It may come as a surprise to some, but employers don’t just look for education and work experience. In order to achieve a viable long term employee, they also consider a range of skills that go beyond relevant technical requirements. Obviously you need to suit the role and possess all the minimum requirements, but so called transferable (or soft) skills can increase your chances of standing out in your next application.
If you’re like most candidates, the first thing you think about when applying for a new role is education and experience. However, this is often not the most important area. Many times, the skills you have acquired outside of your area of expertise can provide the key to achieving your new role.
No matter how experienced you are or how many different roles you have held, identifying and clearly articulating your transferable skills to a potential employer is very important. These transferable skills can be referred to as ‘soft’ skills and are key to achieving some roles – particularly if you are changing direction or careers – even if only slightly.
These skills matter because they can help you make a smooth and successful transition to a new role. They make you a valuable and contributing employee from your very first day in the role. While your specific area of expertise might be highly technical or specialised, transferable skills ensure you achieve a long term career.
How can they be acquired? Transferable skills are acquired by everyone starting from when you are born – they come from day to day interactions with family, formal schooling, university education, social interaction with friends, sporting activities, day to day work activities, workplace interactions, and throughout the course of life in general.
How do you identify them? Think about your areas of strength and weakness or use a formal self-assessment tool. Enlisting the help of a colleague or superior can help or alternatively try an online assessment tool – simply google ‘transferable skills assessment’. Your formal annual performance review process can also be a great place to make this happen. It’s simply a process of identifying a list of skills and going through and checking off all those that you feel you possess.
What are they? The areas to think about are broad, but generally cover some key areas:
People skills – communication, interpersonal/influencing, delegating, diplomacy, coaching/mentoring, leadership, presentation, tact and empathy, collaboration, customer service, negotiation, listening
Analytical skills – problem solving, research, data analysis, risk management, financial analysis, budgeting
Creativity & commercial acumen – the ability to solve problems with creative but viable solutions, thinking outside the box, and adapting to changing environments, market situations and company strategy are huge assets in today’s competitive world. Likewise understanding how your work fits into the bigger picture or broader company strategy is important.
But it doesn’t stop there. Once you’ve identified your skills, you need to prove them and articulate the ‘how’. It’s not enough to just say ‘I’m a great communicator’ you need to prove why you are a great communicator with examples. We always recommend an overview or profile and key capabilities section in your resume where you highlight some of these transferable skills together with an explanation of ‘how’ the skills were acquired. Likewise, in an interview, be prepared to articulate where you gained your skills with specific examples that demonstrate how they have contributed to past successes.
Would you like help identifying and articulating your transferable skills? Does your Resume need updating with some proof on how you obtained these transferable skills. If you would like assistance with your job applications and job search, please see our Resume Services and Job Search Coaching Services.
In his #1 bestseller, Stephen R. Covey presented a framework for personal effectiveness through his definition of the 7 habits of highly effective people. His premise centred on our character being a collection of our habits, and habits having a powerful role in our lives. But what about habits in the workplace? Most successful people (the ones who get the promotions, raises and opportunities) have common habits that can be mimicked.
So what is it that makes one person more likely to get promoted than another? For some people, it can seem like others get all the opportunities and promotions handed to them on a silver platter. Are they just lucky or were they simply ‘in the right place at the right time?’ We don’t believe so. There are common themes amongst highly successful individuals and how they deal with their day to day working lives. The good news for everyone else is that these habits are things anyone can do. So what are they?
Think About Your Next Move – constantly thinking about the skills you should be developing in order to succeed in your next role is a good start. It doesn’t mean ignoring your current responsibilities, but try to develop new skills and when you do achieve a promotion, see it as a stepping stone to your next career move. Constantly learn – about your company, the industry, and your general area of expertise. Ask questions and participate in formal learning and professional development opportunities by attending seminars, conferences and training. Successful people think about where their career is headed and what they need to do to get there.
