what is most realistic in terms of time and money – and what will benefit their career most in both the short and long term.
Evaluate Career Plans and Learning Goals
Suffering a setback in a new career development plan can seem devastating, but that's the time to reevaluate the plan and its goals. Were they too ambitious, too vague, or misdirected? "Failures" and setbacks should be seen as the important learning tools they are.
Career development is something that the individual has to take charge of, because no one else will! But setting goals and working toward career advancement might just make work more satisfying -- even before the promotions come.
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