Best Ways to Impress Your Boss
Apart from working hard, having the right technical skills,
and always achieving all your work goals, there are other ways you can impress
your boss, and we’re not talking about washing his car or shining his shoes.
From being an
employee who does manual work to one that manages a team of 50 people, there
are certain principles that are universally appreciated by bosses
regardless of the job scope and market.
In order to be highly
successful impressive employees, there are a few timeless traits that you
should inculcate in your working attitude. Here are 8 legitimate ways you
can take up to impress your boss, regardless of whether you are a new employee,
an established one or a team lead.
Recommended
Reading: 7 More Tips for
Moving Up the Corporate Ladder.
1. Be Proactive: Be Willing to Learn
When you first join
an organization, chances are that your boss will only ‘teach’ you what you need
to know in order to do your job properly. There are many things outside your
job scope that you need to learn in order to familiarize yourself with the organization.
There are also things
that can’t be taught, such as unofficial or unwritten shortcuts that
your boss and/or colleagues might know of when it comes to dealing with certain
things or people.
For one reason or
another, your boss would probably prefer that you find out these shortcuts for
yourself through the course of your work or interactions with colleagues and
clients. That’s where your willingness to learn will help propel your career.
Learn
the hard way or Just Listen
In some cases, there
are lessons that you can only acquire through experience; there’s no way
to go about it but to dive in headlong and learn things the hard way. Hence,
you should be proactive and be open to new experiences, be willing to try out
new things, and listen to the advice from people who have been there, done
that.
Your initiative is
essential to your personal career groowth. If you don’t have the initiative,
you’ll never ‘get it’ no matter who teaches you.
2. Be Proactive: Find Solutions
After getting
acquainted with your job, you’ll find that there are certain existing loopholes
or prevailing problems that have been left unsolved by the current crew. This
can well be your opportunity to shine.
Seek these problems
and raise the issue with your boss, but don’t stop there. Come up with
some potential solutions to solve them. Even if you have yet to appreciate
the scenario as much as your boss does, the fact that you’ve showed the
initiative to think through them will probably impress on him or her.
Suggest
but Don’t Force
Do not however make
the mistake of forcing your solution into effect. Some problems prevail
because of unclear reasons that you should probably figure out before you make
any rash changes to the norm.
This is especially
true when you are in a decision-making role, because the changes you impose to
a well-established structure, no matter how flawed, will undoubtedly face
resistance from parts of the organization.
Also
check out: 6 Tips Towards Not
Having Pointless Meetings
3. Be Responsible: Admit Your Mistakes
We make mistakes from
time to time, that’s how we learn. Any decent boss will recognize this as
a way of life, and will value your honesty and integrity over your ability to
fess up and admit that you screwed up. Everyone can make mistakes but not
everyone dare admit that they did.
Your boss may
actually be happier to know that he has an employee who takes responsibility
for their actions even if you feel that you have let them down.
That being said, take
note that not all bosses (or management) tolerate mistakes. Therefore, it is expected
of you to come up with a solution especially when the problem you have created
had dire consequences.
Draw up and present a
concrete plan to rectify the issue or minimize the damage caused. Even if the
idea dooes not sound feasible to them, at least you have shown your efforts in
trying to remedy it.
4. Be Responsible: Act on What You Say
Establish a good rep
for yourself in the organization by making your promises happen. This is
important if you want people to take your words seriously. Being able to
deliver is a mark of reliability for you as an employee or essentially
someone people work with. Your boss will entrust you with greater
responsibilities as you prove that you can walk the talk.
Watch
what is on your Plate
There are times when
you may find it hard to keep fulfilling your promises for various reasons. For
instance, you may have promised your boss to get a certain project done by a
certain deadline, but other work commitments got in the way. Under such
circumstances, you should consider negotiating with your boss for a lesser
workload, or a later deadline to get the project done.
It’s not that
straightforward all the time, so you will definitely have to weigh your options
and prioritize. The bottom-line is, don’t promise what you probably can’t
deliver!
5. Be a team Player: Volunteer
Offer to help your
colleagues when they get overwhelmed by their workload. This will not only earn
you the respect from your boss, but also from your teammates. If you prefer
this approach, there are a few things you should be wary of.
First, make sure that
you can cope with your own workload first before offering to help. Secondly,
suffice to say that you should assume a secondary role especially when
decisions are to be made. You should not assume responsibility for another
person’s job.
Also be advised that
when you offer your help too often, your colleagues might take this for granted
and pass their work to you. You should know when to draw the line to make sure
that you only help them when they are drowning in their work, not when they
still have time to chat with the receptionist. One thing you can look forward
to with this approach is that when you need help yourself, you know who you can
turn to.
6. Be a team Player: Stay Upbeat
When morale is low in
the office, everyone’s dragging their feet to work every morning. Work
productivity drops, and complaints get louder day by day. If there could only
be a person who turns up for work on time every day, who gives his best in his
job, doesn’t complain, keeps everyone motivated with his positivity,
subconsciously inspiring and lifting the spirits of even those who’ve only
heard about him, he would be the life of the office.
Now, imagine if you
are that person. You will be that shining beacon of light in times of chaos for
others to look up to. You’ll ‘lighten’ up your working environment. For this to
work, you need to have a positive attitude at work. Not only does positivity
give you the energy to perform your best at work, it also distinguishes you
from the rest of the crowd. You’ll not only impress the boss, you can impress
everyone in the office.
7. Be a leader: Fight for your Staff
If
you’re managing a group of people under you,
note that your boss will assess you with a different yardstick. As the leader
and decision maker of the group, you represent your team when dealing with
higher authority aka the boss.