Network – get to know your colleagues and superiors – both within and outside of your company and area of expertise. People who get ahead develop and foster networks throughout their careers. This is especially important if you want to achieve promotion within your own company. It’s pretty hard to achieve that if your boss doesn’t know you are or the value that you offer. Successful people aren’t intimidated to speak up in meetings, offer their opinion or contribute to ideas. Even if you don’t have an original idea, there might be an opportunity to support someone else’s idea or point of view, or ask an insightful question. Be careful not to limit your networks to superiors – successful people need a great team of people around them to succeed, so keep this in mind.
Get Stuff Done – understand what’s important and don’t say yes to everything. Ensure you know exactly what you need to be working on to succeed in your role. Understand that everyone works in different ways – figure out how you work best – do you need to get to the office an hour early to clear your inbox, do you need to ask for help, or schedule a day a week with no meetings? Successful people are results focused and productive – they know what needs to they be done and how they can best achieve it.
Be Professional – meet deadlines, answer emails, respond to telephone messages, show up on time to the office and to meetings, don’t participate in office gossip, dress well, and interact with others in a consistent and professional way. Successful people alwaysmaintain a high level of professionalism.
Take Advantage of Opportunities – put yourself out there and regularly volunteer to take on tasks that may not be part of your job description. Offer to lead a project or train a new team member. Successful people offer themselves for other opportunities. Don’t wait to be asked – just pitch in and get it done.
Be Proactive and Strategic – managers think about what needs to be done and make sure it gets done by engaging and supporting a broader team to achieve results. They also don’t (usually) complain about problems or inefficiencies – they identify the issue and suggest solutions. Being a strategic problem solver shows you understand the ‘big picture’ of the business. Successful people act proactively to ensure things get done and they work as part of (or leading) the team to make sure everybody succeeds.
Blow Your Own Trumpet – even if you do an amazing job, you should keep track of your achievements and successes and communicate them to people that matter. Nobody else will do that for you. Focus on results – it’s not just about how busy you are ticking off your day to day to-do list. Keep an ongoing record of achievements, savings, changes, accolades and recommendations so when the time comes you have it at hand.
There may also be politics involved in who gets promoted so understanding these unofficial rules is often crucial to long term success. Learning how power, communication and influence is managed within your company will help you thrive – and while these words can carry negative connotations – it is not necessarily the case.
Are you struggling to achieve the success you know you deserve? Would you like career advice to help maximise your experience and qualifications to give yourself a better chance at your dream job? If so, please see our Career Counselling Services for specific advice on how to get ahead in your career.
Many successful clients who become unemployed don’t realise how long it can take to secure a new role. Despite indicators the job market is improving, redundancies and unemployment continue to dominate news.
Regardless of your background, or previous success, if you’re unemployed, you can feel a little lost, anxious or lacking in confidence. Even if you chose the period of unemployment by leaving a previous role voluntarily, it can still be difficult. Despite this, there are ways to feel better. Whether you’ve been searching for a new role for a while or just taking a planned break, there are many things you could be doing to boost your chances to secure that next role.
Stick to a schedule: While it might be tempting to sleep in every day and while away the days reading a new book or catching up on your favourite TV series, it’s best to treat Monday to Friday like a working week. Get up at a reasonable hour, dress like you’re leaving the house (even if you don’t), and aim to complete some job search tasks every day. By all means take some time out, but sticking to a schedule is a great way to introduce some positive new habits like regular exercise or a healthier eating regime; or tend to those activities that you never had time for while working full time.
Consider your future. Take this opportunity to really think about whether you are in the right career. Research your market and decide if it’s in good shape. Think about whether you could undertake study or work towards diversifying your skills to move into another area.
Prepare yourself: Think about what your perfect job looks like. Research job sites and the careers sections on individual company’s websites. Meet with recruitment companies and revamp your resume, cover letter and LinkedIn profile or enlist a professional to prepare a resume and cover letter for you. Develop a job search strategy and start submitting applications.
Think positively: When faced with challenges, we can be prone to negativity. Accept it may be a challenging period and this is a natural emotion, then try to encourage positivity by engaging in activities that help you think clearly and optimistically.
Volunteer: This is an excellent way to use your extra time while helping to feel valued and more confident. It can also provide opportunities to gain valuable experience and contacts if you volunteer in an area related to your job qualifications. At the very least it will look great on your Resume since it shows initiative.
