How to Impress Your Boss

OK. So you love your job. Your co-workers like you, your boss respects you, and all seems right with the world. Then your company announces that everyone is being put up for review. A good portion of your fellow workers will soon be knocking on the door of unemployment. What should you do? Here is a handy guide to impressing your boss (without brown nosing.)

Begin by knowing your boss’ agenda.

Figure out how his mind works, and what he is looking for in a stellar employee. Some bosses operate on a numbers base; others look at how your business directly affects a customer base. Once you know what his priorities are, you can justify your job while speaking in his language.

Learn how to say no.

Save your yesses for things that are important to your boss. If you are focusing all of your attention on things that your boss supports, sometimes it is OK to turn down other projects. If you are given loads of projects, make sure you find out which one is most important to your boss. Low priority assignments can be put off until you get the high priority ones out of the way.

Communicate like your boss.

Each boss has an individual way that they prefer communication to be handled. If your boss only wants to be called on his cell, do that. If he or she prefers solely email communication, employ that tactic. Bosses will be more likely to listen to what you have to say when you are speaking in the format that is most comfortable for them.

Share your accomplishments.

When you work on something that benefits your company in a large way, make sure your boss knows that it was you that was responsible. Too often an individual’s work is lost in the masses, and it is important that your boss has an idea of the integral part you play as part of the office team. You can email him to let him know a big deal went through. You can send a positive email to your team and copy the email to your boss.

Time with your boss.

If you work on a team of highly qualified people, your boss may decide to make cuts based on who they want to keep around more, or who they know and like the best. Make some time to spend with your boss. When they have a light week, ask them out to dinner. Make sure you do this in a genuine way so people do not see you as brown nosing. Try to find similarities between the two of you that can help make an honest connection. They will grow to see you as a valued part of the team.

Try something new.

You can additionally get ahead by looking for problems you can solve within a department, Is there a problem you can fix or a situation only you can make better? If so, fix the problem and make sure your boss knew that you worked outside of the box to make things run more smoothly.

Open yourself to new ideas.

Show your boss that you are open to change and new ideas. Ask questions, share knowledge, and make yourself a team player. Helping out other people will show that you care about the office as a whole.

Trying these simple techniques will help you to impress your boss, and help secure your job in this ever changing market.

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