It can be difficult if you have been in your job for a while but feel constantly overlooked for promotion. You might even feel frustrated to the point that you want to leave your job, citing the lack of career progression as a key reason.
Before you start typing up your resignation letter, stop and think it through. This drastic solution may not be the best way to get ahead. Instead, try these tips to rebrand your work attitude and help you climb your own ladder of success.
Show an interest
If you are keen to be recognised in the workplace, your colleagues are too — so show an interest in them and their work. Every morning, ask one of your co-workers about their current projects. There could be something they need to chat about that a friendly opener will reveal.
Have an opinion
Every office has those meetings where the room goes mute when it comes to Q&A time. Make sure you are not one of the silent members and be prepared with an opinion or a query. Getting your voice heard will show that you listen, are proactive, and care enough to speak up.
Bring positivity
However hard, long or dull a task may seem, don’t let it get you down. Negativity is a vicious circle that is hard to break and infects those around you too. There’s no need to be overly enthusiastic or falsely cheerful, but there’s an opportunity to be seen as the team problem solver; the person who comes up with a different way of looking at each project.
Be relevant
It’s easy to get preoccupied with your day job and not devote any time to reading up on the latest industry news. Not only can these be great conversation starters, it also shows that you have relevant knowledge, which will mark you as the go-to if your boss has a new idea or project.
Share ideas
If you want to know how good you are, you must first know how good everyone else is. Be on the lookout for brilliant ideas, quotes, even cartoons — anything that inspires your creativity— and share these with your team. Creating an ideas network will initiate brainstorming and motivate everyone to try a bit harder. If your team feels bored, why not asking them to try ways to destress?
Make the coffee
You don’t need to turn yourself into the office coffee machine, but when you are getting up to refill your cup, offer to get one round for the team. Or send an inspirational quote to the team chat once in a while. It’s the small, meaningful gestures that will get you noticed.
When you are looking for a promotion, it’s important to recognise that expectations don’t just flow one way. Your boss needs to see you standing out from the pack — in the right way.
This article is contributed by Prudential Assurance Company Singapore.
