Become More Productive and Successful by Rough Guider (ebook reader computer .txt) 📖

your boss to see such honesty and openness as a good rather than bad attribute.

 

However, before you go running to your boss you should really make sure that you have done all you can from an added value point of view.  Like what?  Well, like this:

 

Review your weekly (or other frequency) task list to ensure all the jobs have been done.  Complete the ones that you have pushed to the bottom of the list time and time again.  If they are of no value then discuss this with your boss and get permission to eliminate them; they may not agree with your point of view but it is certainly worth a try.

 

Review the way you work to see whether you can come up with any ideas to help you do your job better (your boss should admire you for this).

 

Review your work area to see whether there are any other added value tasks you could perform.

 

See whether you can assist other team members if they are struggling.  Do this in a transparent manner so you receive the credit where this is due.

 

If none of the above yield more work then consider the following:

 

Read more widely (trade press, relevant articles etc).  Let your boss know that you are doing this as they will enjoy seeing the initiative you are demonstrating.

 

Offer to assist others outside your department if that is possible.  This could also be good for your profile, but take care not to become a general dogsbody.  I’m talking about stuff that will help you gain knowledge and experience, not introducing tasks into your job that do not make use of your skills and/or experience.

 

Write up notes on your tasks and procedures (if this is not already done).  That will help focus the mind and will also help the next person to do your job when you move on to better things.

 

Consider applying to other jobs within (or outside) the company if you believe that the situation will not improve in the longer term.

 

Body language

In my humble view advice on this is overrated and perhaps great if you’re on a date but not when you are in the workplace.  People like people who are friendly, kind, receptive, open, energetic and fun.  If you put as many of these into your work-life (even if you don’t feel like it) everyone around you will feel better and as a result you will too.

 

Look, the first thing I do when I am feeling miserable at work is go up to the first person I see (there are only one or two maximum that I would avoid) and start a light hearted or even jovial conversation.  Their face lights up, they feel good and the next thing I know I am trotting to my office feeling so much better.  It works.  I’m not talking about a major disaster in your life of course, I wouldn’t pretend that a two minute conversation by the water cooler makes everything seem better, but when you’ve had a pretty hard session at work and you need cheering up, you can actually kick-start the process yourself.

 

Now here’s the thing.  If you feel good about yourself, and hence friendly and cheerful, what are the chances that you will sit there in a meeting with your arms crossed with a glum face on?  Pretty unlikely eh?

 

Sure, a firm rather than ‘wet’ handshake can make a small difference and sitting up straight rather than slouching will give a better impression.  But what rank much higher than all these are energy, fun and amiability.  The last one comes with the first two.  How often do you hear “I didn’t give that person the job because they had their arms crossed”?  Or,” I’m not meeting with them again because they slouched in their chairs”?  Hey, but what about “that person didn’t smile at all, had no energy and made the meeting flat.”

 

Yup, it’s energy and enthusiasm that you need.  If you have no energy and enthusiasm then make out that you have as the real stuff will surely follow.

 

But for those who still want some body language tips here you go:

 

Shake hands firmly

 

Sit up straight

 

Look at people when they are talking to you (rocket science stuff).  I must admit that it is indeed annoying when you are speaking and the other person is looking anywhere but at you.  In fact, it you want to play a good game when you suspect someone is not listening to you, make sure you ask for their input, opinion or agreement at that time.  I guarantee you will get one of the following responses:

 

Sorry, could you repeat the question

 

I’m not sure where you were coming from

 

Run that past me again

 

Yes

 

 

Could you add some colour (detail)?

 

So what you have to do is make sure that you have been very clear, have given them all the colours of the rainbow and have not left them any excuse for not understanding.  If you want to make a point, close the conversation down (end it) and let them suffer in silence.  I dislike rudeness both inside and outside the office and don’t see why we should tolerate some superiority complex.  Of course, if you have gone on and on about a single issue until the end of time it may be that they are too polite to leave so above all be fair to both them and you.

 

Smile.  Clearly if you disagree with something you shouldn’t be sitting their smiling and nodding away, but if one of your objectives is to put the other people at ease and to support them during a meeting, then remember to look positive (smile) and  react positively to the contributions they make.

Chairing (running) Meetings

This can be one of the most rewarding experiences at work and as such I strongly recommend that you Chair (or run) as many meetings as possible.  There are a number of benefits in chairing meetings as follows:

You mature fast.  Yes, this is pretty much an automatic process.  The first time you chair a meeting (just like the first time you present) you may feel quite nervous.  But as long as you prepare for meetings beforehand, don’t bluff your way out of difficult situations and treat the participants with respect, things should be fine.