Consider Contract Work: Another way to fill time between full time employment, is to find temporary work through an agency or previous work contact. Not only that, it can help you find a full time role by exposing you to new areas, helping you develop new skills, increasing your contact network, or even as a result of the temp role turning into a full time opportunity.
Network. The more people you talk to, the better. If you’re not on LinkedIn, now is a great time to create a profile. Invite colleagues to connect and let them know you are seeking new opportunities.
Complete a course: Decide on any certifications or courses that would contribute to your employability. Don’t forget to check out free online courses if you’re not in a position to commit to paid courses. Again, at the very least, it will help you stay busy and focused on something worthwhile, while hopefully helping to develop some new relevant job skills.
Get your finances in order. Depending on your financial situation, you may need to seek financial advice or talk to your bank about loans. Do this quickly, so you have one less thing to worry about.
Seek professional help. Career Consultants provide independent advice and up-to-date information on current job markets. They can help with career transition by advising how to position yourself in the market, identify job opportunities and present yourself effectively to employers. They’ll also help boost confidence and ease some of the anxiety.
There are many things you can do to keep yourself busy, improve your skills and aid your job search. Don’t forget to take some time out to treat yourself now and then and use the time off to attend to personal tasks or home projects that you often put off because you’re too busy.
Personal branding is a hot topic right now and one that many employees of organisations often think doesn’t apply to them. However, personal branding isn’t just for solopreneurs or business owners. It’s important to be able to quickly, clearly and succinctly articulate who you are and what you have to offer – and that applies to both employees and business owners.
So what is personal branding all about and why is it important? Just like company brands, your personal brand is what sets you apart from others. It’s what makes you slightly different to someone else with a very similar skill set.
Building a recognisable, consistent personal brand will help you achieve your career goals faster – leading to promotions, recognition as an industry expert or spokesperson, and improved professional networks. According to leading American business writer, Tom Peters, “Regardless of age, regardless of position, regardless of the business we happen to be in, all of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You.”
Whether you want to advance your career, improve your professional relationships, or build your sales pipeline, a clearly defined personal brand can help. So how do you go about building it? Here are five tips to get you started:
1. Understand your offer: personal branding requires an in depth understanding of your strengths, skills, passions, and values and the ability to use that information to stand out from your competitors. To develop yourself as a brand isn’t easy, especially if you’re not a natural marketer. Start by working out what makes you unique then build your story in terms of what you offer. Put together a comprehensive statement about you – this is your brand positioning or message.
2. Create a blog and/or website: this is a great way to share your expertise and initiate two way conversations with your target audience. Registering a website in your name helps you achieve consistency with your brand and contributes to increasing your name’s search engine ranking. Write regular articles to help your target market understand your offer. Reinforce your brand message, highlight what you’re good at and what you’ve achieved for others. The added benefit of online content is that when people like what they read, they will share it with their own networks.
3. Add value: every status update, picture, article and comment you share will contribute to your personal brand so make sure it aligns with your previously defined brand positioning. You can quickly strengthen your brand and help people understand what you offer with content shared via social media, your blog or website; by commenting on other people’s content; answering questions; joining chats; and engaging in LinkedIn and other online groups and forums.
4. Audit your presence: always think of yourself as a brand and maintain consistency with your message throughout all communications – this includes your Resume, social media profiles and other online content. Optimise your online content for search engines and review Facebook and other social accounts to make sure your brand is not being compromised with personal entries.
5. Maintain the rage: once your brand is defined, you need to consistently validate and maintain it. Just as large corporations work hard to maintain their brand image, individuals need to do the same. Every interaction or piece of information shared should reinforce your brand message. Make sure people believe what you’re saying by providing proof, transparency and consistency – don’t try to ‘be all things to all people’.
Whether you’re self-employed or not, defining and promoting a strong personal brand that sets you apart will help raise your profile and make you more marketable. Even if you are not looking for work – it’s a great way to build contacts for future reference, as well as mentoring, partnerships or job opportunities.
