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Four Ways to Be an Indispensable Employee

By Brenda Ferguson Hodges

Republish: EasyPublish™
Published: 22Jan2009
Word count: 530
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With the economic meltdown throughout the country, including 150-year old companies collapsing, banks failing, and over 600,000 people losing their jobs since January of 2008, the time has come for you to toot your own horn to your employer. Be the employee that your employer can't do without and show the company how valuable you are.

Being indispensable is important to your career. The meaning of indispensable is "essential," which is something of the highest importance for achieving a specific goal. You are more apt to have job security if you become of the highest importance in your company's achievement of excellence.

Here are 4 ways to become indispensable:

Be Low Maintenance - Be flexible enough to adapt to change. Many companies are trying to survive the economic crisis and are constantly making changes in their organization. Those who embrace change prosper, while those who don't, struggle throughout their careers. This is really true, and I have seen it happen throughout my career. If you don't go with the flow, you will not be considered a team player, and this prevents you from being considered for promotions and other opportunities.

Another work quirk that frustrates managers is the employee who excels at his duties but only does those he enjoys, while leaving the less desirable tasks for someone else. You won't be a highly valued employee unless you do the entire job. This includes the unpleasant parts such as filing, filling out paperwork, or cleaning up.

Learn what your boss wants from you - You should always know what your boss expects from you. In fact, you should ask this question during the interview process. If you don't know what your boss wants from you, how can you be successful? Always make sure you have the following:

1) your current job description;

2) regular performance evaluations;

3) a short informal meeting with your supervisor each month (this can also be done over lunch);

These are necessary for your career health. You may find that your supervisor isn't even clear on what he or she expects of you. If you don't know the expectations, it's impossible for you to be viewed as a highly-valued employee. Your value to the organization can't be measured until there's something to guide you.

Broaden your circle of influence - Meet people, join organizations, make connections, and build relationships. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that fewer than 20% of working Americans found jobs through networking, but a whopping 72% of the executives making over $100,000 a year, did. When I changed jobs earlier in my career, I was always contacted by someone that I knew. So I know for a fact that networking really works. It's important to build relationships inside and outside of your organization.

Take Charge of Your Own Destiny - These days, you have to toot your own horn. Make your intentions known. When you announce your intentions, it accomplishes two important goals. It creates expectations of you in others, and it creates expectations of you in yourself. You dramatically increase your chances of success when everyone is expecting you to succeed. You should also be aware that your raise will become more effective when you become more effective.

Brenda Ferguson, "The Interview Queen," is inspiring, motivating, and empowering - but most importantly, she's effective. A speaker and author on the topic of interviewing, Brenda delivers insights and principles that are proven to achieve CAREER SUCCESS. Her website is http://www.theinterviewqueen.com

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