There are many people who go to work everyday and they can't seem to put on a pleasant disposition. This somehow saddens me because work pretty much occupies half of our day and being dragged on to the four corners of the office is such a heavy burden for one to carry.
I have been through this situation. Now, however, I feel blessed that I love what I am doing. I am even more grateful for the words of wisdom that were imparted to me today and I would like to share them with you.
Did you know that there are THREE MILLION Filipinos who are currently unemployed (data as of January 2014)? Quite a number, isn't it?
We often take things for granted and complain all the time - how we hate work, how the grass is greener on the other side. There is only one answer to this - if we are not interested to work anymore or we gripe so much about where we are or what we do, then maybe the right thing to do is to let go. This is hitting two birds with one stone: one, it takes you to your first step of getting what you really want (if you really know what you want), and two, it exemplifies your virtue of fairness. But that could be a whole new post altogether so let's talk about that another day.
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Photography by Eastop from www.sxc.hu |
1. Give updates even when not needed.
I am totally guilty of this. I seldom give updates. When I do, it is usually because the boss asked for it. So as a resolution to this, I have decided to send the boss a weekly status report of my team's deliverable. You don't only save time discussing issues as they arise, you also create a certain peace of mind among everyone in your team.
2. Stop the blame game and take accountability.
Yes, we often fall into this trap of blaming other people. But someone told me that before you blame your staff when things go awry, blame yourself first because you were not on top of things or you did not bother to know the status of the team's projects.
3. Offer your thoughts, provide input, give feedback when delegating.
This is especially true for people in supervisory or managerial level. Passing on work is different from delegating. If you pass on everything, what on earth are you still there for? You should know everything that is happening "under your wing" and provide suggestions or comments to make the project better. On this note, make sure that when you delegate, you personally know how to accomplish this task yourself so you don't lose credibility and won't be accused that you are delegating just because or worse, because you cannot do it yourself!
4. Be reliable.
Have you ever noticed that there are people in the organization who are almost friends with everyone? He or she is everyone's go-to? Why them? It is simple. This is because they are easy to work with, always willing to lend a helping hand, always willing to listen, always willing to go the extra mile. Don't you want to be this person?
5. Be a positive agent in the team.
No one wants to be with a chronic downer. Feelings are contagious. Working relationship is affected by the moods of everyone in the team. Give a dose of happy pill everyday so work comes in breezy and light for everyone.
That's it, loves. Those are the little lessons I learned for today. Hope you get to apply them.
To quote Max Ehrmann in Desiderata, "Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing winds of time.
xx,
Corporate Junkie