5 Ways to Fire-Proof Your Butt at Work
By Kevin Donlin | July 23rd, 2008
From an article on MarketWatch.com, my favorite are:
1. Be indispensable
2. Speak up
3. Stay in touch
Excerpts below …
Be indispensable
These days, being good at your job isn’t necessarily enough. In tough economic times, “every person gets put under a microscope and scrutinized” by managers eager to cut costs, said Peggy Klaus, an executive coach and author of The Hard Truth About Soft Skills: Workplace Lessons Smart People Wish They’d Learned Sooner.“You need for other people to see you as the expert, as the go-to person,” Klaus said.
Volunteer for tasks, even if slightly outside of your area of expertise (it’s a chance to learn new skills). If you don’t know the answer to a question, demonstrate your willingness to find that answer. If you hear layoffs are planned, don’t hide.Speak up
Routinely telegraph your indispensability to your boss. “You’ve got to get over the myth that if you do the work, you’ll be justly rewarded and recognized,” Klaus said. “People are moving in and out of jobs quickly. You might have a manager who knows nothing about you … if you’re not on the radar screen it’s so much easier for them to lay you off.”
That doesn’t mean bragging. Instead, be forthcoming with specific evidence, said Eva Wisnik, founder of Wisnik Career Enterprises Inc., in New York.
For instance, when you run into the division chief in the elevator and he asks how you are, don’t just say, “Busy!” Be prepared to offer tidbits of recent successes, Wisnik said, such as “I just landed a new piece of business,” or “we’re presenting at an industry conference next week.”
For some, that still may feel like bragging, but it’s essential you make the effort. “You can’t take it for granted that they get it. If you were able to save money, negotiate with vendors, bring in new business, say it,” Wisnik said.
Stay in touch
No matter what the economy looks like, always stay in touch with acquaintances, friends and current and former co-workers. Networking is a distasteful idea to some; it doesn’t have to be. “Reframe it,” Moses said.
“I’m establishing a connection with someone. I’m giving to them as much as taking,” she said. “You’re not being manipulative if you’re making a connection. You’re straightforward.”
That means you don’t network simply to add to your contact list, Moses said. “Think about what you’re doing to help another person, as opposed to whether or not you got a job lead.” Think of yourself as a storyteller.
“As you network with people, you pick up interesting or amusing information about companies, the players, industries — pass that on,” Moses said. “You become a repository of interesting information.”
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