Hard work, in its popular definition, is overrated. Working smart is now the “it” attitude to everyone who wants a successful career.
This means acknowledging that other things drive your performance at work. This includes your appearance, relationships, and character. The better you handle these often-neglected areas of your career, the better your chances of giving it a good boost.
Confidence Speaks
It’s easy to tell when a person is confident. It’s also easier to work with someone sure about his abilities. The thing with confidence, though, is that it’s almost always judged by appearance. So, you can have the skills, but opportunities pass you by if you don’t look or feel confident enough to deliver a task.
Taking care of your appearance is to your benefit before it is anybody else’s. When you love the way you look, you develop a more positive perspective at work. This positivity is evident and often contagious. That’s one thing your boss looks for in a manager because your attitude has a direct impact on your team.
The next time you feel like putting in extra hours at work on a weekend, why not visit a spa? Better yet, schedule that overdue appointment with your orthodontist in Oviedo, Florida. Your impacted wisdom tooth needed extraction two years ago, and it could be affecting your work attendance. Teeth whitening? Go ahead and get one. A smile goes a long way in exuding confidence, and it’s hard to give one when you have bad teeth.
Relationships Matter
You might have started work with an I-don’t-care-about-other-people mentality. Who can blame you? Sometimes office drama gets too stressful to deal with. If you’re going to advance your career, though, that mentality must go.
There’s no way you can do well at work without compassion for your colleagues. It’s the core of true professionalism and the fuel of productivity. Remember that your job overlaps with other people’s jobs, and their ability to deliver is dependent on your teamwork.
Refusing to get along with them outside of work is the same as telling your boss that you don’t want a promotion. Promotion almost always involves handling more people.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking that getting along with your colleagues means pleasing them. What you need to focus on is showing empathy when due and letting them feel valued. It will benefit you to invest in friendships at work that’ll support you in good times and in bad.
Character Counts
The corporate scene will bring out attitudes that you never thought you had. When your boss is inconsiderate, your workload is heavy, and your colleagues refuse to cooperate, it’s easy to forget that you shouldn’t throw tantrums in the office.
How do you develop good character at work? Strategy and practice. Believe it or not, identifying your triggers and planning how to deal with them will help you be more professional. It will also save you from doing things you’ll regret.
It’s unlikely that you’ll get it right the first time but discipline yourself to stick to your plan. It could be walking away from office gossip or stopping yourself from chatting about your boss’s indecisiveness.
Keep your priorities straight, and let an excellent character help you stand out from the rest.
No great feat was ever achieved without sacrifice. You’ll have to let yourself evolve into a person deserving of high accolades if that’s what you’re aiming for. Remember that it’s a narrow road but the destination is worth the effort you make to get there.