You have a greater
say than your subordinates when it comes to requesting for things important to
the well-being of your staff. This is where you can impress your boss and make
your team members look up to you.
Be
a part of the Team
Whether it is about
turning away unnecessary workload for your team, or about getting a larger
chunk of the resources or more benefits for your people, showing that you care
enough to act on their behalf would earn you valuable points as a leader. And
in return, your staff would prefer to remain under your care and supervision
and will deliver and perform better.
Fight for your staff
and in return, they will fight for you. And that’s how you impress your boss
and become invaluable to the organization.
8. Be a Leader: Practice what you Preach
You can’t be the
person setting the rules, then breaking them. Life doesn’t work that way. Lead
by example, they say – actually nowadays they demand it. If you yourself
demand that your team be punctual to work every day, as the leader who is seen
to be more capable and reliable, you can’t be the last person to enter the
office. Break the rules one time too often and it’ll just be a matter of time
before your authority and power gets undermined.
Ultimately, how you
behave as a leader affects the entire team you’re leading. A team is only as
disciplined as how their leader is.
How to Improve the Perception
of Your Inputs
Consciously or not, most people still
judge employees by their perceived contributions. There are several ways you
can appear to be more productive:
·
Arrive Early. This has always been
the key to impress a boss who is concerned with your inputs. Since it is so
hard to predict when traffic will be bad or your bus will be late, sometimes
the only way to ensure you are always on time is to arrive early. Arriving
before your bosses will give them an impressive notion of your work ethic.
·
Dress Well. It is probably
subconscious, but people who are more nicely dressed than their peers are
perceived as being better workers. Be careful not to take this too far. Observing
a higher dress code will stand out as an obvious attempt at flattery. For
example, if no one else wears a tie, then you shouldn’t. If they do, then wear
a nice, clean one.
·
Use Your Computer Like a Pro. Nearly all jobs, even labor positions, now require the use
of a computer. Using your computer quickly is the technological equivalent of
walking quickly. Here are some tips to improve computer performance and productivity.
·
Leave Your Baggage at Home. If they could, every interviewer would ask if aspects of
your personal life are going to distract you and your co-workers and hurt
office productivity. The ideal employee is completely dedicated to the job and
has no personal life. Although that does not describe a normal human being, you
can still do your part to keep your personal life personal. Do your best not to
publicly share problems with your co-workers. Telephone calls to your family
and friends should ideally take place in private. Short of a genuine emergency,
do not rely on your personal life as an excuse for any issues related to job
performance. Strive to be your office’s lowest contributor of drama.
·
Stay Focused. Don’t be seen paying
your bills at the office or aimlessly surfing the web. Long chats with your
co-workers about non-work related subjects can only reinforce the image that
your mind is elsewhere.
·
Stay Positive. If you don’t like your
job, constructively approach those who can help you. Offer specific remedies
rather than general complaints. Frame your solutions as being in the best
interest of the company, not your personal well being. Do it privately and never
complain about your job publicly.
·
Be Incredibly Honest.
Never lie about any aspect of your job or your co-workers, even when the truth
is embarrassing. Being caught in even the smallest lie can destroy your
credibility when it matters the most.
·
Stay Late. Don’t leave the office
before your bosses leave. Even though this can be extremely inconvenient at
times, it shows them that you are working longer hours than they are, and it
exudes a sense of respect. Leaving early every day reflects a lack of passion about
the position and a lack of desire to take on additional projects.
·
Walk Quickly Around the Office. My grandfather taught me this trick a long time ago. When
you need to speak with other colleagues, get some water, or even use the
restroom, do it quickly. When you are noticed, it will always seem like you are
very busy at your job. People who do not look busy are the first people looked
at when firing employees.
How
to Improve the Perception of Your Outputs
·
Keep Up with the Industry. Some people are so focused on their job that they forget
about the world around them. Read trade magazines or join industry groups. If
you can make references to what you have learned, your boss may begin to see
your accomplishments in a broader context.
·
Be Proactive. Yes, I know this is a
popular buzzword, but there really is value in suggesting something yourself
before your boss does. Coming up with your own ideas and assignments
establishes yourself as someone who is interested in promoting the interests of
the company even when not being required to.
·
Meet or Beat Your Deadlines. Delivering your finished product ahead of schedule will
always impress your boss. The Scotty character from the original Star Trek
series popularized the idea of overestimating the time to completion by
finishing repairs ahead of schedule. This trick still works in the real world!
·
Don’t Turn Down Assignments. When your boss comes to you with a project or research
assignment, simply accept it and add it to your list. Even if you are extremely
busy, learn to prioritize your different projects. Stay longer hours if you
have to and get each assignment done on time. Sometimes your boss may give you
many things to balance on your plate in order to test your skills, work ethic,
and passion.
·
Keep Track of Your Work. Only by measuring your output can you show your boss what
you have accomplished. Keep track of the quality and quantity of your work
throughout each quarter. Write down examples of areas in which you’ve improved
since your last performance review. When a client or a co-worker
offers you a compliment, make note of that as well. By keeping a record of
these things, you will have much-needed ammunition in your favor to present
during your performance review and use as leverage to get a raise, bonus, or promotion.
Final
Word
Anyone can chat up their boss and try
to ingratiate themselves. While it is possible that people will favor those
with whom they are most friendly, most employers will continue to evaluate people
based on their perceived job performance. Following these suggestions will help
you to improve your standing with your supervisor, whether they are actually
concerned with your performance, or just notice if you appear to be busy.
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