None of us wants to get fired from our jobs, especially in the present economic climate where nobody is quite sure what is likely to happen in the world over the next couple of years. Besides that, if you are lucky enough to get a new job you will have to start your long climb up the corporate ladder all over again. It is always best to change jobs on your own terms, such as when you are leaving to take on a better position that is more rewarding – not when your employer decides, and you could find yourself out in the street with no salary coming in next week.
With this in mind you don't want to run the risk of losing your job when you are unprepared. It is therefore in your own interests to make yourself as fire-proof as you possibly can. The following eight ways of making your present job more secure can help you retain your position while those around you might not be so successful.
Firstly you must always be aware that you are employed so you can either make more money for your employer than it cost him to hire you, or that your production can make life easier for your boss. If you fail on either front your position could become precarious. In other words you must become a valuable asset in your own right, one that your employer would not want to run the risk of losing. You can do this in various ways some of them include the following:
1. Work Hard and Keep Learning
Never be satisfied that you have done enough. Work hard always and try to improve as you go. A clock-watcher is soon noticed as is a worker who is willing to stay on to finish whatever it is that you are currently working on before clocking off and going home for the day. Read up on all aspects of your job and become an expert in whatever it is you are employed to do.
2. Treat Your Job as a Lifestyle and not Just Work
There is a big difference in approaching your job as being a part of your life and that of simply turning up in the morning to do your bit and go home at night to start living. When you enjoy going to work you will know you are in the right job and if you sincerely like your job it will show up in the type of work you produce.
3. Be Willing to Give and Take
If you find yourself in the position where you will be temporarily out of pocket to get your job completed don't hesitate to pay up. Even if you can't be reimbursed at a later date (which on most occasions you will be) still go out of your way to get your job completed, if you have to do so. Such dedication will be appreciated and will not go unnoticed even if you sometimes feel it is.
4. Always be Punctual
It is important to all employers that their staff is on the job when they are expected to be. Sleeping in and generally being tardy in your approach to your work does not endear you to your employer, so why antagonise him or her. Always be on time and have your work finished by any deadline you might be given, even if it means working overtime.
5. Don't Relate Your Work Effort to Your Salary
Although it is important to make sure, when you first apply for a job, that you will be adequately compensated, from there on put it out of your mind. Once you start work it is your job to put in not to evaluate your own worth. That is your boss’ role. Once employed you should do your best to carry out any task given you, as economically as possible. When you start thinking you are worth more than you are getting paid you are on the slippery slope out. The only way to handle a situation like this is to find another employer who is willing to pay more for your services. If you are successful you can give your current employer a choice on whether he or she is willing to pay more to keep you on, or you move on.
6. Do the Work Your Boss Wants You to do
Although all employers want their employees to show initiative, you are still an employee and you must do what your boss wants you to do, not what you want to do. If you feel your job can be done more efficiently in another way, by all means talk it over with your boss but get his or her approval before you make any changes.
7. Be a Pleasant Workmate
It is important that all workplaces are pleasant places to work in. Do your bit to make it so. Always be pleasant to your workmates as well as to your employer. If hard financial times hit and the company you work for has to make some employees redundant, it is always the less pleasant workers who will lose their jobs first.
8. Never Behave Inappropriately
The office bully is never appreciated. Those who try to laud it over others by acting rudely or using bad language when it is inappropriate will not obtain support when it comes to thinning out the workforce because of an economic downturn.
This article was written by Justin Toladro a writer for lifeinsurancefinder.com.au, a website that compares life insurance quotes to help find the best policies in Australia.