Many of us are lucky enough to fall into fulfilling careers. Whether it’s by luck, meticulous planning, or sheer hard work, these people seem to be made for what they do! But what about the others who’ve never been 100% sure? Whether you’re a school leaver or mid-life career changer, a little bit of research goes a long way, but where should you start?
A friend of mine recently asked me if I thought her son should choose Human Resources for his major. He’s in his first year at University and loving his Commerce degree, but he needs to choose his major for next year. He’s only been at University for about eight weeks but he has to choose from multiple options soon and he’s just not sure. She asked me if I thought HR was a good career path since I have experience in that area – but without knowing her son very well, I couldn’t say. I asked her what he was basing his decision on and she wasn’t really sure. It got me thinking about how many people just choose something to go after because they like the sound of it.
Another friend of mine has a daughter who recently decided she wants to become an event manager. She researched an expensive course and wants my friend to spend thousands of dollars on it – but her decision didn’t seem to be based on anything concrete either – simply that she liked the sound of being an event manager. She isn’t an overly organised or detail oriented person, so I asked my friend if his daughter had given any thought to the meticulous planning involved, the long hours, and the weekend and after hours work that invariably comes with being an event manger and he didn’t really think so.
Often, people go into careers without doing much research. They like the sound of a career but they’re not overly familiar about what’s involved in doing the job on a day to day basis. There are many ways you can research careers – and by doing so, you’ll gain a better understanding of what might be required and whether or not you’d be suited. Here’s a few ideas:
Use Online Job Sites: SEEK, CareerOne or any one of the many other online recruitment sites can provide a wealth of information about different careers. You can access current information on salaries in specific industries/positions, find out what qualifications and/or previous experience you might require, and you can get a feel for what you might be doing on a day to day basis. A great tip I heard from another career consultant was to combine unrelated keywords or phrases to identify unique or unusual roles – for example a skill plus an interest – such as ‘marketing’ and ‘photography’.
Talk to People: Talking to people who are already working in the field you are interested in can provide a better understanding of what might be required as well as giving you a feel for what your day might regularly look like. Don’t be swayed by one person’s opinion though – try to get as many people’s thoughts as possible and probe them about the pros and cons of the role. Look to your LinkedIn network for contacts who might be able to help.
Volunteer: This could take the form of ad hoc volunteering or a more formal internship. Volunteering gives you the opportunity to learn more about a role or organisation, as well as providing valuable work experience and new skills that will help to build your confidence to go after those sought after roles. It could also provide much needed networks and mentors in your area of interest.
Join Professional Associations: Attend meetings or check the website for information, networking events or other opportunities that you might be able to leverage. If you don’t belong to a professional association already, consider joining one – often these associations have associate memberships for juniors or people with little experience, but you have access to similar kinds of opportunities and information as fully fledged members.
Take a Career Assessment: Many organisations offer personality assessments and/or career interest tests. These tests can assess your interest in a variety of activities, industries and occupations to provide insight into the careers and areas of study you are most likely to enjoy and be ideally suited to. For more information, see our Career Interests and Personality Profile tests.
Talk to an Expert: Career Counsellors can provide a much needed ‘outsiders’ perspective on what you might like. They are usually trained experts that also have a wealth of practical work experience across diverse areas and industries. They have deep knowledge of a wide range of occupations, industries and courses and will give you professional, independent advice on your career, course and employment options.
Our last piece of advice (but by no means least) is to take the first step – if you’ve done some research and you think you’re ready, just take that step. We now know that most people will not stay in the same career for a lifetime, so don’t procrastinate for too long.
According to recent SEEK figures, jobs advertised in January 2015 were up 10.9 per cent from January 2014. That trend has continued over the past few months, with certain sectors experiencing significantly higher growth than others. There are trends driving growth in specific areas with many commentators predicting shortages in particular niche areas.
Many people are looking for a change in roles right now, but what’s driving job growth and where should we be looking? While many industries are experiencing growth and offering great employment opportunities, there are a few stand outs affected by shortages. These are healthcare, construction, education, information technology (IT), and digital marketing. A recent Hays report highlighted a skills shortage focused around particular job functions with the belief that demand for these skills in Australia will drive an exceedingly tight labour market for anyone with these niche, highly specialised skills.
