In this competitive world, we all are putting in that extra effort to achieve our dreams and goals and it is very much evident in today’s corporate culture. Many of us who are a part of a highly competitive corporate environment work for 10-11 hours a day as our work demands so and we wish to differentiate ourselves from others by displaying utmost commitment and dedication.
It is rightly said that hard work is the key to success but at the same time, it is very important to make the right impression on the people with whom we work as this makes things relatively easy for us and the best way to achieve that is to do right things at the right time, say right thing to the right person and by following certain do’s and don’ts’
- Make your work go noticed – Last night, you worked beyond office hours to meet the project timelines and saved your team from the tantrums of a pesky client, well that’s commendable so don’t let it go unnoticed, let your boss know the amount of efforts you have put in to achieve the desired results. On the contrary, if you are facing a hard time accomplishing a task, inform your supervisor immediately instead of jostling with the work and ending up doing less by taking more time. Therefore, timely and clear communication as well as getting acknowledgements are very important.
- Don’t shrug it off your shoulders – We all make mistakes and that is a part of human nature but as they say, more you make mistakes, more you learn. At the same time it is very important to own your mistakes as there is nothing wrong in accepting your faults and making an effort to not repeat them in future. Instead of that, if you play a blame game and shrug your mistake off your shoulders then you are considered as someone who is incapable of handling criticism and incompetent at work. A better approach is to own your mistakes and take the sole responsibility of correcting them in future. After all, every mistake is a lesson learnt.
- Don’t stay secluded, expand your network – In the corporate world, there are all kinds of people; you make some really good friends, some become your favorite booze company, some intellectually sound souls become your mentors and you also come across many whom you just cannot stand, hard fact, I know! No matter if we like or do not like our colleagues, It is very important to build a strong network with different people you meet at your workplace as they are the ones who can be of great help in your career ahead. There comes a point in our career when it is only a strong network that can be of great advantage while you plan to make a switch or move to a better position. So just avoid staying in seclusion and try to build good professional yet amicable relations with your work peers.
- Think and then react – Many a times it happens that we do not like certain things said by our bosses and subordinates and feel like replying back there and then. While it might satisfy our ego at that very moment but we might repent later. People who stay calm and composed in any situation are the best people to work with and their co-workers look up to them. Anything said in anger can have grave repercussions later on as you might end up destroying your professional relations
- Right things to the right person at the right time: Last but not the least, If you have an issue with your supervisor/senior for being overly demanding and controlling, let him/her know as soon as you can so that the right expectations are set; if you don’t like the work that you are doing, ask your boss to assign you something of your interest; be proactive and smart enough to identify your key skills so that you can make others aware of the same. If your junior/mentee is not performing up to the mark, guide him to perform better instead of complaining about it to your colleagues, this way he/she will look up to you as his/her career guide rather than being viewed as a nasty boss; if you have an innovative idea, don’t hesitate to share it with your manager, who knows in future it might contribute towards reduction in the turnaround time of work and you could be titled as a hero who introduced it! Focused and amicable discussions done at the right time with the right people are always fruitful.
As rightly said that first impression is the last impression but if you failed to do so then here is your second chance!
