13 tips to implement that can help you become more successful at work
Starting a new job is never easy. I have done it quite a few times. Through that journey, I have picked up ways to become more successful at work.
At work, we all go through some great experiences and we always have our share of pretty lousy ones too. I am sure many can relate. However, I believe that more than half the amount of negative situations can be avoided if we hold ourselves accountable.
Part of self-improvement is not just reading about marvelous, insightful information. In fact, that is the least you should be concerned with. Why? Because the information is out there. You can 100% go out and find it. The bigger idea here is, the implementation. The execution. If we do not go out and consistently implement the golden nuggets, then we are never going to self-improve.
Becoming successful at work is going to require a few different values from you. These values, if implemented properly and consistently are going to bring you great improvement within your line of work.
Do Something You Want to Learn More About
If you want to become more successful at work then let’s start here. This is the bread and butter of becoming more successful at work. The reason I say this, is because I have done both. I have worked mindless jobs just for money, and I have worked in jobs that I was interested in learning more about. I achieved significantly better results working in an industry that I want to learn more about and so will you if you take this path.
Doing something you are willing to learn about is really half the battle. Now you have an interest to work with. The interest will keep you engaged and the rest is about you taking control of the behaviors that you are implementing everyday within your work. Model your behaviors and habits to move you towards self-improvement.
Commit
There are different people out there, but one thing we all have in common is that when we really want something, we go figure out a way to obtain it. We commit ourselves towards that task and we do whatever it takes to get it.
Before accepting any job, you should commit to it first within your mind. This doesn’t mean you need to stay there forever. That’s not what I am trying to get at. Commit to a new job in a sense where you are going to do whatever within your power, to do the very best you can day in and day out. You wake up not feeling it like it? Doesn’t matter. You go in and you do the best you can. Every time. Commit.
Buy In
Once you are committed within your mind that you are going to do your best and you accept the job— buy in. Buying into something means you figure out a way to connect to the mission and the goal at hand. You do your best to embrace that mission each and everyday you come into work.
If you find that you cannot buy in to the company’s mission, then that is a great indicator, a red flag that you are in the wrong place. Pay attention to these cues. If you cannot buy into what the team is trying to execute on, then I’m sorry to say it, but you are holding back the team. I have been in jobs where I could not buy in and I ended up eventually leaving. Always buy In.
Know Your worth
You need to understand the value of your time. Each person needs to be able to know what their time is worth. If you have never given it thought then you need to stop and go do that, because it is vital to your career growth.
I started off working at a summer camp at the age of 15. The job was aiding counselors for the summer and they would pay you $200 at the end of the summer. If you were to ask me then what my time is worth, I probably would have said close to nothing because I would not even begin to grasp what you are trying to get at.
Fast forward a decade, and then come ask me what is my time worth, I now have a better idea because I have learned different skills. I now know how to execute and most likely I have a strong understanding in one area by this stage that can be of value. As you continue to learn and grow, start getting to know what your time is worth. Know your worth.
Lead by Example
My favorite one by far. If you can learn leadership, you won’t ever have to worry about finding work. You will always find work. There is no doubt. I look at leadership in such a way, where it’s about putting other people before yourself. Be the kind of person that you would want for yourself.
If you are easily aggravated, control that and become empathetic towards others who may struggle with learning. Develop your patience by thinking about others and not yourself. Do this with everything. Model the behaviors that you value and that you want to bring more of into the world. Understand that each person that works with you, is someone who you should genuinely care about. Do right by others and lead by example.
View Each Individual as a REAL Teammate
Most organizations fail with teamwork. They have great values and cultures that they want to live by, but the problem is the managers that they have in place do not execute on this understanding. No matter what culture you find that you are walking into, you should make sure to treat each individual with respect and view them as a real teammate.
A real teammate stands by one another, a real teammate shows up and a real teammate has the best intention for everyone. Too many times I have entered a group of people who call themselves a team, but they couldn’t be further from it. This is where leading by example comes into play. Be the change you want to see.
Help Others
In my home we servant first mentality. My family is about using our lifetime towards creating a positive impact out there into the world. It is always at our forefront to treat others with respect and to help anyone that we can, when we can. At work, you are in the perfect position to be of service to others. Whether that be your customer, your manager, or your co-workers find people that need help and help them.
Be Kind
As I stated before, going to a new job is never easy. I can only imagine how many people struggle with this process on a daily. There are many people that you will run into that do not take this into account. It’s not their problem you are starting a new job, it’s yours. If you know that starting a new job is not easy, then use your energy towards being kind to those you work with.
We leave our families and our homes to go work. We want to have a pleasant experience with those around us, who we spend so much time with day in and day out. Be kind to everyone that you come into contact with. Always keeping the mindset of service helps me to stay focused on what is important. Being kind and respectful towards others should never be an option.
Be Punctual
I have 10 years of management experience and I cannot tell you how many people cannot figure out how to get to work on time. They can get called out, written up, verbal warning, whatever you want to throw at them so they get the picture, and they still can’t figure it out. For a lot of people, showing up to work on time is a sincere difficulty.
I had one co-worker who would wake up 30 minutes before he had to be at work 😂. I tried to help him by explaining to him that he should start waking up earlier and create a morning routine, but that in itself turned out to be a whole separate obstacle. If you really want to be successful at work, make sure to arrive there early. Not on time — early.
Embrace the Learning Curve
Within each new job, there is going to be a learning curve. How steep that learning curve becomes really depends on you and your experience. I have taken on jobs that I had no experience in and within different industries. I experienced that difficulty firsthand. This is why, I have learned to go into jobs that I am interested learning about. You will end up spending your time learning about something anyway you spin it, you might as well go into something that interest you. Give yourself time to learn the job and get a grasp on the intricacies of that job.
Learn to Push Yourself
At the end of the day it’s work. There will be many days where you don’t want to be there or you don’t want to deal with something that pertains to the job. You must master how to push yourself further. Pushing yourself further is going to help you become more successful at work. This requires time, it requires practice and self-awareness. It starts with everything that you do. There is a saying out there – “How you do anything, is how you do everything.” Learn to push yourself in everything that you do. Job’s never finished.
Mastery
Once you have a grip on the job description and you have figured out how to work things significantly better, move towards mastery. Mastery will take you years. There are levels to mastery. I like to call it mastery when I can pretty much do it with my eyes closed, I can do it at a high level, and I can properly teach others on not only how to do it, but I can make them better. That to me is mastery and I believe that every job that you take on, you commit to it because you intend to master it. Once you have mastered your line of work and there is no option for a promotion, or an opportunity to increase your growth, you need to move onto the next job.
Keep the Customer First
The customer is everything. You want to keep the customer first always. Use your time to engage with your customers. Get to know who they are, what they like, and what you can do to better fill their needs. The more that you can learn this and identify with this, the better you will become at your job. The better you become at your job, the more successful you will become at work.