 

You learn to make decisions and direct people.  The Chair will often be looked upon as the person who makes the final decisions (even if this isn’t the real purpose of their role). But perhaps even more importantly the Chair should direct the conversation, ensure that all the relevant arguments are heard and that air-time is properly distributed amongst the group.

 

You become better at time-keeping.  Although as Chair you could always appoint someone as timekeeper it is your responsibility to ensure that the meeting runs to the allotted time and that all the items on the agenda are discussed.   You should think hard before the meeting about the length of time each topic requires and ensure that the time set aside for discussion is sufficient.  From my experience meetings often overrun and if they don’t you still find that there was insufficient time to discuss some of the agenda items.  It’s your job to ensure that this does not happen.  After all, others may have prepared thoroughly about a topic that is very important to them.  They’ll be disappointed and may not see you in a good light.  So what are the tips to ensure a meeting runs on time:

 

Be clear about the rules on timing.  No overruns.  If a discussion looks like it will blow out of all proportion then it’s probably best to take it ‘off-line’ and have the relevant individuals (perhaps a sub-group of the original meeting) look into it further.  If you are tight on the timings those involved in your meetings will be forced to get better with their own conciseness.

 

Allow enough time for a topic to be discussed.  Don’t tag on an extra item at the base of the agenda with a 10 minute slot if it is clearly going to last longer.  In fact, spend some time making sure that the time slot available for each agenda item is sufficient (and whatever you do make sure you get buy-in on the length of the time slot from the individual).

 

You learn to set action points.  One of the joys of being a Chair is that you can summarize all the action points at the end of the meeting and ensure that each point has:

 

A clear and concise note of the action to be taken.

 

The name of the person responsible to get the job done.

 

A deadline for completion and where, when and how progress and completion is communicated to the group.

 

You learn to be inclusive.  As the Chair you should ensure that all the relevant points of view are taken on board.  If you have one or two individuals in the meeting that hog the limelight during ‘open discussion’ this could prove to be destructive as other points of view are not brought up for consideration.  With that in mind, you should prompt the quieter members of the group to add their thoughts.  If it is obvious that certain members literally have nothing of value to add then they are probably at their limit in terms of intellectual capacity or (more likely) do not have experience in that particular field.  So my advice is to be inclusive, but apply fairness to ensure that discussion continues to flow and that nobody feels that they have been shut out of the conversation.

 

There are two sides to every story - part 2 (for Part 1 see ‘Managing staff’).  This principle doesn’t only relate to the chairing of meetings.  Any complaint, argument or issue raised should be considered with an open, balanced and fair approach.  On many occasions an issue or complaint is raised that at face value demonstrates, or at least implies, that a wrong has been performed or that an injustice has taken place.  However, a fair Chair (or indeed any fair individual) will seek out all the facts from all the relevant parties and only draw a conclusion once they have sufficient evidence to do so (just like being in a Court of Law).  The process may or may not be lengthy, depending upon the issue at hand, but all parties should feel that their opinions and evidence have been taken into account and that the decision made is both just and fair.  I’m sure we can all think of situations where we have shot from the hip and then lived to regret our initial decision which was taken without knowing the full circumstances.  Remember, there are two sides to every story, so hear both first before taking action.

 

Networking

You have 250 Facebook contacts and 300 LinkedIn contacts.  Is that a great network?  Well, having the details of friends, family, colleagues and acquaintances can be useful (you never know, one of them could pass a job opportunity your way) but much more important is the building up of networks with those that can positively influence your career both within your organization and beyond it.

 

Internal network

 

It’s all very well and good to have regular catch-ups with senior members of staff dotted around the company.  Indeed it’s great to hear and learn more about what’s going on.  However, for a relationship to become stronger, more fruitful and easier to maintain there are certain aspects of the relationship which you should focus your attention on:

 

Is it a symbiotic relationship?  Are you simply obtaining a down-load of information from your colleague or are you ensuring that the catch-ups you have are beneficial to them as well?  If relationships appear to die, and the other party does not appear to make an effort to propose or find time for the two of you to meet, it’s unlikely to be a personal issue but may reflect the fact that the meeting is not perceived as added value by the other party.  However, if you wish to continue the relationship, as it is added value