In short, some of the areas driving growth in 2015 include:
Healthcare: There appears to be a healthy outlook for candidates seeking roles in the medical and healthcare industry. Based on SEEK’s latest job ad figures, new jobs in this sector rose 14 percent nationally year on year to March 2015. This is no surprise as our population ages and more advanced medical treatment technologies place pressure on the healthcare system. Registered nurses will be especially in demand.
Marketing: The evolution of digital marketing is transforming organisations at a rapid pace and marketing and IT teams are converging. Candidates with experience in social media are in demand as employers look to drive further consumer brand engagement in innovative ways. The increasing importance of digital and mobile means that companies are moving beyond just websites that are optimised for mobile use, to needing candidates who can provide full mobile optimisation integrated with strong social media marketing strategy. Large organisations are also looking for candidates who can analyse online activity to better understand how consumers respond to digital marketing efforts.
Construction: 2015 is a great time to be in the building trade, with the construction industry expected to grow significantly over the next few years. Right now, an increase in development application approvals is already driving demand across the industry with additional need for architects (especially with retail expertise), engineers, contract administrators and statutory planners – especially those who will work on a contract basis. Reliable and hardworking labourers are always in demand and construction companies also report the need for multi-ticketed Excavator Operators with stable backgrounds.
Education: A very high demand for childcare in Australia is creating a shortage of early childhood teachers. Growth is also clear across the broader education system as our population grows and the need for additional teachers across multiple disciplines increases. In addition, the rising number of parents setting their children up for optimum academic success is creating additional need for tutors.
Information Technology: A shortage of senior business analysts with particular domain and subject matter knowledge; solid front end developers – especially candidates with responsive web or App development experience (IOS and Android); as well as Cloud specialists. The increasing importance of digital and mobile marketing previously mentioned is also driving demand and creating shortages. The skills required are broad and encompass the entire digital marketing spectrum including full mobile optimisation and responsive website and/or App development.
The shortage of relevant candidates in certain areas combined with the increasing use of digital recruitment and a focus on passive candidates to provide these highly specialised skills also means that candidates need to have a strong online profile and brand.
Would you like help understanding more about what’s driving job growth? Would you like help establishing your online presence or putting together a strong job search strategy? If so, click here for our LinkedIn Writing or Coaching Services, or check out our Job Search Coaching Service.
Most people have developed a diversity of skills and experience throughout their careers that have made them the person they are today. But many people we talk to find it difficult to consolidate all those skills and experiences into a clear picture of exactly why they’re right for a role – especially if it’s slightly different. If that sounds like you, you’re not alone.
I sat down to write this month’s newsletter article following a call with a client. This client was lovely to talk to and he had a raft of experience, skills, perfect qualifications, and previous success but he was struggling to get any interviews. Over the past three months, my client has submitted a lot of applications and mostly just heard nothing or received the standard ‘thanks but no thanks’ response. He knew he was perfect for many of these roles and understood that his approach was wrong which is why he’d come to us.
When I looked at my client’s current Resume, the person on the end of the phone just didn’t match what was in that document. I can’t tell you how often this happens. I will sometimes receive a copy of my latest client’s current resume with a link to the job they’d like to apply for and I honestly believe that I have the wrong two documents together – they just don’t look like they’d even make a slightly suitable candidate.
In most cases, they would in fact make a great candidate but the problem lies in relevance – and first impressions count. Most candidates have developed great skills and experience but they simply don’t present them in the most relevant and effective way. Recruiters often receive hundreds of applications for a role so being able to demonstrate your suitability quickly is key to your success. Here’s a few tips:
1. Create a quick summary of who you are – include your background and key successes – it’s a branding statement or quick elevator pitch if you like. Work out what you can offer, and the value you will bring to your new employer, then articulate that in a clear and concise paragraph or two.
