The world we live in, is changing at a rapid rate. Today technological evolution is replacing jobs and having several degrees is a commonality among the masses. The only way to differentiate yourself from the many people eagerly awaiting their dream jobs is to adapt and learn skills to make yourself indispensable. Below are some tactical points that you can utilize to separate you from the rest. Follow these tips to secure your position and have a meaningful career:
Find out what skills your company values
Every company needs diversity. Diversity brings to the table innovative ideas and better ways to solve business problems. A company is therefore always on the lookout to source out individuals with unique skill-sets and backgrounds to supplement their weaknesses. You can easily find out what these weaknesses are by speaking to senior managers and more experienced staff. Then try to master necessary skills and propose solutions to your manager. This will not only show initiative on your part but also assist in getting you noticed by the right people and ultimately make yourself indispensable in the eyes of the company.
Get yourself noticed
Working extremely hard at irrelevant projects may not be enough to guarantee your security in a company. The key to making yourself indispensable is to target important projects that impact the business so that you get noticed and advance your career. Ask yourself: What projects will greatly benefit the business? It is often the case that the strategic and bottom line projects are usually the ones that require intervention by senior staff. Therefore even if your contribution is small, you have a great chance of being noticed and will be one step ahead in being considered an irreplaceable asset.
The best way to make yourself indispensable : Find better ways of doing things
Kaizen is a Japanese word for continuous improvement. Toyota has been using this mindset for many years because it works. Processes need to change all the time – there are always better and innovative ways of doing things which can significantly save the business money and time. Make yourself known as a game changer i.e. someone who challenges the norm. This way you will always been considered irreplaceable – remember original thinkers are a rare find.
Be humble
There are essentially two types of knowledge you will come across in life; explicit and tacit knowledge. Explicit knowledge is the stuff you will learn about in books at schools and universities – the easily transferable stuff. Tacit knowledge on the other hand is much more difficult to codify into text. It is learnt through practical exposure or when taught by an individual e.g. learning to play a musical instrument.
When you join the workplace you will find that there are more senior staff members that possess tacit knowledge which is probably the reason why they progressed higher up in the organization. The fastest way for you to become a valued member of the company is therefore to emulate them and obtain tacit knowledge too. The best way to do this is through mentorship from the right people. Being humble is therefore a necessary trait to have as you will find that people are more inclined to share information with you if you lose the pompous demeanor.
Learn how to form good relationships
Become a conversationalist. Know how to engage people and make friends. The more you network the greater the probability that people are going to be willing to fight for you in times when your job may be at risk. Take genuine interest in people, be polite and always appreciate people’s efforts. These are things that essentially strengthen work relationships
Join professional bodies
If you are in a professional career, then there is likely some niche organization you can join. There is usually a fee and many people don’t usually join them for this very reason. Professional bodies however give you accreditations that will make get you recognized as a professional and which prove that you are continuously learning. The fact is companies will value employees who are clued up on industry changes – they want people who are familiar with changes in their field so that they can be on par with competitors. Why not be there go to person?
The best way to make yourself indispensable in your career essentially boils down to continuously re-inventing yourself. Focus on improving your skills and practice the above steps. Be both a hard worker and a smart one.
To learn how to fully achieve success in all facets of your life, read: Applying A Growth Mindset To Achieve Success
