Original idea by Dan Schawbel
The old way of managing your career has been impacted by our new economy. We now have four generations in the workforce, people are switching jobs more regularly, and corporations are hiring from around the world, and even automating positions that were previously held by people. Everyone job is at risk on a daily basis and you are the only one account for your career. Gone are the days when you can sit back and get promoted as you age at your company. In today’s world, you have to work much harder, be more strategic and go beyond what’s expected of you.
The new economy, and advances in technology, have created new rules. Most professionals have an online presence mainly on social media. Your status updates online can impact your reputation at work and technology has changed the nine-to-five workday into a 24/7 one. While the old economy was about information, in the new economy, connections are even more important. Who you know is becoming more important than what you know. That is why people can connect you to ideas, advice and resources like never before.
Taking under consideration all the above, here are some of my best tips for getting ahead:
1. Become a great communicator.
Through multiple surveys, communication skills are proved to be the most important part when it comes to recruiting and promotions. If you want to be a successful manager, you have to be a great communicator. With four generations at work, you will have to be able to adapt to different ways of communicating, from instant messaging, to text messaging to phone calls and even social networking. When you communicate, try to get your point across concisely because people don’t have much time to waste but need to know what to do at the same time.
2. Always have a positive attitude.
If you have a great attitude about your work environment, and your responsibilities, people will want to work with you or for you. If you have a negative attitude, people will avoid and it will be harder to get work accomplished.
3. Build relationships.
The connections that you make at work are currency. If you want to build the largest network, then seek to help your co-workers with their projects without asking for anything in return. Do the work that they aren’t able to do and then they will want to reciprocate when you request support. Use your co-workers and managers to connect with more people across the organization. This will give you insight into what other departments are working on and you’ll be able to get your work done faster.
4. Be active outside of workplace.
If you come home from work and then start watching TV for the rest of the night, you’re missing a major opportunity to get ahead at work. Find the right industry organizations, associations and networking events in your city and attend them. In this way, you are extending your network and enriching your reputation. Before those events, do research on who is attending the event and make a list of the top five people you want to me. While you’re at the event, spend the whole time with those five people so that you build the strongest relationships with the right people.
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5. Have an entrepreneurial spirit.
Today’s managers need to take risks and think like entrepreneurs if they want their company to become innovative and exciting. As an entrepreneurial manager, you and your subordinates can find new opportunities that your company can take advantage of or ways to improve current services or processes. Allow your employees to come up with ideas and freely present them to you. In this way, employees become more eager to work for you and you to form stronger relationships with them.
6. Make your boss’s job easier.
The best way to get ahead is to make your boss more successful. When your manager passes on work to you, you should always take it on. Even before your manager asks for your support, you should always try to lend a hand. When you do this, your manager will depend on you, give you more responsibilities and when they move up the ladder, they will bring you up with them.
7. Adapt to change.
Since business is happening every second of every day and new technologies are constantly surfacing, managers have to be able to adapt. Your group might merge with another or your responsibilities might shift without much notice. You must have a positive attitude and react quickly when they change happens. Your management will want to see that you can handle yourself, be accountable and make decisions quickly.
8. Become more visible.
Your management needs to know what you and your team is working on and what you’ve accomplished. You should attach yourself to big corporate initiatives so that more departments will know what you’re capabilities are. If people don’t know you, then they can’t connect with you and bring you into larger projects. Always be an advocate for your team and get your name out there.
9. Delegate responsibilities.
Even if you try, you won’t be able to give each individual project your full attention. It’s far better to delegate tasks to your subordinates, so that you can focus on the larger picture. It’s the only way you’ll grow in your company and the best way for your employees to build stronger careers.
10. Hire the right people.
In today’s business world, the focus has been on corporate culture and talent, more so than ever before. If you want to generate results in your group, you must hire the right people. Make sure when you interview candidates that the team gets to speak with them because they will be spending more time with them than with you. During the interview, make sure that you talk about the culture and expectations. When you do that, you end up hiring the right people who will stay with you longer!
See Original Article here.
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