2. Highlight your key capabilities – these are the things that make you an ideal candidate for a specific role. This is so important because key capabilities are going to be different for everyone – they may also differ for you depending on the role or company you’re applying for. Capabilities cover a diverse range of areas such as qualifications, experience, technical skills, personality traits, soft skills, computer skills, industry knowledge etc. but they will vary significantly from person to person and role to role.
3. Customise your content to make it highly relevant – when you’re applying for a specific position, it’s important to work out what’s important for that role and demonstrate how you provide that expertise. Remember this varies for different roles so taking the time to customise is important. This includes mentioning specific skills you may think are ‘standard’ in your industry – if they are mentioned in the job ad, there’s a good chance they are highly important so don’t just assume that the recruiter will think you have them.
4. Simplify your content – get to the point quickly and try not to provide too much detail. This includes making sure you articulate any acronyms that might confuse the recruiter. Following the requirements in the job ad also helps – to the point of changing your job responsibilities to match those of the recruiter – if that’s what you did in a previous job, articulate it clearly and concisely.
5. Consolidate or change your job history – especially if you have lots of different jobs at the same company – try consolidating them to provide clarity. If your relevant experience is a few jobs ago, try moving it up and calling it ‘relevant work experience’ – again thinking about fast and relevant impact for the recruiter.
If you’re not sure whether your Resume is up to scratch you may need assistance from an expert. At the very least, ask for feedback from someone you can trust – preferably someone in a similar line of work to you is ideal. If they can’t see how you’d make a good candidate for a particular role, then a recruiter may not either.
Some people have always known what they want to be when they grow up – how lucky are they? Especially if it all works out for them. For most of us though, it can take some time to work out what’s right in terms of a career. I’ve written before about being happy at work and Success vs Happiness. It’s many people’s lifelong pursuit. But what makes a career right for one person can be very different for another. Here is a list of initial dos and don’ts when thinking about what career might be right for you:
Do: work out what is important to you – because this will be different for everyone. You might just want to be happy but that is often about looking at what you value most. Some people need to help others as part of their day to day role, others need to use their creativity, some prefer working alone, and others need to be part of a large team environment, or lead and direct people. Maybe flexible hours is your primary need, or are you driven to achieve a high paying or powerful job which you are prepared to work hard for. What’s most important is going to be different for everyone and for many people it can change several times depending on what stage of life they’re at.
Don’t: do what other people think you should do or get too hung up on what your friends or family are doing. Certainly be guided by those who care about you, but sometimes, these people who know us best have misguided views about what career would suit. I know that from first-hand experience!
Do: work out what you’re good at. It doesn’t have to be focused on ‘your passion or doing what you love’ – it’s more about working out what you enjoy doing or are good at and moulding a career around that. Think about using your strengths as a starting point. Maybe you want to work in events but you’re creative and not very detail oriented – an event management role may not be right for you, however, you could look at other areas such as event theming, design, production etc.
Don’t: cave to pressure from parents to follow in their footsteps or do something that they consider ‘safe’. Someone close to me wanted to study art after leaving school but was pressured by his parents to study law instead as a more stable career. He never enjoyed his work and it took him almost 20 years to go back to university and study art and design – he now has an extremely successful and thriving business that he is absolutely passionate about.
Do: research your career. Another friend of mine chose a degree later in life and found it really hard to actually get a job once she’d finished studying. The area was fairly new and experiencing some growth but was still quite niche – and it was a popular choice for school leavers. So while she was in her 40s wanting to get into this new area, there were rafts of younger graduates taking the few jobs that were available. In this instance youth was considered more favourable than life experience and that’s something she hadn’t ever considered.
Don’t: ignore your personality because these traits are ingrained in us to make us the unique person we are. It’s what makes one person better suited to a particular occupation or career than the next. Often taking a personality profile test can be a big help.
Do: consider location. Are you a city or rural person? These days, location is becoming less important, however some careers just aren’t viable in rural areas. Likewise, there aren’t many farmers in the Sydney CBD! If you really love where you live and aren’t open to relocating, make sure there are opportunities available in your chosen career.
Choosing a career no longer needs to be a lifetime commitment – you can always head down another path later. But always do your research up front – about yourself, your personality traits, your interests, and where the field you’re interested in is heading.
