challenges.at.work.

It’s 9.45 am. You’ve just walked into the office when your boss corners you for being late. You’ve overslept as you stayed back last night until 1am finishing an overdue project. Your office secretary rushes to you and reminds you to return that important phone call to an important client. You sit down to make that important phone call when your colleague in the next cubicle starts humming “what a wonderful life”. The humming get louder every second and you feel like straggling his neck. Every tiny distraction grates on your nerves. You snap at anyone who asks if you need anything. The whole day goes into a never ending downturn spiral from there. Nothing seems to go on right that day. Your only relief is when you go home and cry your eyes out for feeling like a complete failure.

Is work life always like that? Does it have to be that tough? Or are you just not improve yourself in ways you have not foreseen.

It is common to encounter all sorts of problems at work

YOU ARE IN CHARGE

Know that you can decide how you want to respond to anything. Eg. Nobody can make you feel bad or lose your cool if you don’t want to. In fact, you can make things happen instead of waiting for things to happen.

DON’T WORRY

Some things are beyond your control. Eg.unfair bosses, rude customers and even the economic crisis. Accept this and learn to work around then instead.

BE POSITIVE

See problems as opportunities. Eg. A customer complaint can be important feedback to improve your product or service. Mistakes can be a learning experience. Just like Thomas Edison, you may have to discover 1,000 ways of how not to invent a light bulb before you actually do invent the light bulb! Failure is part of the process of success

ALL BOSSES EXPECT THE BEST WORK OUT OF YOU

Be good at what you do-if you are asked to do a job, make sure you know your work and what skills are required to produce the highest quality. Do not assume anything but find out through proper research and consult the experts either in person or through books.

Love what you do- love your work and be excited about it. See it as part of a bigger picture. Are you building something for the community? Are you providing a service for others? Are you developing something that no one has ever done before?

Have integrity- be honest with your bosses, colleagues, suppliers, clients and most importantly, yourself. Treat others the way you want to be treated. Be discreet about company information and do not discuss internal problems with outsiders.

NOBODY IS GOING TO TELL YOU EXACTLY WHAT TO DO AT WORK

Have initiative- don’t always wait for others to take the lead. One good way to solve problems is to prevent them from starting. Remember that bosses promote those with leadership qualities.

Be independent- don’t rely on others to help you with your task or do the work for you. You have to stand on your own two feet.

Be self-motivated- encourage yourself on a regular basis instead of waiting for others to cheer you up. When things gets tough, motivate yourself by focusing on your overall goals instead of sitting down and being gloomy about it.

YOUR SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE WILL BECOME OUTDATED WITH TIME

Challenge what you know- if you think that you are always right, you are already wrong. Be open to other ideas and suggestions. Regularly compare yourself with those who excel in their fields to see where you are.

Decide to keep learning- just because school is over does not mean that your education has ended. Learning is a life-long process. Learn from others and tap their wisdom. Enroll in courses. Read self-improvement books.

Go for the unknown- know what is in the market and move on from there. Be innovative and try new things, you just may be the pioneer of a revolutionary product or business idea. Sometimes, it may be wise to follow the crowd.

TEAMWORK

One person can only achieve so much at work. Major successes in history have been rhe result of teamwork between men and women of caliber. Team up and achieve great things.

SHARING CREDIT

Don’t be selfish about sharing credit especially when the other person deserves it. Be humble. Value the strengths of others instead of thinking about their weaknesses.

PUT YOURSELF IN HIS/HER SHOES

Working in a team requires you to understand the other person. Listen more than you talk

SET GOALS

To prevent yourself from drifting, you need to set work goals on a daily, weekly, monthly or even half-yearly basis. Be realistic when setting goals. Make sure these are within your overall career/ personal plans.

DRAW UP A PLAN

Achieve you goals by drawing up a schedule/action plan. Invest in a good organizer and refer to this consistenly to make sure that you are on track.

THINK BEFORE YOU ACT

Even when doing a simple task such as making a phone call to a client or attending meeting, think through before acting, decide what information you need to convey or receive, and think of how this is to be achieve.

Taken from The Yuppies, Lifestyle Guide Book- A Graduate’s Handbook_2004