Most of us have experienced that colleague who makes our life difficult. This can be the cause of much angst and it may be difficult to not let that concern spill over into your personal life. It’s a situation that may be difficult to not get down about, however with a few key strategies you might finally be able to do just that.
TIP # 1: Don’t Lose your Temper – this does two things, it puts you in control and limits potential for the situation to escalate out of control. This may be easier said than done – but remember you are not the difficult person here – maintain composure and try not to react negatively.
TIP # 2: Walk Away – if you feel upset, angry or emotional, take some time before responding. Deep breathes can help. Or you may feel the need to walk away – just say “I will have to come back to you on that” – then leave the situation entirely to give yourself some time to strategise your next step.
TIP # 3: Don’t Waste Time – sometimes it is best just to let go. Convincing someone who is intrinsically negative or arguing the point to someone with a closed mind often just isn’t worth the hassle. Unless it is something really important at stake, be diplomatic then distance yourself from the comment or decision if it will have an impact on you personally – after you’ve done that, simply let it go.
TIP # 4: Act Proactively – try to pre-empt situations or activities that will create friction and then work to minimise them wherever you can.
TIP # 5: Pick Your Battles – for those of you with children, you’ll be familiar with this one! Some things just aren’t worth arguing about – because there will be something bigger and more important to debate just around the corner. Confrontation is draining – save yourself some time and energy by picking the important points to pursue and make sure the ultimate outcome is worth the effort.
TIP # 6: Don’t Be Bullied – bullying in the workplace is unacceptable so never be afraid to report truly bad behaviour. Stand up for yourself by telling the person that their behaviour is unacceptable. Be specific about what they’ve done. Situations that need to be quickly addressed include any instance where you feel physically, mentally or socially threatened.
Understand that there are times in the workplace where your colleague may be under undue pressure and act in a way that isn’t normal. Ask yourself if you are being overly sensitive or perhaps you’ve misinterpreted their actions. But don’t hesitate if that’s not the case, don’t take the blame and don’t respond in an aggressive way that is going to inflame or escalate the situation. Use some of the strategies mentioned above or have a confidential discussion with a senior person or member of HR that you trust.
Almost 20 years ago now as a young Marketing Manager, I was lucky enough to have a very forward thinking boss who recognised my new commute was going to be around three hours a day. He suggested I establish a home office to work from two days a week, since he thought I might eventually leave. It was a great strategy from his perspective because I stayed for several years and much of my commitment stemmed from that time spent at home. I was also more productive in my home office and he recognised the time away from the office helped me focus on the bigger picture and get things done that I may not have had time for otherwise. My boss was satisfied with the results I achieved and didn’t focus on how much time I spent behind my ‘traditional desk’.
While many companies today have embraced flexible work environments that include working from home, flexible hours of work, increased leave, time off for family commitments, part-time work, and job sharing, there are many more that haven’t.
Recent research however, is confirming that flexibility with work environment and hours, combined with allowing employees more autonomy to get on with their job achieves a happier, healthier, and more productive team in the long run.
But how can you go about achieving this if your organisation doesn’t have an existing policy? The Australian government has a site that provides tips on how you can get started. Click here for more information on negotiating flexible work arrangements with your employer. To summarise, you need to:
Decide what might be appropriate – remember to consider your needs as well as your employers;
Put together a proposal outlining your desired flexibility and how you will manage your workload. You could consider implementing some easy strategies first and working towards a trial period rather than an ‘all or nothing’ approach up front;
Discuss the plan with your employer making sure to address some added benefits they might see as well as addressing your needs in changing your work arrangements;
Remain open and flexible – your employer might not be 100% receptive in the beginning, especially if this flexibility hasn’t been available before. Be open to their ideas and listen to their concerns – that way you may be able to go away and come up with an alternative.
With flexibility in your work arrangements, there often comes added pressure – responsibility to complete your work on time and to a high standard without the constraints of having to work set hours in an established environment. Consider if your personality will really suit this approach before you go down this path. It can also be very rewarding though, with more time to do some of the things you enjoy or spend quality time with your family.
